Agenda for the nation 2013 and beyond-II
What is the real nature and extent of the domestic crisis? Let me try to highlight some of its major dimensions. First and foremost, it is a 'crisis of legitimacy'.…
The Pakistan exception
Drones have been dotting the skies above Pakistan for several years now. In Fata, they are routine inhabitants of the thankless sky, their characteristic sound an accompaniment to the rhythms…
The right to home
Through the pogroms and cataclysms of history, when populations were chased from their homes and hearths by war or famine or persecution, it was always their right to arrive at…
Fata misrule
The tirade unleashed against the appointment of a tribesman as governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa indicates only one thing, and that is the mindset of those who work against the interests…
Changing mindsets
When Sheema Kermani launched her play Zehreela Dhooan, she probably didn’t realise how formidable would be her battle against the cigarette. In this play a cast of eight earnest people…
By diplomacy, not revenge
Skirmishes at the India-Pakistan Line of Control (LoC) in the Mendhar sector in Jammu have spilled blood and precipitated a crisis that could snowball into a destructive conflict unless it’s…
Poor man’s justice
Two hundred and fifty-nine people died in the Baldia garment factory fire tragedy in Karachi on Sept 11, 2012. Before this, the highest number of people killed in a factory…
The imperative of subversion
The passing of the so-called ‘Fair Trial’ Bill in the National Assembly this past week should have raised eyebrows. Notwithstanding its name, the legislation will empower state agencies to intercept…
Remembering Baldia victims
Last week the 13th Akhtar Hameed Khan Development Forum came as a timely reminder of the injustice befalling the workers in a country where it is a crime to be…
Eradicating poverty
International Day for the Eradication of Poverty fell on Oct. 17. The idea of marking this day can be traced back to a UN resolution of 1992 which proclaimed that…
