Beginning of the end
Thousands of Shia protesters braved sub-zero temperature for nearly three days as they staged a sit-in in Quetta, refusing to bury 87 victims of the January 10 twin bombings at…
The heart of the matter
With all the distraction that is created by politics, the latest invasion being the promised long march by Tahirul Qadri, the momentous issue at this time is religious extremism and…
The Monti option
Pakistan will hold its next parliamentary and presidential elections this year. Many Pakistanis see this first ever completion of its term by an elected civilian government as cause for celebration.…
A moderate firebrand
Dr Tahirul Qadri is the new megastar of our media. At the same time, he is the bête noire of the old political parties, with the exception of the MQM.…
The mood of the moment
Pakistan’s mainstream political leadership appears edgy these days. All of a sudden many politicians seem to have had a revelation that a conspiracy is being hatched to derail the country’s…
Spotlight: ‘Popular take-over’ of the government in the offing?: Spanner in the works or saviour? Your choice!
Politics is in something of a commotion following Allama Tahirul Qadri's ultimatum, MQM's firm opposition to fresh delimitation of constituencies and to voter-lists correction, Sindh's unequivocal stand against Sindh Peoples…
Pakistan’s unmourned Bouazizi
It was a cold and clammy winter’s evening in Mexico City, but this did not seem to matter. It was a season of mirth and merriment, of mistletoe and chiming…
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…
Identifying top place where corruption resides
Measuring corruption accurately is just not impossible. Economists have used indirect mathematical tools to come up with guesstimates. It is irrelevant whether corruption in Pakistan is to the tune of…
Lessons for the US
There were significant moments in the 20th century when heightened awareness of major human values – freedom, justice, order, security etc – forced American, and other western thinkers and academics…
