Minorities and land predators
When future historians look back at Pakistan as it was in the early 21st century they will observe that this period was unparalleled when it came to repression of minorities.…
Organised crime challenges
ORGANISED crime in Pakistan is deeply entrenched. Pakistan’s strategic location, coupled with socioeconomic vulnerabilities, porous borders and weak institutional oversight, makes it both a source and transit hub for multiple…
Time for a hard state
In an era marked by political polarisation, economic instability and an erosion of trust in public institutions, Pakistan stands at a pivotal crossroads. The recent remarks by Chief of Army…
Corruption, crime, chaos, Karachi
On gaining independence, Karachi – a modest trading post with 450,000 inhabitants – became the capital city of Pakistan. Over the years, it welcomed all into its magnanimous fold. Today,…
Guerilla gardening
THERE are those who complain, and then there are those who take action … and the residents of Kenya’s Kericho county fall squarely into the latter category. Kenyan roads are…
Planet of slums
“Instead of cities of light soaring toward heaven, much of the 21st-century urban world squats in squalor, surrounded by pollution, excrement, and decay.” — Mike Davis IN the shadows of…
Policing climate change
ISLAMABAD Police have recently been given horses to patrol the walking track on Margalla Hills National Park. The Motorway Police have been given new automobiles and laser guns to monitor…
Life is a struggle
THE last year has been tough for most people up to middle-income levels. Inflation has increased a lot and salaries, though some might have gone up, have not kept pace…
Drawing in the diaspora
It has been estimated that our diaspora, numbering over 10 million, has a combined earning per annum comparable to Pakistan’s GDP of $340 billion. Given the vastly superior income level,…
Transforming slums
IT is the slum that earned Hollywood millions of dollars. Dharavi, the slum pictured in the 2008 blockbuster movie Slumdog Millionaire, is estimated to be just around 2.8 square kilometres;…
