Space for civil society
“If leaders do not listen to their people, they will hear from them — in the streets, the squares, or, as we see far too often, on the battlefield. There…
The golden rule
One person can make a difference: this is the credo that has helped some extraordinary individuals to positively change the course of nations. It inspired me in my public service…
A tale of two fires
On March 26, 1911, a New York Times headline announced a disaster, “141 men and girls die in shirtwaist factory fire; trapped high up in Washington Place Building; Street strewn…
Metro villages
The opponents of the metro bus have infinite reasons against the mega-billion commuter facility such as the apparently inflated costs and government’s lopsided preference for these projects over health, education…
Charter of economy
The finance minister has been advocating that all the major political parties should sign a ‘charter of economy’ on the pattern of the charter of democracy concluded some years back…
Juncker EU army plan impractical, unpopular?
European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker's call for an EU army to counter a more assertive Russia is impractical and will face strong resistance from many member states, analysts said Monday.…
Franco symbols live on in Spain 40 years after his death
Four decades after the death of dictator Francisco Franco, Spain has not completely turned the page on his dictatorship as dozens of monuments honouring his regime are still scattered across…
Egypt dodges diplomatic flak over ‘Sisi tapes’
Despite months of embarrassment for Egypt over a series of alleged leaks of sensitive remarks including about Gulf allies, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi appears to have avoided a major diplomatic…
Polish jails throw open their doors for a day
Warsaw bank manager Grazyna Dubiel would not normally be behind bars on a Sunday. "I'd be out taking a walk somewhere," the 57-year-old said while following guards down a windowless…
The politics of statistics
Data manipulation has become a standard normal activity for Pakistani governments though, in all fairness, one cannot say that such a practice is limited to Pakistani political leadership - be…
