How to build a state
In a statement released to the press in the wake of the gruesome massacre of Shia Hazaras in Quetta, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif declared, rather ominously, that Pakistan was…
World Water Day today: Water scarcity and health
Arguably and statistically, one of the biggest threats endangering human lives is not the threat of a global nuclear war or the growing Ozone hole; it is the problem of…
A war of choice
A discerning disaggregation of the phenomenon of militancy among the groups that have, over decades, taken root in central and southern Punjab makes for an important study. This is especially…
Illusions of peace
A brave woman by the name of Rehana Haleem, the sister of one of the men involved in the shooting of Malala Yousafzai, spoke up during a CNN interview last…
Violent elections
Will the upcoming elections be violent? Can a substantial surge in incidents of violence and terrorism cause a delay? These and similar questions are in many minds these days. There…
Mengal’s warning
Sardar Akhtar Mengal’s declaration that the forthcoming election will not settle matters in strife-torn Balochistan must be taken seriously by all those who have any say in the affairs of…
Anything is possible
Remember military dictator Oliver Cromwell telling the members of the Rump Parliament on April 20, 1653, “You have sat too long for any good you have been doing lately. Depart,…
The fatal disorder
`If Pakistan is to develop as a democratic and progressive state, sectarian activities must be put down with firmness; otherwise Pakistan will become a mediaeval and reactionary state.` Punjab DIG,…
Settlers who won’t be missed
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan recently published a booklet titled ‘The Baloch Who is Not Missing and Others Who Are’. It contains stories of Baloch missing persons and what…
Targeted killings
Targeted killing has come to be seen as driven by sectarian, ethnic or terrorist motives. In Karachi targeted killings are pushing certain groups towards isolation. Since January 2010, on average…
