Pak Tea House » Archive
Conduct Un-becoming
Source Brigadier (retd.) F.B. Ali, who fought in the ’71 war, gives his account of the events that resulted in the dismemberment of Pakistan and left behind a legacy of shame. The Supplementary Report of the 1971 War Inquiry Commission (headed by Chief Justice Hamoodur Rahman) has recently been published in the magazine India Today. There is little doubt that this is a genuine document. It is unfortunate that, even though 30 years have passed, the Commission’s report has not been made public in Pakistan, and we are forced to depend on foreign sources to learn of its contents in dribs and drabs. Why this report has been buried so deep in secrecy is a simple question to answer: it is a scathing critique of the conduct of many leading politicians and … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
MPs who opposed Nizam-e-Adl are no longer Muslims: Sufi
By Ghulam Farooq reports in the Daily Times MINGORA: The parliamentarians who opposed the promulgation of Nizam-e-Adl Regulation in the National Assembly are no longer Muslims, Tehreek Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Muhammadi (TNSM) chief Sufi Muhammad said on Friday. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
Endorsing surrender —Abbas Rashid
by Abbas Rashid (From Daily Times) Within parliament as well as outside, there is an air of complacency overshadowed by confusion and fear. If ceding Swat was meant to appease the hunger of the militants, it has obviously served only to whet their appetite Even before the ink has dried on the signed copy of the Nizam-e Adl Regulation 2009, the TNSM/Taliban leadership has seen it fit to clear up any confusion on the part of even … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
Silence of the Lambs
Silence of the Lambs By Samad Khurram Back in 2002, I was returning from Friday prayers when I saw an unusual gathering of singing and quasi-dancing Mullahs. Unusual because I had always assumed Mullahs to be against all types of Kuffar (Art). The amused crowd were listening to chants of “Taliban aa gayay, Taliban aa gayay”. I smirked. As if! Pakistan is a nuclear country with the seventh largest army. We’re safe. The Mullahs’ songs have been answered … Read entire article »
Filed under: Activism, Army, Citizens, Democracy, FATA, India, Islam, Jinnah, lawyers movement, North-West Frontier Province, Northern Areas, Pakistan, Parliament, Religion, Rights, Taliban, Terrorism, youth
Pakistan's Fatal Shore
From “ATLANTIC MONTHLY May 2009″ THE WORD PAKISTAN summons up the Indian subcontinent, but the subcontinent actually begins with the Hub River, a few miles west of Karachi, near the Indus River Delta. Thus, Pakistan’s 400-mile-long Makran coast, which runs from the Iranian frontier eastward along the Arabian Sea, constitutes a vast transition zone that bears a heavy imprint of the Middle East and particularly of Arabia: directly across the Gulf of Oman is Muscat, the capital of Oman. This transition zone, which also includes the interior land adjacent to the coast, is known as Baluchistan. Through this alkaline wasteland, the 80,000-man army of Alexander the Great marched westward in its disastrous retreat from India in 325 B.C. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
The Price of Moral Cowardice
From The Dawn: The price of moral cowardice By Ardeshir Cowasjee Sunday, 19 Apr, 2009 | 01:49 AM PST AUGUST 11, 1947, in the constituent assembly of Pakistan at Karachi: “You may belong to any religion or caste or creed — that has nothing to do with the business of the state.” — Founder and maker of Pakistan Mohammad Ali Jinnah. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
Extremely Extremist and other stories
From The News By Shandana Minhas During his visit to Beijing President Asif Zardari said terrorism ‘needs to be tackled on an urgent basis’ and that he would ‘utilize every forum to brief the world about prevailing situation.’ Here’s an idea. Why doesn’t he do the same for Pakistan? For all the millions still doing the ala ostrich routine? He could be on all the channels simultaneously. His PR people could make him a slick presentation with charts and everything (no giving him a laser light though, that might be asking for trouble). Points he might like to cover include: … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
History through Women's Voices
From Morung Express By Pippa Virdee A generation of Pakistani women striving to affirm their rights in the public sphere can draw on a rich history to which education is central Many of the conflicts and crises that today affect Pakistan seem to have the experience of women at their heart. The images of the punitive flogging of a young woman in the newly Talibanised region of Swat are but one especially vivid symbol of the degrading treatment … Read entire article »
Filed under: History
Partition of India: The Final Years
Posted by Raza Rumi Usman Sadozai, an active member and visitor and soon to be an author of PTH has contributed the selection of this post and the thoughts for a preamble. Following on from our thread “Partition of India: The Dialogue Continues”, here is the next part in the series of articles by A G Noorani appearing in The Hindu’s Frontline magazine in 2005. The story of Partition has recently attracted much interest from both sides … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
Non-Hijabi Solidarity Day at Rutgers
By Anthony J. Aschettino Once again, it is time for Islamic Awareness Week here at Rutgers Newark. This is in and of itself a good thing: we here read the name of the week in two ways, namely that non-Muslims become more aware of Islam while at the same time Muslims become more aware of non-Muslims. There are several events marking the week such as a discussion on faith and reason, an analysis of Malcolm X, and an invitation to watch and learn about the Friday Prayer. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
Mukhtar Mai's marriage – an alternative view
By Aisha Fayyazi Sarwari Mukhtar Mai, Glamour Magazine’s woman of the year 2005, ties the knot, for reasons she defines as “to support women’s rights.” I hope that this woman who has not backed down in the face of oppression in the name of culture, tradition and religion will continue to hold on tight to that principle even when the honeymoon is over. There are some troubling signs in this new relationship. One is that the … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
Ah, the deal – more confusion
by Raza Rumi Much has been made of this NYT article on the class inequalities in NWFP that are fuelling the Taliban movement. However, I would like to ask where in Pakistan class inequalities do NOT exist. They are everywhere. By using this argument then the Taliban takeover becomes a natural conclusion as a social revolution is required everywhere to correct the exploitative structures and provide ‘speedy justice’. Therefore, our political class has to rise to the occasion and provide the kind of leadership, delivery against their manifestos and restore the fading writ of the state. On another forum this deal was being termed as a popular demand of Swatis and here is what I wrote for those who are interested: With due respect to the … Read entire article »
Filed under: Al Qaeda, North-West Frontier Province, Pakistan, Peshawar, public policy, Rural, Terrorism, violence, war
Confronting the Taliban
JUST LAW AND RELIGION By Michael Kessler President Obama heralded an encouraging new tone when he told Turkey’s Parliament on Monday that the United States “is not and will never be at war with Islam…America’s relationship with the Muslim community, the Muslim world, cannot and will not just be based upon opposition to terrorism…We seek broader engagement based upon mutual interest and mutual respect.” … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
Sikhs, Baisakhi and Gurmukhi
Sikhs from all over the world visit Pakistan every year in large numbers. This year this number experienced a sharp decline by 95%. Yet another great victory for those rag tag crooks, cranks and mad men who want to crush Pakistan economically and socially ! … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
PTH biweekly Cartoon
Picture of the Week
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Sunrise at the Arabian Sea, Charna Island
24 Dec 2011
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