Reforming the legislators – on the fake degrees
Raza Rumi The debate on fake degrees has captured the middle class imagination of Pakistan’s mainstream media. True that lying and misrepresenting facts is not acceptable. Yet, discriminatory laws against the political elites are not kosher either. The debate on the issue remains sensationalist, purist and devoid of the larger context of Pakistan’s democratic history. Each era of our existence has witnessed such campaigns. In the 1950s laws to screen out the corrupt politicians was launched with much fanfare. It was a clear tool for the unelected institutions to tame and manipulate the political class. In the 1960s such a process was institutionalized and Pakistan reeled under the ill-effects of authoritarianism leading to the break up of the country in 1971. The establishment continued the policy throughout the 1980s and we witnessed the … Read entire article »
Filed under: Judiciary, Pakistan, Politics, public policy, Society
The national narrative
Salman Tarik Kureshi Daily Times, June 12, 2010 What happened through the 1950s was the piecemeal articulation of a national narrative for the new state. Jinnah’s liberal, inclusive vision was converted into a faux Islamic exclusivism. Conformity was imposed on political pluralism and a unitary state, belying the Quaid’s crusades for provincial autonomy, was created Pakistan, we learn, is rated among the five most unstable countries in the Global Peace Index. Scarcely surprising, given the ongoing civil … Read entire article »
Filed under: Army, Civil Service, Colonialism, Constitution, Democracy, History, Judiciary, Media, Pakistan, state
Our Free and Independent Judiciary!
By YLH The Supreme Court has proved yet again that it is independent and free… independent of any check by law and free of all rational sense. It is now becoming increasingly clear that the the Superior Courts have every intention to allow every terrorist and his mother in law loose on the streets. By dismissing the appeals of Punjab and Federal Governments against release from house arrest of Hafiz Saeed, our honorable Supreme Court told the government, “Arrest him when you have proof”. What would constitute proof one wonders? Indian Government has submitted five dossiers. Is there nothing in them that atleast qualifies as actionable evidence? It seems though that the Supreme Court is now unconcerned with the fate of this country. … Read entire article »
Death of Collective Wisdom
Another exclusive post from Ahmad Nadeem for PTH – comments are welcome (Raza Rumi) “Is there a competition going on in Pakistan between institution to earn shame and notoriety for their nation?” my colleague asked me casually while we were having some drinks and watching a news television. “We are on that path for last 40years”, I answered stubbornly. Can there anything such shameful to force you behave that stubborn over your national pride? There is, hold your breath, Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists, the top body of media and custodian of ‘freedom of speech and civil liberties’, in a press release issued by its Secretary General, Mr Shamsul Islam Naz, has “officially’ appreciated the blocking of the Facebook Website. This was followed by the Lahore High Court orders of a blanket … Read entire article »
Giving credit where it is due
Published in the Daily Times Giving Credit Where it’s Due (Daily Times 04/26) By Agha Haidar Raza Pakistan recently had two major delegations visiting the US. Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi led the first contingent under the auspices of a new ‘Strategic Dialogue’ with the US. In the second trip, Prime Minister Gilani led his team to President Obama’s first Nuclear Summit. Attended by over 47 heads of state, the summit was the largest gathering of world leaders to descend upon the US soil since the 1940s. Recognised as one of the world’s safe-keepers of a nuclear stockpile, Pakistan gained a nod of approval from the world’s seven nuclear bomb carriers. I am unaware if many journalists or citizens in Pakistan read foreign newspapers, magazines or even blogs, but over the course of the … Read entire article »
Filed under: Army, Benazir Bhutto, Constitution, Democracy, Economy, Egalitarian Pakistan, India, Islamabad, Judiciary, Liberal Democratic Pakistan, Pakistan, public policy, state, Taliban, Terrorism, USA, Yusuf Raza Gillani, Zardari
Pakistan: Clear and present danger
Raza Rumi If the parliament and judiciary want to continue exercising their newfound powers, they have no option but to act strictly within the framework of the Pakistani Constitution Pakistan is a surreal country. Only here we have long, protracted struggles for democracy and only here we are almost always ready to scuttle democracy. Perhaps Iskander Mirza was not all too wrong while making the assessment that democracy does not suit the genius of our people. An added qualification is that it does not suit the genius of the elites, … Read entire article »
Filed under: Constitution, human rights, Judiciary, Justice, Law, lawyers movement, Media, minorities, Pakistan, Politics, public policy, Rights, secular Pakistan, Society, state
PTH Exclusive: Interview with J. Jawwad Khawaja
Posted by Raza Rumi We are grateful to Babar Mirza who has translated an interview given by Justice Jawwad S. Khawaja to Sohail Waraich in June 2007 which is recorded in Waraich’s book ‘Adlia ke Arooj-o-Zawaal ki Kahani’. The interview is a must read for all those who are interested in Pakistan’s politics and institutions. A biographical note is also available for those who wish to know more about the life and times of J. Khawaja. The latter resigned when J. Iftikhar Chauhdry was illegally deposed by the Musharraf regime. Later, he was part of the lawyers and judges movement and he was re-inducted into the Supreme Court after J. Chauhdry was restored as the Chief Justice in 2009. The interview also explains why Justice Khawaja took oath unde the 2000 PCO during the Musharraf regime. Just as in any other … Read entire article »
Filed under: Activism, Judiciary, Justice, Law, lawyers movement, movements, Pakistan
The More Things Change…
…the more they remain the same The ISI – a proxy for the Army, since Z.A.Bhutto’s creation of ISI’s infamous Political Cell – seems to be making it clear that it (too) is beyond accountability. After Malik Qayyum tried to show he still had some nuisance value by declaring to Hamid Mir that ‘a former head of a powerful intelligence agency had confirmed to him that (the missing person) Mr Janjua was dead’, there were news items about the police (possibly) investigating a handful of former and serving intelligence and army officers in relation to missing persons. Mrs Amina Janjua promptly responded to the possible muddying of the intelligence agency’s name by writing to The News. She declares in this letter that she does not seek investigation against any ‘valuable’ national agency … Read entire article »
Filed under: Activism, Al Qaeda, Army, baluchistan, Citizens, Democracy, human rights, journalism, Judiciary, Justice, Pakistan, Taliban, USA
Room for optimism
['The audacity of hope'? 'Hope dies last'? Or, just the reality of Pakistan in its many aspects? Here's how Mohsin Hamid sees it. - PTH] Dawn, Friday, 09 Apr, 2010 EVER since returning to live in Pakistan a few months ago, I’ve been struck by the pervasive negativity of views here about our country. Whether in conversation, on television, or in the newspaper, what I hear and read often tends to boil down to the same message: our country is going down the drain. But I’m not convinced that it is. I don’t dispute for a second that these are hard times. Thousands of us died last year in terrorist attacks. Hundreds of thousands were displaced by military operations. Most of us don’t have access to decent schools. Inflation is squeezing our poor and middle class. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Democracy, Economy, Education, Identity, Judiciary, Languages, Media, Pakistan, Religion, Society, state, Terrorism
A Conversation With Air Marshal (R) Asghar Khan
Asghar Khan speaks about democracy and clarifies his alleged ‘invitation’ to Gen Zia ul Haq to take over; and his (in)famous comment about hanging Bhutto at Hala Bridge. He talks about his petition to the Supreme Court in relation to the ISI bribing politicians (a.k.a. the Mehran Bank scandal). Here’s the 2nd of 3 parts of the interview. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6TIagGt_rA] and here are Part 1 & Part 3 In case you are interested, this is Ardeshir Cowasjee writing in Dawn of 26 April 2009 about the Jinnah Award winner Asghar Khan’s address to the Jinnah Society. … Read entire article »
Appointment Of Judges – India And Pakistan
By Yasser Latif Hamdani In all likelihood, the judicial crisis will be over in the late afternoon today when the Federal Government will withdraw its notification thus burying the basic issue in the crisis. The heroes to save the day are once again none other than Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan – the great bridge builder- and Prime Minister Gillani who has proved himself to be a statesman. When divorced from the drama of high politics, there are some legal issues that need some urgent attention. First and foremost is the issue of the consultation of Chief Justice being a mandatory provision for the appointment and elevation of the said judges under 177. The meaning of consultation is provided under Article 260 where such deliberation is not binding on the president save in matters … Read entire article »
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