Justice served
by Saad Hafiz The Supreme Court (SC) has decided to indict Prime Minister Gilani for contempt of court for his refusal to write a letter to the Swiss authorities asking them to restore corruption cases against President Zardari in that country. The contempt proceedings against PM Gilani stem from an earlier SC ruling which threw out the controversial National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) in 2009. The NRO issued by the former President General Musharraf in 2007 granted amnesty … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
At Home Nowhere
By Hamza Usman An inevitable question Pakistanis always ask me is, “what are you?” Often, I’ve wondered the same question. Besides ‘Pakistani,’ I don’t know what else to say. I’m not Balochi or Sindhi. I can’t speak Punjabi. In my house, besides English, Urdu is the only other language spoken. When people ask me what language my parents speak, that’s what I tell them. Unlike many of my acquaintances, I don’t come from a town or village in interior Pakistan. Like millions in Pakistan, my family migrated from India. My grandparents’ families originate from Delhi, Lucknow and Aligarh, the bastions of Urdu-speaking peoples in India. In Pakistan, I am merely a ‘Muhajir;” an Urdu speaking migrant from India, now living in Karachi. My family, like millions of others, came to Pakistan believing … Read entire article »
City by the Sea: The future of Karachi’s Coastline
This documentary explores alternatives to haphazard development along Karachi’s coastline in light of the basic principles of urban planning. The Urdu version is up here: … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
Everything is More Fun in Pakistan!
“This is just a off shoot of the new “More Fun in Philippines” campaign by the Philippines tourism board. Clearly I’ve just used random pictures I found off the net and not really promoted tourism to Pak in most of them. Now if only I had a good camera… and any photography skills we could actually turn this into something good Join me! ”– by Madiha Talat (view the whole excellent album here). … Read entire article »
Future of Pakistan’s Western Frontier
Prof Farakh A Khan’s exclusive contribution for PTH The aggressors have called people of what are now Fata and of Khyber-Pakhtunkhawa different names at different times of history labelled as terrorists or freedom fighters. The ten-year war has taken toll of the American purse and its fighters. On the other hand the Afghan people are constantly suffering. The Americans are openly talking to Afghan Taliban leadership since November 2010 to end American occupation of Afghanistan. The … Read entire article »
Fabrication galore: Nadeem Ul Haque and the nukes controversy
Ahmad Rafay Alam ‘s exclusive piece for Pak Tea House. I stopped writing for The News after their attacks against Asma Jehangir during the run-up the Supreme Court Bar elections in 2010. I knew The News catered to every constituency – from the sublime to the ridiculous. It has to. It’s in business, after all. But what they tried to do with Asma was reckless and unforgivable. There are plenty other papers out there, I thought to myself, why be associated with this one. I have not regretted my decision. Last week, I saw the same ugly underside of the paper’s editorial policies when Ahmad Noorani tried to uncover a scandal that wasn’t there. Noorani, who is known to call helpless interviewees late at night and record their conversations, made headlines some … Read entire article »
Pakistan through pictures in 2011 – Part 5
Cyclists compete during the second stage of the Himalayas 2011 International Mountainbike Race in the mountainous area of Lake Saif-ul-Maluk in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Sept. 17. The cycling event, organized by the Kaghan Memorial Trust to raise funds for its charity school set up in the Kaghan valley for children affected in the October 2005 earthquake, attracted some 30 international and 11 Pakistani cyclists. Policemen pick up clothing and shoes of residents who were … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
Pakistan through pictures in 2011 Part 3
Pakistani security officials in Peshawar on Oct. 21 carry the coffins of paramilitary Frontier Constabulary members who were killed in an attack in the Shalobar area of Bara Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. At least 34 alleged militants and three soldiers were killed during a clash along the Afghan border in northwestern Pakistan. The fighting occurred in a stronghold of the Lashkar-e-Islam militant group. Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik, center, talks with journalists near the Pakistan-Afghan border in Chaman … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
Pakistan through pictures in 2011- Part 2
A Pakistani boy drinks tea in a makeshift shelter at a livestock market ahead of Eid al-Adha in Lahore on Nov.5. The annual Islamic holiday, is marked by the ritual sacrifice after morning prayers of sheep, goats, cows and other livestock whose meat is then shared with the poor. People carry posters of Pakistani cricketers Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif, who were sentenced by the London’s Southwark Crown Court to jail for their role in a … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
Pakistan through pictures in 2011 – Part 1
Amid rising anger, Pakistan’s military has released a set of images which it says show the remote border posts attacked by NATO helicopters and fighter jets on Saturday in an incident that has soured relations between Pakistan and the United States. Young supporters of Jamaat-e-Islami, a religious and political party, yell anti-American slogans while protesting in Islamabad against a NATO cross-border attack along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, Nov. 27. Pakistan buried 24 troops killed in a NATO cross-border … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
Zardari: Made of tougher mettle
By Saria Benazir The rumors of an impending coup further perforate into the already adverse political situation in the country, following the memo gate issue. This is another incredible issue, much like the incredible memo-an unsigned paper seemingly no importance to the White House has subjugated the whole country to a farce played out by our very laudable Supreme Court and the establishment. And now this new addition furthers the attack on Pakistani democracy. The likelihood of President Asif Ali Zardari’s resignation, as stated by the American Foreign Policy blog has created a hullabaloo throughout the country, and people seem to have unquestioningly placed their convictions in that blog. The army and ISI already own Pakistan, what about the Head of State? Does the US decide the resignations of Pakistani officials as … Read entire article »
Flawed: Imran Khan’s Proposed NRO for Militants of Waziristan
This is the second in the series on the politics and populism of Imran Khan. Readers are requested to add to this important debate and send us more contributions. Ed. by Ali Usman Qasmi Imran Khan has come up with an ingenious explanation for suicide bombings and increased militancy in Pakistan. According to him, Pakistan’s military committed an act of aggression against its own people by launching a military operation in Waziristan from 2004 onwards. According to … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan
THE NEPAL-INDIA-PAKISTAN SPINAL BEETLE DRIVE
The ‘Great Nepal-India-Pakistan Spinal Beetle Drive’ is a journey from Kathmandu Valley through the Indus-Ganga plain to Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, starting on 4 November and scheduled to end on 16 November 2011. The drive will take place in a 1973 model Volkswagen Beetle, which previously has supported similar fundraisings ride – to Dhaka, in 2002 and 2005. President of Nepal,H.E Dr. Ram Baran Yadav has graciously consented to flag-off the “Spinal Beetle Drive” at 8:00 am on Friday,4th November, 2011. The drive is sponsored by the Spinal Injury Rehabilitation Centre-Nepal, which has faced a sudden need to expand its services, being required to grow from 39 to 51 beds. The Spinal Centre, based in Saanga in Banepa Valley east of Kathmandu, is run entirely on voluntary contributions. Meera Jyoti is present Chair of the Spinal Centre. For details, … Read entire article »
‘Dingi’ (Dengue) Fever in Lahore
‘Dingi’ (Dengue) Fever in Lahore Prof Farakh A Khan According to WHO (1999) 2.5 billion people are at risk of dengue virus infection in 200 countries. Before 1970 only nine countries had dengue fever. The mortality is about 5%, which can be reduced to 1% with proper treatment in the hospital. Dengue viral infection has become the leading public health problem. According to Centres for Disease Control and Prevention USA dengue infection places more than 1/3rd population of the world at risk. Every year 100 million people get infected. The first case of dengue virus in Pakistan was reported in 1996 and incidence started to rise in 2003-2004 (Shahid, Jamal. Govt blames lifestyle for dengue spread. Dawn. September 22, 2011). The dengue viral attack reached epidemic proportions in Lahore during the summer of 2011. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Lahore, Pakistan, public policy
Full text: Statement by Human Rights Watch before Syed Saleem Shahzad Inquiry Commission
After our earlier post, here is the full text for PTH readers. Yes, it is a PTHleak… Statement by Ali Dayan Hasan, Human Rights Watch, To Syed Saleem Shahzad Inquiry Commission 9 August 2011 I. Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch is a nongovernmental organization that monitors human rights in more than 80 countries around the world. Human Rights Watch researchers conduct fact-finding investigations into violations of international human rights and humanitarian law, and then publishes those findings in dozens of reports and hundreds of news releases every year, generating extensive coverage in local and international media. This publicity helps to inform the public and hold abusive governments accountable to their international legal obligations. Human Rights Watch meets with government officials to urge changes in policy and practice in countries, at the United Nations, … Read entire article »
Filed under: ISI, journalism, 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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