Remembering Ojhri Camp 1988
Mass murder in Rawalpind and Islamabad By Tariq Mehmood First Published in Bradistan Calling 21 years ago, on the 10th April 1988 Ojhrii dump in Rawalpindi was blown up. This was a deliberate act of destruction. Hundreds upon hundreds of missiles rained down on Rawalpindi and Islamabad. Over 5000 people were killed. Many, many thousands more were injured. I was working as a journalist for the Frontier Post and along with a colleague, Imran Munir, went into the camp, early the day after the explosion. Every now and again, a rocket or missile would take off, and land somewhere, causing yet more deaths and destruction. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Afghanistan, Al Qaeda, Army, Benazir Bhutto, Citizens, Colonialism, Europe, FATA, History, human rights, Imperialism, India, Iran, Islam, Islamabad, Islamism, journalism, Justice, Kashmir, Labour, Left, Media, minorities, North-West Frontier Province, Pakistan, Politics, poverty, Punjabi, Religion, Rights, Society, south asia, Taliban, Terrorism, USA, violence, war, World
Domestic Violence in Expat Indian/South Asian Community
Videsh: Heaven on Earth By Aisha Fayyazi Sarwari Any film on domestic violence is not an easy one to make; Deepa Metha is getting some vitriolic reviews from India for directing a film limited in technique, plot and dialogue. This barrage of misguided critique is in fact the very essence of the reactionary logic Indians, and South Asians largely, adopt when faced with a complex problem – shoot the messenger. … Read entire article »
Filed under: India, Punjabi, south asia, Women
Imran Obama Debate
The Imran-Obama Debate: Yes we can. By Bradistan Calling The election of Barak Hussein Obama, the first Black President of United States of America, has started interesting debates all over the world. In Britain the search is on, for a “first Asian or Muslim prime minister”, although all the indicators and the analysis of the political hierarchy tells us that it might be another half a century before such a election becomes a possibility. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Activism, Colonialism, Cricket, Democracy, dynasties, human rights, India, Islam, Islamism, Justice, lawyers movement, Left, minorities, North-West Frontier Province, Pakistan, Politics, Punjabi, Religion, south asia, Sufism, Taliban, Terrorism, USA, Women, youth
Punjab power struggles: it is NOT about Ideology
By Yasser Latif Hamdani Those of you who have read my previous articles know that I was a staunch Zardari supporter till recently. In my last article, written a few hours after the disqualification of Sharif brothers, I opined that Zardari was being misled by the establishment. But as events have unfolded, it has become abundantly clear that Zardari is apparently an equal partner with the establishment in the latest game to befool Pakistan and its people. There is absolutely no constitutional, moral or procedural justification for imposition of Governor’s rule under Article 234 of the Constitution. It is the end of imagination. The conditions simply did not exist. Without going into the merits of the Supreme Court decision though there aren’t many, the proper course of action was for the governor … Read entire article »
A battle of ideologies? more on the Punjab crisis
PTH is posting a rather impassioned viewpoint of Shaheryar Ali on the recent developments in the Punjab. This is in line with our policy of giving space to divergent views on politics and society. Something that the corporate media cannot do. Overall the recent developments do not bode well for democratic development – after all it has only been a year but it seems that our political elites have learnt no lesson from history and … Read entire article »
The Advancing Enemy
—Dr Manzur Ejaz Rulers averse to an independent judiciary and an equitable socio-economic order; an economic upper class hostile to paying its fair share in taxes; self-obsessed intellectuals and media persons; and a poverty-stricken population — this presents the perfect mix for the forces of destruction Our ruling elites kept crying ‘Wolf!’ for decades to scare the West into supporting their tenures. And now, as the NWFP government prepares to promulgate sharia law in Swat and Malakand, the proverbial wolf has finally arrived. President Zardari’s statement regarding Taliban designs to take over Pakistan should have read: “The Taliban have already captured parts of Pakistan and they are on their way to grab the rest.” … Read entire article »
Casteism: alive and well in Pakistan
Raza Rumi writing for The Friday Times, Pakistan (current issue) It is a cliché now to say that Pakistan is a country in transition – on a highway to somewhere. The direction remains unclear but the speed of transformation is visibly defying its traditionally overbearing, and now cracking postcolonial state. Globalisation, the communications revolution and a growing middle class have altered the contours of a society beset by the baggage and layers of confusing history. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pakistan, Punjabi, Rights, Society, south asia
Ink Paper Think
by Asif Farrukhi and Sehba Sarwar Pushing back a wisp of slivery grey hair, veteran Punjabi and Urdu writer Farkhanda Lodhi says that she is recovered enough from a long bout of illness to be working on a new novel. ‘It is appearing in serial form in a Lahore-based monthly magazine and the title I have given is Jand Da Angiyar. It is such a stack of wood and the coal inside it is not easily extinguished. It keeps smouldering for a long time. This symbolises what I want to say in this novel. My subject is the living culture of the Punjab, the various attitudes prevalent there and the significance of women’s status. I think that it will be about 250 pages when completed and the same magazine will bring it … Read entire article »
Filed under: Literature, Punjabi, Writers
Shahbaz Sharif sets a leadership benchmark
<By Raza Rumi While the pundits have rambled on the venality of the politician and the slothfulness of the bureaucracy, Pakistan’s largest province has witnessed the rise of a unique phenomenon in terms of provincial public management articulated by its second-time Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif. In terms of efficacy of the public services and the administration of state machinery, the younger Sharif has set a leadership benchmark that daunts the political class as a whole. What are the points of departure here and how did this formidable image develop in less than a decade? From 1997-99, arguably not a long stint in office, Shahbaz Sharif demonstrated the maximalist application and range of political will — from policy setting to micro-managerial interventions. It was a style that went down well with the populace, … Read entire article »
Filed under: Civil Service, Democracy, Pakistan, Politics, public policy, Punjabi
On Amrita Pritam
My article on Amrita Pritam has been re-published by Apnaorg (Academy of the Punjab in North America). I am sharing an excerpt and a translation of her poem here: Her remarkable affinity with the depths of the Punjabi language adds to her iconoclastic status in India, Pakistan and wherever Punjabi is spoken and appreciated. Yet her audience has been global as well: her work was translated into dozens of world languages. One … Read entire article »
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