Brave or Foolhardy?
by: Hafsa Khawaja There are usually, if not always, a certain set of characteristics and qualities that a people expect their leader to have. Amongst the numerous of honesty, integrity and dignity that Pakistanis seek in a leader, is also bravery. With the elections approaching fast, the idea of bravery seems to have been accorded quite a role with populism at play. A certain notion has been developed in political rhetoric plus social media … Read entire article »
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Election Update – 25th April, 2013
15,629 in race for 849 general seats A total number of 15,629 candidates are contesting the general elections for the National and Provincial Assemblies on 849 general seats while 1,063 candidates are eyeing reserved seats comprising of women and minorities, according to the ECP’s latest data. < Read More – http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/editors-picks/25-Apr-2013/15-629-candidates-in-race-for-849-general-seats > Blasts rattle 3 provinces in 24 hours Another explosion rocked Quetta Wednesday evening, the ninth blast in three different provinces of Pakistan in the last 24 hours, raising fears for deteriorating law and order as the historic May 11 polls draw nearer. At least two people were injured in the latest attack on Jan Muhammad road area of Quetta, the capital of volatile Balochistan province on Wednesday, police said. < Read More – http://dawn.com/2013/04/24/eight-blasts-rattle-three-provinces-in-less-than-24-hours/ > PTI to hold local government elections after 90 days To … Read entire article »
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Election Update – 24th April, 2013
• ECP fails to prevent 55 persons charged with terrorism from contesting elections The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has simply failed to prevent 55 candidates from the Punjab, belonging to 10 different sectarian groups, from contesting the general elections despite the fact that intelligence agencies had warned the ECP that they were on terrorist lists and had provided all the names. These names are also listed on the 4th Schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997 for their alleged involvement in terrorist activities. According to well-informed sources in the Ministry of Interior, the intelligence agencies had provided to the ECP a complete list of 55 candidates who had filed their nomination papers to contest the national and provincial assemblies’ polls from 20 districts of the Punjab. • Surge in electoral violence kills 23: FAFEN • Most … Read entire article »
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Election Update – 21st April, 2013
No significant rise in female candidates contesting on general seats of the NA Despite the welcome addition of a woman candidate contesting independently from Bajaur Agency, the overall number of women candidates contesting on general seats of the National Assembly (NA) has stayed much the same since the 2002 election.Even in the ranks of mainstream political parties which champion equal rights and participation of women, the number of women candidates contesting in the upcoming general elections has remained unchanged or, worse still, gone down. According to details of candidates filed by eight mainstream political parties, there is no significant increase in the number of women candidates in the 2002, 2008 and 2013 elections.Moreover, the two main religious parties — JamiatUlema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) — have maintained their tradition of totally … Read entire article »
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Election Update – 20th April, 2013
Musharraf given judicial remand by ATC The anti-terrorism court (ATC) on Saturday remanded former president Pervez Musharraf in custody for two weeks as judges pushed ahead with plans to put the former army chief on trial for a crackdown on the judiciary during his time in office. Hundreds of lawyers jeered at Musharraf and scuffled with his supporters as he appeared at the Islamabad court a day after police arrested him at his home — a breach with an unwritten rule in Pakistan that ex-generals are above the law. The judge ruled that he be detained until his next court appearance on May 4. Musharraf’s spokesman said authorities had decided that he would be placed under house arrest at his farmhouse residence on the edge of Islamabad. < Read More – http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2013%5C04%5C21%5Cstory_21-4-2013_pg1_1 … Read entire article »
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Election Update – 19th April, 2013
Progress on voting rights for Overseas Pakistanis After putting up an apparent resistance to provision of online voting facility to the overseas Pakistanis, the Election Commission of Pakistan has finally showed some willingness for including the expats in the voting process, through issuance of a presidential ordinance, expected by next Sunday. Besides, the commission is to hold a meeting with the top administrative officials of the federal and provincial governments on the law and order situation and security measures to be taken accordingly. Following a meeting between President Asif Ali Zardari and Chief Election Commissioner Justice (retired) Fakhruddin G Ebrahim on Thursday, the issuance of the presidential ordinance came under discussion leading toward an affirmative decision likely by April 21, the relevant deadline given by the Supreme Court. According to … Read entire article »
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Election Update – 18th April, 2013
First transgender election candidate ever in Pakistan For the first time in Pakistan’s history, transgender people are running as candidates. The development marks a sign of progress for transgender people in this conservative country, where they have long been met by abuse.BindiyaRana has always been active in her community and works at an organisation that helps promote the rights of transgender people as well as street children and other social issues. But she decided to run for office as well after a Supreme Court ruling in 2011 allowed members of the transgender community to get national identity cards recognising them as a separate identity — neither male or female — and allowing them to vote. She’s vying for a provincial assembly seat in the May 11 national elections. < Read More … Read entire article »
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Election Update – 17th April, 2013
ECP warns candidates against seeking votes on religion or ethnic grounds The ECP has announced that candidates who seek votes on the basis of religion or ethnicity will be sentenced to three years in prison. The ECP, in a communiqué issued on Wednesday, said that prison terms would also be handed to candidates who use bribery as a means to gain votes. “Three-year jail terms will also be awarded for casting fake votes and stopping others from voting.” It said that transporting individuals to polling stations other than family members is also prohibited, and candidates who violated these instruction would also be awarded three-year jail terms. Presiding officers have been given on-the-spot authority to take action against those violating these laws. Moreover, on the polling day, police can make arrests with … Read entire article »
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Bringing Change
By Kashif Ali During the election campaign, the favorite most mantra of every politician seems to be: “bring change”. This mantra is international in its appeal and you can use it anywhere in the world. You can be a new and emerging leader, or an old one, you just have to use this statement to fool the public. But does simple repeating the mantra really bring the purported change? NO!! is my answer. You choose yours. I would like to share a personal experience. During my lunch with Warren Buffett, I asked him a very important question: “Buffett, if you have to change Pakistan, what would you do?” He looked at me for few minutes, laughed and said: “Kashif, I cannot do anything for Pakistan” To this I retorted: “You have invested billions in … Read entire article »
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Election Update – 14th April, 2013
MQM alleges Rangers harassing its workers The Rabitta Committee of MQM alleged that Rangers were harassing his party workers on the pretext of the ongoing crack down on the criminal elements. In a statement the MQM Rabitta Committee appealed to the Caretaker Prime Minister and Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) to stop what it called the Rangers’ harassment of his party workers and supporters in MQM dominated peaceful areas. Earlier, Deputy Convener MQM Rabitta Committee, Dr. Farooq Sattar said that his party has received a threat ‘to sabotage’ his party’s election campaign. He said MQM’s candidates were facing threats throughout the country, including Karachi and Hyderabad. < Read More – http://www.thenews.com.pk/article-96768-Rangers-harassing-workers,-supporters:-MQM > Free and fair polls not possible if terrorism not controlled, says MQM MQM expressed concern over rising activities of militants in Karachi, and … Read entire article »
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Election Update – 12th April, 2013
Continuing pre-election violence: MQM candidate shot dead A Pakistani grocer standing in next month’s historic polls was shot dead on Thursday in a drive-by killing in the southern city of Hyderabad, the first candidate to die in the election campaign. Fakhrul Islam, 46, was a candidate for the secular Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), a coalition partner in the outgoing government which has been threatened by the Taliban. He was killed by gunmen on motorcycles when he left the shop he owned with his father, police said. Pakistan’s interim Prime Minister Mir Hazar Khan Khoso ordered an immediate tightening of security for all candidates. The incident comes right at the heels of the concluding day of a high-profile commanders’ meeting on Thursday as the military command assigned the field formations the duties for … Read entire article »
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State of Human Rights in 2012:Highlights
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan has prepared a comprehensive list on events relating to Human Rights in Pakistan during the year 2012. Following are some of the salient findings from the report. Laws and law-making The most significant enactments in 2012 included the 20th Constitutional Amendment which was related to electoral matters. The law for the establishment of a National Commission of Human Rights came into force but remained unimplemented. The National Commission on the Status of Women … Read entire article »
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Tale of Musharraf’s Coup in 1999
Parvez Musharraf, ex-Dictator, landed in Karachi today, amid much fanfare(and while wearing a suicide jacket). He was ousted democratically on 18th August, 2008 and left the country. Pakistan has successfully completed transition from an elected government to a caretaker setup without direct intervention of the Military for the first time in its history. This does not mean we forget the history of military interventions and the disastrous consequences. To commemorate the arrival of Musharraf, we … Read entire article »
Filed under: Anniversery, Army, Civil Service, Constitution, Democracy, drama, History, ISI, Islamabad, Pakistan, Politics, Society, state, Uncategorized
Four Witnesses and Quran 24:5
Many laws enacted today in the name of Islam in Pakistan and elsewhere have caused immense harm to minorities, freedom of religion and to women’s rights. One specific outrage is when women who have been raped are punished on the counter-accusation of adultery. Critics of Islam claim that Quran 24:5 is the root cause of this problem which requires a victim to provide four witnesses for proof of her claim. The following discussion shows that even a textual interpretation of the said verse should refute both the critics and the outrageous requirement placed on women. Consider the following scenario: A woman X accuses a man Y of raping her. In an ‘Islamic’ court the legal counsel of Y asks her to produce the 4 witnesses (who do not exist) to prove … Read entire article »
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