Category Archives: Constitution

Countdown to 90?

Administration, Constitution, Guest Contributor, History, Law & Order, New, Politics, Terrorism and Violence

By Rifaat Hamid Ghani

THE PTI dharna’s sameness and the government’s passivity are fraying nerves: It’s not a good feeling to be stuck in an unpleasant place and going nowhere. Is the democratic light Imran’s adherents set out to see at the end of their leader’s tunnel vision nearing? Is his effort trailblazing and ground-breaking? Not really, Pakistan’s political history has been much too packed with event and surprise; vision and mirage for that. It didn’t need an Imran-Qadri duo to teach the people their democratic rights or how to ask for them. For Pakistan was born out of mass political consciousness; and it is the first uninterrupted completion of a deplorable democratic term in office that has made people so mindful of post electoral delivery and demanding of better governance from the serving government. Overall, 2013’s election results were acceptable to the voters or they wouldn’t have waited for Imran to sound the clarion call about a robbed mandate from atop a container so many months later. Continue reading Countdown to 90? →

Worth of a life

Constitution, Development and Poverty, Housing, Human Rights, Justice, Law & Order, Minorities, New, Notable Personalities, Perween Rahman, Social Issues, Terrorism and Violence, Women

By Zubeida Mustafa

HOW much is a human life worth in Pakistan? Not more than peanuts, given the impunity with which people are being killed in this benighted country of ours. The state’s failure — or lack of will — to protect the life of its citizens is at the root of this tragedy.

In this context, I am reminded of two women — one dead, the other on death row. One was a dear friend. The other is a stranger whose community has been my benefactor. I owe my education to Christian missionaries who gave me knowledge and taught me, by example, to respect and be tolerant of all faiths.

Perween Rahman and Asiya Bibi have nothing in common except that they are symbols of our quest for justice and sanctity of life in a society that thrives on hate and violence. Continue reading Worth of a life →

Pakistan’s Youth: The Light at the End of the Tunnel

Children and Youth, Constitution, Culture and the Arts, Defence and Disarmament, Development and Poverty, Education, Human Rights, Islamisation, Law & Order, Natural Disasters, Politics, Social Issues, Terrorism and Violence

By Zubeida Mustafa

The so-called youth bulge in Pakistan has now become visible. One young woman making news around the world of late is 17-year-old Malala Yusufzai, who was named the youngest-ever winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in early October.

Not that Pakistan has not been a young country for several decades. The country’s high population growth rate over the 1980s and 1990s means more than a quarter of the country’s population of 182 million today is between 15 and 29 years of age, which is how youth is defined by the United Nations. However, it is only in times of turbulence, as Pakistan is experiencing at present, that the youth’s presence has become pronounced. Two democratic elections in a row – in 2008 and 2013— have focused public attention on young voters.In the May 2013 general election it is said that about a third of the registered voters were under 29 (that worked out to 25 million in absolute numbers) and many of them would be casting ballots for the first time. The political parties took note, and all of them included plans for the youth in their election manifestos. Continue reading Pakistan’s Youth: The Light at the End of the Tunnel →

Scottish referendum

Constitution, Economy, Education, Health, Human Rights, Justice, Labour, Politics, Social Issues, View from Abroad

By Zubeida Mustafa

LAST week Scotland decided its destiny. It came to the brink of independence and then pulled back. In the closing days of campaigning it was estimated that several thousands of the 4.2 million voters were undecided till the last. When the ballots were cast on Sept 18 over 55pc voted to stay in the union.

The 45pc who voted for change were overruled by the majority and conceded defeat. Alex Salmond, the first minister of Scotland whose Scottish National Party spearheaded the movement for an independent Scotland, announced his decision to step down.

Negotiations will follow in the coming months as more devolution of power is on the cards as has been promised by the Westminster parties in a last-ditch attempt to lure the Scots back from an irrevocable breach. Continue reading Scottish referendum →

Rules of the game

Books, Constitution, Defence and Disarmament, History, Kashmir, New, Politics, War and Peace

By Zubeida Mustafa

It was quite an extraordinary way of celebrating the 67th anniversary of Pakistan’s independence last week. Believing that they could usher in freedom/revolution by bringing their supporters out on the street, Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri succeeded only in creating polarisation and instability in a crisis-ridden country.

The two marches organised by these leaders have evoked strong reactions from political observers. A large segment of pro-democracy opinion views this show of force as an extra-parliamentary move by the opposition that could derail the democratic process and open the door for military intervention. There have also been allegations of collusion between the agitators and elements in the military. Others have defended the people’s right to protest against government excesses. The speculation of regime change has been intertwined with an ongoing discourse on the military-civilian role in politics. Continue reading Rules of the game →