Justice for all

Administration, Books, Human Rights, Justice

By Zubeida Mustafa

THE judiciary in Pakistan has traditionally been viewed as a rubber stamp for coup-makers who intrude into politics. Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry showed the courage to defy Gen Pervez Musharraf — albeit seven years after the army chief had entrenched himself as head of state. In the words of The Economist (August 2009), “Most people do not care to remember that Mr Chaudhry and his colleagues also took their oaths after Mr Musharraf’s first coup … and owe their promotions to him”. Justice Chaudhry won popularity as a David who took on Goliath.

Today Chief Justice Saqib Nisar’s judicial activism has found some supporters too. And one can understand why. When a vacuum is created in any area of national life, it is inevitable that it will be filled by one or the other force. Matters of governance have deteriorated to such an extent in all sectors that people here are in a state of despair. Continue reading Justice for all →

Cure or perish

Children and Youth, General
Behbud’s mobile TB clinic

By Zubeida Mustafa

A SHORT skit and a poster exhibition by children of the Behbud School on World TB Day came as a stark reminder that the scourge of tuberculosis continues to menace our society.

I wondered how many of those young artists and performers had had a personal encounter with the disease. This was likely because the incidence of TB in Pakistan continues to be pretty high, with 518,000 new cases being diagnosed every year, making it the fifth largest TB-infected country in the world. There is no way of knowing how many cases are not even detected. Continue reading Cure or perish →

The party goes on

Politics

By Rifaat Hamid Ghani

IT disconcerts political interventionists that political parties—be they cultist or ideological—do not come and go by virtue of registration paper alone. They have a ground reality. Disqualify the leader, even ban the party, but adherents adhere. Popular support—overt or covert; subverted or repressed—will always remain a challenge for reformists who need to oust superfluous leaders/parties that have yet to be democratically nullified by the voter. Continue reading The party goes on →

Illusory happiness

Culture and the Arts, Development and Poverty, Economy, Health

By Zubeida Mustafa

THE recently released UN-sponsored World Happiness Report 2018 ranks Pakistan 75th out of 156 countries in terms of how happy their citizens are. That is progress. Last year, we stood at the 80th position. There has been rejoicing at what is seen as Pakistan’s superiority in the ranking table above all its neighbours which includes China and India.

This made me wonder because statistics — objectively compiled one presumes — have a different story to tell. The Sustainable Development Solutions Network, the author of the report, bases its findings on six indicators, namely, income per capita, life expectancy, social support, generosity, freedom and corruption. At least two of these are calculated objectively by many UN agencies (World Bank and UNDP). Continue reading Illusory happiness →

A woman of quiet influence

Book Reviews, Books by ZM
By Zohra Yusuf
A book review of Zubeida Mustafa’s My DAWN Years – Exploring Social Issues.

I recently told Zubeida Mustafa that I had an issue with the subtitle of her memoirs. I feel her years at DAWN were more meaningful than simply the pursuit of social issues, important as they are and clearly close to her heart. With over 30 years at DAWN, many of which were in the position of a senior editor, Zubeida had a more significant impact on the newspaper than perhaps she cares to lay claim to – out of her inherent modesty. Her years at DAWN did see a shift in editorials, from ambivalence to clear positions on issues that matter – democracy, pluralism and rights of the marginalised, to name a few. If Ahmad Ali Khan (the editor for most of her years at DAWN), was her mentor, Zubeida too, in her own quiet way, exercised a significant influence on the newspaper’s journey. Continue reading A woman of quiet influence →