And, if you haven’t conducted a poll, what long-standing connections do you have in the Valley that opens you up to the pulse of its population? What network of people have you set up to gather and analyse information from the general population (and, especially, from the women), besides what the Swat Bar Association head (who happens to also be a card-carrying member of the party) passes on to you?
“Following in the footsteps of the National Assembly, the Senate Standing Committee on Education will also discuss the controversy of extra marks awarded to Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar’s daughter…” (source: The News International, November 28)
Extra marks. Wow. So unusual a practice here in Pakistan; officials in high places pulling strings for their off-spring. This [...]
I remember the frenzy with which our Press Hounds fed on the wounds of President Musharraf just a few months back, the harping, the carping, the constant berating. Many ‘journalists’ and hosts showed their ugly sides with bitter recriminations and bilious rumours that they normally substitute for fact. They gave no quarter, then sat back [...]
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Tags: accountability, Benazir, conviction, corruption, democracy, dictator, fined, guilty, kickbacks, media, money+laundering, Musharraf, Nawaz Sharif, sentenced, Sherry+Rehman, swiss courts, virtue, Zardari
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While the ideals of Democracy are great, the implementation of it is so far from great in Pakistan, and so easily taken advantage of, that we will eventually reach a point of civil war if we continue without serious reform.
Let us also stop this stupid fiction that all the ills of this country stem from the last government’s management. It’s taken 60 years, and numerous crooks and murderers at the helm of power for us to arrive at this place.
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Tags: bangladesh, corruption, democracy, Fareed Zakaria, LooseEndsPakistan, military rule, muhathir, pakistan, politicians, quaid-e-azam, suharto, surrey, swiss courts, yeltsin, zulfiqar Ali Bhutto
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Enjoin ye righteousness upon mankind while ye yourselves forget (to practise it)? And ye are readers of the Scripture! Have ye then no sense?
– Surah-al-Baqarah, verse 44
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Tags: 15:14, blind, corruption, cronyism, democratic, judiciary, KWSB, loyalists, Matthew, media, Musharraf, nepotism, pakistan, PML-N, PPP, Shahbaz, Sind, Zardari. Nawaz
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I got a petition in the mail today: A demand that the government address a looming food crisis, a global phenomenon that has Pakistan in second place as countries that may be the worst affected.
Ironically, a news channel flashed a report just yesterday that our fearless new ‘elected’ leaders have just re-opened the export of [...]
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Tags: Afghanistan, BB, charter of democracy, coalition, corruption, Dubai, England, export, food crisis, government, judges, KSE, media, Mehsud, Nawaz, pakistan, poverty, starvation, terrorists, wealth, wheat, Zardari
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“The Queen has died. Long live the King!” In essence, these were the chants coming from the back of the room where their Lordships held court to their minions. The boy King sat in the middle, flanked by father and patron. He read from a text to the crowd, a monotonous, jilted speech that suddenly [...]
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Tags: 19-year-old, Babar, BB, bhutto, bilawal, corruption, democracy, feudals, kingdom, nepotism, NRO, Operation Clean-up, power, PPP, swiss courts, Zardari
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There is one thing about Pakistani bloggers (and our media, for that matter) that I find very distasteful: Government-bashing. It doesn’t matter who is in power, as long as they hold the seat, it seems Pakistanis must hate them.
Consider this. This government has done more for this country than all our previous leaders put together. [...]
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Tags: Benazir, bloggers, CJ, class, Condaleeza Rice, corruption, freedom, Imran Khan, issues, lexicon, May 12, McDonalds, Musharraf, Operation Clean-up, Pakistani, patriotic, peace, politicians, PPP, riots, Shahbaz Sharif, stability, verbal warfare
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When the Prophet brought Islam to Arabia, one of the first things he requested of his followers was to abandon the tradition of long, trailing robes worn by the elite tribesmen at the time. The length of the robe indicated status and position, most often earned through wealth, not respect. [The fact that our Mullahs [...]
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Tags: accountable, AFP, Aitzaz Ahsan, Allah, Arabia, bribery, Chief Justice, corruption, ignorance, Islam, judges, judiciary, jurists, mullahs, nepotism, politicians, power, President, Prophet, supreme, tolerance
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