Category: Crisis

  • Blasphemy riot in Sheikhupura – leaves two dead

    In the media frenzy surrounding the Gojra riots just a few days back, another similar incident happened in Sheikupura, Lahore which seemingly never caught the media limelight, remaining submerged within the inside pages of oblivion. On the 5th of August a riot occurred in a leather factory which left two people dead when a mob…

  • Joint Declaration from Christian and Muslim leaders & Protest at China Chowk

    A meeting was called in local Church to discuss the incident of Gojra. A notable number of 20 Muslim/Christian leadership of Rawalpindi/Islamabad attended the meeting. Meeting was facilitated by Waheed Yousuf. Fr Rahmat Hakam welcomed the participants for and thanks for their participation on a very short notice. All participants were asked to shared their…

  • Khatim an-Nabuwwah Fanatics threaten Gojra Activists

    In an email from Farooq Tariq a spokesperson of the Labor Party of Pakistan has explained how Islamic Religious group fanatics Khatim an-Nabuwwah have threatened their workers of dire circumstances for having sided with the Christian community during the Gojra riots which left approximately 9 people dead due to intensive burns. Khatim an-Nabuwwah [Wikipedia] or…

  • The Innocent of Gojra: Victims of the Half Law

    Guest Blog by Brigadier Samson Simon Sharaf is a retired officer of Pakistan Army and a political economist. The recent incidents in Gojra are a grim reminder of how existing half laws can be manipulated for personal and political ends. Besides loss of life, property or the reputation of the country, it also reflects an…

  • Bishop Ijaz Inayat Questions the Gojra Killings

    I share with you an email sent by Bishop Ijaz Inayat from the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Karachi where he talks about the killing of seven Christians in Gojram Please circulate widely so that people who matter must not pay only lip service every time but come down with a heavy hand on the culprits…

  • Supreme Court overturns Nov 3rd Emergency by Musharraf

    In mammoth decision yesterday late evening – the Chief Justice of Pakistan Honorable Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry and a bench of 12 Supreme Court Judges passed an order declaring the actions of Nov 3rd 2007 Invalid and unconstitutional. This comes after a struggle of over one year and 270 days since that fateful date in November…

  • List of 100 Most Powerful Americans has at least 51 Jews

    It is often alleged that the Americans are controlled by an invisible Jewish lobby, which tend to control decisions impacting the Jewish settlements world over and more specifically the Palestine conflict. Recently I stumbled across an article written by Joseph Aron in the Jewish World Review in October 2007. He analyzes a list that was…

  • Return to Jalala – IDP Situation Update

    After returning from a relief distribution to Mardan in May 2009, I regularly followed up with events concerning the IDPs in N.W.F.P. Regardless of the numerous analyses (and conspiracy theories) emerging in the public discourse about the war and its affects, the priority for me remained in providing assistance to displaced families. I tried to…

  • Becoming an IDP – Real life experience of two females from Swat

    Foize Nasim interviewed Saira, a 20 years old girl from Mingora, Swat at a training centre set up by PPAF at Jalala Camp. Saira has 7 sisters and 3 brothers. 3 of her sisters are married, two of whom were living at Jalala with their families. One sister, Farhat was missing with her husband, who…

  • Returning Home – An Interview with an IDP

    Married with 2 kids, Burhan Din is 28 years old and belongs to Amankot in Mingora, Swat. He is pursuing an M. Phil. in Anthropology from Peshawar University. He had been working for a trust called Muslim Aid in Mingora as a hygiene promotion officer for one year before he was forced to leave his…

  • Psychoanalysis of an Extremist

    “I am stuck, in middle of nowhere, or at the extremes of somewhere, I don’t know what is right or what is wrong, rather who is right or who is wrong. Height of epistemocracy I might be at, rather in a quest to know more, but got more questions than answers along the way. I…

  • Gen. Musharraf’s re-launch from Britain, a Challenge to Democrats

    General Musharraf , no doubt is counting on the follies of the signatories of ‘Charter of democracy’ which is the core reason of his re launch from UK. He could not successfully achieve any one item of his 7 points agenda when he came in power on 12 October 1999 and he is now coming…

  • The Hoodlumism of Army Officers and the Blatant Lack of Accountability

    Recently Mr Ali Anan Qamar, an Assistant Coordination Officer and in-charge of Sheikh Yasin camp was beaten up and publicly humiliated by two officers of Pakistan Army, Maj. Asad Jamal and Lt. Haider marwat of 32nd Cavalry on 8th July 2009. Mr Qamar is a very well educated official of the government and we fear…

  • ‘Judicial Coup’ Democracy in Pakistan is under threat

    Long term military dictatorships, shorter civilian rules, where accountability of politicians takes place on the name of corruption with the nexus of judges with civil & military establishment, is the destiny of Pakistan’. Thanks to our rulers as this notion is well supported by their inefficiencies. People came whenever the true leadership called. They came…

  • The Myth of Independence – Economic Imperialism

    “The notion that Pakistan controls the reigns to the economic resources of the country is incorrect—she doesn’t. The G-7 does. They are the ones who make all the economic decisions for us, for our country, through their institutions like IMF, World Bank, and WTO through the policies of SAP, TRIPS, and TRIMS. The idea is…