An ailing doctor awaits justice

While New Delhi witnessed the new foreign minister of Pakistan, Hina Rabbani Khar, making a joint declaration with her Indian counterpart S M Krishna on efforts to reduce tension between the nuclear-armed neighbours in this volatile region, one man still awaits the attention of the higher ups for his long-awaited homecoming.

Calm before the storm

As the monsoon season is building up in intensity, apprehensions for a repeat of the catastrophic flood which drowned the country last year are increasing with every rain drop. It doesn't help either when a report released by Oxfam to mark one year since the devastating deluge occurred, highlights the gross inadequacies of the government to tackle the emergency this year.

Dark side of the moon (sighting)

With the start of the holy month of Ramazan merely days away, the perennial controversy regarding moon sighting is again rearing its ugly, embarrassing head. Every year the country goes through the melodrama where Ulema from Peshawar and adjoining areas declare the moon sighted a day or two before rest of the country. It is even more distressing that this situation arises only during two most revered Islamic months, Ramazan and Shawwal for Eid-ul-Fitr.

Fight against polio just got tougher

In counter-terrorism efforts, risking health and security of civilians should be marked as a red line, which must never be crossed. However, according to a report published in the UK-based newspaper The Guardian, some startling allegations were made against the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of the US regarding using a vaccine campaign as a front for its covert operation in Abbottabad.

Vigilante (in)justice?

In a country where governance is at its lowest ebb and justice nowhere in sight, rising cases of citizens taking law into their own hands show the intensity of pent up aggression within the people. Recent reports from Faisalabad reveal the registering of an FIR by Sargodha Road Police against 100 people for attacking police officials who tried to rescue two robbery suspects that a mob was beating on Sunday.

Freedom for all religions

In a country founded on the idea of providing religious freedoms against oppression faced in pre-partition India, it is tragic to note the cruel twist of fate where a minority community is prohibited to perform their religious rituals. Unfortunately, however, this is exactly what happened with the Sikh community in Lahore last week, citing a most insensitive excuse.

Weaponization of Pakistan

“Weaponisation” as a negative concept was something to which I was completely unfamiliar while growing up. Though I spent most of my childhood in Lahore, my rural, agricultural background meant arms had always been a regular presence in my life. I had learnt to fire, load/unload and clean them as a child. It was an unquestionable truth in my environment that guns were integral to our protection and our status. Though in hindsight, I find it ironic that I was taught to handle weapons but I was never allowed to own them because of my gender.

Chronic abuse of power goes unchecked

The recent television footage of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MNA Anjum Aqeel escaping police custody with the help of dozens of his supporters has once again brought forth the haughty mindset of our political representatives, which allows them to feel entitled, untouchable and beyond the law of the land. 

A curse it definitely is

Planet Earth, already short on resources and reeling from regular calamities across its latitude and longitude, is expected to be inhabited by over 7 billion people this year. This overwhelming number was highlighted repeatedly on the occasion of World Population Day 2011 observed on 11th July. What could have been a huge pool of human resources, lack of resources means that Pakistan's 6th rank on the list of most populous nation is more of a curse than a blessing.

Battling the drug menace

The recently observed International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on 26 June (Sunday), and the release of the UN World Drug Report 2011 again highlighted the menace of drug abuse. The facts revealed in the UN report magnify the staggering nature of the problem Pakistan faces in terms of drug trafficking and usage.