Sixty-five years after our independence, where do we stand as a nation and as a member of the comity of nations? Are we living in ‘a democratic and progressive’ Pakistan as envisioned by its founders? Can we genuinely claim to be ‘upholders’ of fundamental values of freedom, democracy and human dignity? Have we been able to make Pakistan ‘a bastion …

China has been Pakistan’s steadfast friend and a partner not only in its legitimate security needs and economic development but also in contributing to regional peace and stability.  Both countries have pursued their friendship with the objective of mutual benefit and never at the cost of their relations with any other country or countries. They are against hegemony or exploitation, …

The 21st century did not start well. We found ourselves burdened with the same old problems but in their acutest form. The world has never been so chaotic and violent.  Wars of aggression and attrition, invasions in the name of self-defence, military occupations, massacres and genocides, human tragedies and humanitarian catastrophes, and a culture of extremism and violence came to …

The Pakistan-US relationship is no doubt an old relationship that has survived many ups and downs. We have been friends and allies for nearly 65 years now. Yes, it has been a curious relationship. It never had any conflict of interest and yet remained without any mutuality of interest either. The only mutuality in this hinge has been one of …

Merely showcasing the presence of a few privileged and heavily painted females with designer outfits in our cabinets or assemblies is neither gender-mainstreaming nor empowering of women. They only epitomize a lust for self-display and an effrontery of affluence that only aggravates a sense of humiliation among the larger female population of the country. Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy’s Oscar-winning documentary ‘Saving …

We have every right to protest to the US on these unsavory acts in US Congress and could also keep arguing, who gave the right to the US Congress’s Committee on Foreign Affairs to discuss human rights situation in Balochistan, but that will not serve any purpose. The problem will not end just by making noises. Neither an exaggerated sense …

In today’s context, what is important for Pakistan is the need to be stable politically and strong economically so as to be self-reliant and immune to external constraints and exploitation. This requires a holistic systemic change in our governance patterns. Indeed, history never looks like history when you are living through it. Within less than quarter of a century of …

It is important that Pakistan, as a partner and an ally of US war on terror, is treated with dignity and sovereign equality. The Pak- US relationship will remain on a roller coaster unless the whole spectrum of Gen Musharraf’s written and unwritten arrangements with the US are revisited to draw new ‘terms of engagement’ in keeping with the State’s …

The story of a society that has been going round and round in aimless circles for the last 64 years. Absence of democracy, rule of law and good governance is its continuing hallmark For any state in the contemporary world, its constitution is its solemn and inviolable ‘social contract’ which guarantees fundamental the freedoms and basic rights of its citizens, …

Why India is democratic and Pakistan is not. What after all is wrong with Pakistan? On their emergence as two independent states on the map of the world as a result of a democratic political process, both India and Pakistan inherited a parliamentary tradition and began their independent statehood with a democratic path clearly charted out for them. To start …