March 2015

The Road to a stable Democracy in Pakistan “Fundamental problems remain with the legal framework and the implementation of certain provisions, leaving future processes vulnerable to malpractice and Pakistan not fully meeting its obligations to provide citizens the right and opportunity to stand as candidates and to vote.” (General Elections 2013 Report: The European Union Election Observer Mission) Elections reflect …

History has witnessed so many facets of leadership that it sometimes baffles human imagination. We have our Gandhis, Mandelas, Maos, Churchills and Roosevelts, and then we have Mussolinis, Hitlers and Genghis Khans too.

The Court of Last Resort Introduction The International Criminal Court (ICC) is an independent, permanent court, and the court of last resort for prosecution of persons accused of the most serious crimes of international concern, namely genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. It is governed by the Rome Statute and is the first permanent, treaty-based, international criminal court established …

Public choice theory is basically the economic theory of political science that was developed by Gordon Tullock and James Buchanan Jr. The term, though coined in the 50’s, received widespread public attention when Mr Buchanan was awarded the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel in 1986. This theory, for the first time, attracted the attention …

The Game-changer for Asia The Silk Route philosophy was based on the concept of harnessing trade and cultivating regional peace in Asia. The magnificent Route not only spurred enormous trade, it also facilitated the inter-region connectivity. Different cultural hubs including — but not limited to — South Asia, Southeast Asia, West Asia and Africa are linked through this route. This …

Although they say history is written by the victors, sometimes it’s just written by the elites. One such example can be found in the fall of Roman Empire. The demise of this once-mighty Empire is still the most powerful turning point in the world history. Though numerous causes can be attributed to the destruction of the Romans, one principal cause …

Eradication Through Equitable Growth Due to its devastating impact on social, economic and political order, terrorism has been the most debated topic, especially since the dawn of the current century. What actions or acts fall under the ambit of terrorism; it is still an unanswered question because no unanimous and universally-accepted definition of terrorism has been developed yet.

Trend lines on the subcontinent have become more pronounced after President Obama’s visit as chief guest at the Republic Day parade and reports of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s upcoming visit for Republic Day celebrations in Pakistan. The juxtaposition of Obama’s visit in New Delhi with a near-total power blackout in Pakistan was brutally stark. While Obama and Prime Minister Narendra …

An antithesis of ‘live and let live’ policy Speaking to an audience at the School of International Service (SIS), American University Washington DC in 2013, Pakistan’s former Ambassador to the US, Mr Husain Haqqani, presented an interesting analogy of a divorced couple to delineate Pakistan-India bilateral relations. In the context this relationship, he said, “Just imagine a worst case of …

The tone for the US President’s much-talked-about visit to India was set well before he set off to New Delhi. As is the norm in high-profile foreign visits, President Obama spoke to India Today, an Indian publication, on a subject that touched the right chord with his Indian hosts. While expressing his country’s resolve to continue working with Pakistan in …