September 2020

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind By Yuval Noah Harari  Agha Shahriyar Khan This review was declared winner of the Book Review Competition conducted by World Times Institute   If you are interested in the most intriguing tale of all times: the story of Humankind; if you are curious to know about the events that changed the fate of Sapiens from …

Why Democracy Fails in Third World Countries Anna Kazmi The Latin term “demokratia” literally means the rule of the people. This takes into consideration all the demands of the populace, what changes they desire, how they would like their needs to be met, and what steps they expect their government to take in order to make headway against the defective …

US-China Cold War Mehboob Hussain Babar In 1949, Chinese Communist Party leader Mao Zedong installed ‘Communist Government’ in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The United States refused to recognize this new government and continued to recognize and support Chiang Kai-shek’s exiled Republic of China government in Taipei. In 1950, during the Korean War, the US and PRC armed forces …

The Thucydides Trap and the Rise and Fall of Great Powers Roughly 2,400 years ago, Thucydides, a Greek historian and author of “History of the Peloponnesian War,” expressed a view that resonates in strategic thinking to this day. He argued that the real cause of the Peloponnesian War was the rapid increase in the power of Athens and the fear …

The State of Young Lives Makhtoom Ahmed In the history of childhood discourse, United Nations Convention on the Right of Children (UNCRC), 1989, is regarded as a momentous declaration. It became the landmark of children’s rights in which international agencies, academics, policymakers and practitioners focused their attention on the pressing issues of children and improvement of their quality of life …

The Balochistan Conundrum Faridullah This Land of the Pure has had a tumultuous history. It saw the tragic episode of the dismemberment of East Pakistan. However, unfortunately, we the Pakistani nation, have not learnt any lesson from this national tragedy. Our rulers, both civilian and military, have had the same authoritarian attitude towards Balochistan as they had towards the then-East …

Territorial Claims – and Counterclaims – over Ladakh Dr Basharet Shah After the 2017 Doklam crisis, June 15 this year marked another standoff between China and India owing to prior tense border clashes. The decades-old border conflict between the two countries on their territorial claims and counterclaims turned into an acute crisis which left 20 Indian soldiers dead. Forces of …