A strange thing has happened in the land of the pure, the bastion of Islam that is Pakistan. A woman imprisoned for almost nine years and who was on death row for blasphemy has been acquitted by the Supreme Court of Pakistan. The reason I call this strange is that […]
Tag: Pakistan
BLASPHEMY: PAKISTAN’S CURSE
India’s British rulers first codified offences against religion in 1860, which were then expanded in 1927. When Pakistan become a separate country, it inherited these laws; and decided to keep them. In the 1980s, Zia ul Haq added more clauses to this ridiculous and frankly unnecessary law. Over the years, this […]
PAKISTAN AND THE NEW EAST INDIA COMPANY
“In the infancy of societies, the chiefs of state shape its institutions; later the institutions shape the chiefs of state,” said Charles de Montesquieu. This is certainly true for Pakistan where one particular institution, or at least its successive doyens, have played nine pins with every chief the country has […]
I’ve Just Become An Organ Donor. Here’s Why You Should Be One As Well
I have just become an organ donor. Because, for me, there is no better way to leave this earth and become part of stars again, than to make sure that a few people might benefit from my body. Organ donation saves lives, and all over the world hospitals encourage people […]
IN THE NAME OF HONOUR
Qandeel Baloch was an anathema for a country like Pakistan. Coming from poverty, she rose to become independent and support herself and her family. She was an anathema because she did not care. She did not care what society thought of her and she did not care if they made […]
We have been silenced into submission because we don’t want to be the next Mashal
Muslim tradition holds that in the early 7th century AD, in a town in Arabia, a slave called Bilal was tortured by his owner. His crime, so says Islamic history, was to walk away from the existing ideological landscape. To embrace a new religious and political order. To dissent. Bilal […]
Rannikot: The mountains, the desert and the wall
(Published in The Nation Pakistan) Out amongst the Kirthar Mountains, in the eastern side of Kirthar National Park, in the middle of nowhere, lies Rannikot. Also known as the Great Wall of Sindh and the largest fort in the world, Rannikot is actually a 35km (some estimate 45km) wall encircling […]
Pakistan: The land of bigotry, misogyny and violence with blasphemy allegations as its raison d’etre
Here is what has happened this week in the land of the pure. A politician (from PTI) punched another one (from PML-N) for calling his leader a traitor. In response, the first politician stood in front of the media and made allegations against his harasser’s sisters. That’s violence and misogyny […]
A Walk on Kot Diji Fort
(Published in The Nation Pakistan) One can only wish that these sites would be excavated and researched further, so that we can also know more about our past and contribute to world history, like the other great ancient civilizations. Read More
Mohen Jo Daro – Story of a city
(Published in The Nation Pakistan) The young woman looked out of the narrow slit in wall that served as a window in her house. She saw the sun rising over the brick city and the far off fields of wheat and barley, signaling to her to start her day. She […]