A lesson from Thaer Halahla’s hunger strike
This week, a Palestinian prisoner ended the 77th day of his peaceful hunger strike after Israeli authorities agreed to release him on June 5. Thaer Halahla was on the brink of death as the deal was secured. The father of one had been detained without charge for two years and has never even met his daughter – her existence is only known to him through a few pictures. Ironically, an Israeli spokesperson had stated: This is about hard-core activists, from Hamas and Islamic Jihad, who through this protest are trying to instigate violence. Clearly this representative hasn’t heard of the term ‘non-violent resistance’ ...
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The barber, the doctors and the striking workers
“Uncle” works at the barber shop I frequent. The aging Balakot native has seen his share of hardships since I’ve known him. In 2005 he, like thousands of others in Balakot, was left homeless in the aftermath of the earthquake. After returning to Islamabad, he worked tirelessly to save enough money to start afresh, not an easy task for someone contemplating retirement only weeks earlier. Almost six years later, with life just having returned to normalcy, Uncle suffered a heart attack that temporarily left him unable to work. Not something anyone working paycheck-to-paycheck can afford. Uncle returned to the workplace part-time ...
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Iran and the oil embargo
When it comes to the face off between the United States and Iran over Iran’s nuclear program, there are signs that things could escalate into something that neither country will be able to handle. Is it wise to challenge one another at a time like this and threaten each other’s security and resources? Global powers are not what they once used to be. Is this stand-off supposed to result in something, or is it an indication that we cannot stop playing games with one another? Recently, the European Union finally approved an oil embargo on Iran, which prohibits any EU member ...
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A Pakistani Spring is not enough
The Arab Spring has captured the imagination of young people around the world with a powerful message about people taking control of their own destiny. In Pakistan, the spirit of the Arab Spring is playing out to a different tune. Instead of adopting “overthrow of the system” as their battle cry ala the Arab Spring, a visible and growing number of young, educated professionals in Pakistan are channeling their energies to incrementally improve the system by engaging with the current set up. Young Pakistanis, including many who have traveled to the West to get educated, are returning home to make active contributions ...
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Budget cuts mar higher education
Heads of the public sector universities have warned the government of protest if the finance division fails to provide an additional Rs8 billion to the cash-starved Higher Education Commission (HEC). The university heads and HEC officials say that without the additional funds, the commission will not be in a position to ensure payment of 65% salary raises for employees of the 70 public sector universities under its domain. Cuts in the commission’s budget have already affected research and development projects, when a major chunk is being diverted towards the employees’ salaries. Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Sheikh in Friday’s meeting gave ...
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Islamabad diary: ‘Neto, Zadari’ rhetoric and nothing else to say
The first thing you notice at a rally organised by religious parties is that they are not very good at spellings. Placards at the Jamaatud Dawa protest at Aabpara on Friday were long on enthusiasm but short on literacy. They demanded that “Neto” must go, vociferously “condomed” its attack and called on “Zadari” to resign. Their synchronised singing wasn’t much better. Chants against the US would have been easier to make out had the participants started and ended their sloganeering at roughly the same time. For such a party, the JuD at least managed a good turn out and ...
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Shut down Wall Street
In the mid 90s I found myself in a wall street job because of a lack of really knowing what to do. It had its perks; it allowed me to live in Manhattan and Brooklyn, Par0k slope area for two years of my life, dine on sushi, and later take only the bare minimum loans for law school. So much in the world has changed since then. I remember a chilly October lunch date with a girl who worked at Lehman. She was in a black suit and we both had a lunch of steamed rolls. She wanted to ...
Read Full PostQadri sentence: Justice served – for now
The verdict is in. The assassin will hang. Justice seems to have been served. Well, not quite yet. Almost ten months to the day when the former Punjab governor was gunned down, the lone gunman has seen his bubble burst. His ‘divinely inspired’ mission wasn’t so divine after all. He will die the way a real blasphemer would have been put to death. Except that in his case, thousands of righteously misguided individuals will take to the streets to push for his release from prison. After all, guilty or not, his followers have already made it quite clear that for them, ...
Read Full PostCure the disease and kill the patient
Ah, Pims, a place where people are guaranteed quality health service. Or at least used to. Nowadays, anyone naive enough to want to go to Pims for any form of treatment is guaranteed only one thing — denial of service. Medicine is a professional category that earns the respect of all and sundry the world over. Doctors, nurses, paramedics and even technicians are regular features in the prayers of patients whose lives they save. Cicero aptly described doctors when he wrote, “In nothing do men more nearly approach the gods than in giving health to men.” Sadly, the recent actions of protesting ...
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10 tips for surviving a riot in Pakistan
Earlier this month, Zulfiqar Mirza went on live television to irresponsibly air an opinion about the legitimacy of a leader. While Shahi Syed made attempts to pull him back from the microphone, Karachi erupted in flames once again. My friends, on their way back from the airport, saw cars turning back from Shahrah-e-Faisal, and people driving back towards the terminal for safety. The main road was overrun with protesters and so was the road leading towards Askari-IV and Gulistan-e-Johar. To the occupants of a Honda Civic – who had to ask my friends to lead them to safety, jostled and bumping ...
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