The federal and provincial governments should take immediate steps required to implement the Article 25-A of the Constitution which ensures the free and compulsory education to all children of the age of five to sixteen years. Also, there is need for establishing a national commission comprising members from all segments of society to formulate a … Read more
Conflicting notions of Pakistan’s ideology, extremist interpretations of religion and lack of tolerance among most of Pakistanis are at the heart of critical challenges facing Pakistan. Economic decay and dearth of opportunities for Pakistani youth further compound the problem. Students of madrassas and universities expressed these thoughts in a dialogue organized by Pak Institute for … Read more
Ambiguous state policies, incoherent and often conflicting institutional responses, distorted education syllabi, and media’s inability to educate the people are among the factors that have let the perils of extremism and militancy grow in Pakistan. Failure to address these areas and to evolve and implement a comprehensive de-radicalization program in Pakistan would not only strengthen … Read more
It is not so much the religious conflict as a matter of social behaviours that fuels intolerance and extremism in Pakistani society. Poor academic and intellectual responses, absence of dialogue and interaction among different sections of society, the use of religion as a political tool by Pakistani state, presence of extremist groups and ideologies in … Read more
The Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) are governed through the 1901 Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR), which was enacted by the British to promote their own interests. This system was once lauded as a success and liked by the tribesmen. However, at present the system is widely seen as authoritarian—both in its form and essence—resulting in … Read more
Karachi is Pakistan’s financial hub and its most populous city with an estimated population of 23.5 million as of April 2013 (Khan, 2012a). While Islamabad is the political capital, Karachi is the country’s foremost commercial and financial centre. It accounts for the lion’s share in Pakistan’s gross domestic product and generates at least 60 percent … Read more
Diversity is the Will of God and we should accept that. All religions preach similar truths and virtues, which along with shared cultural and social values can be built upon to enhance interfaith harmony in Pakistan. Interfaith dialogue and harmony are possible only on the basis of equality, respect and acceptance. We should revisit the … Read more
Education is a fundamental right of every Pakistani citizen. Also, it is a religious obligation of every Muslim. All political parties should prioritize education and should work out and implement with consensus a comprehensive, effective and long-term work plan for improving the state of education in Pakistan. These views were expressed by Pakistan’s leading religious … Read more
Objective and analytic reporting can enhance awareness of human rights and significantly challenge pervasive impunity for perpetrators of violations in Pakistan, participants of a media training learned here. Journalists from all parts of Pakistan attended the two-day media training workshop, which was organised by Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS) in the federal capital. The media training … Read more
The information explosion has lifted the role of journalists from traditional story tellers to analytical and investigative reporters who have the professional capacity and abilities to think critically and link the available information to its larger political, socioeconomic and other related dimensions. The participating young and mid-career journalists were told in a media training workshop … Read more