COMMENT: Floods and humanitarian medicine —Dr Mohammad Taqi Unlike spontaneous volunteers, healthcare professionals must think critically to avoid overwhelming the local resources and decide where in the disaster cycle they would be most effective “Bani Adam aaza’ e yak o deegarand, Keh der aafreenesh ze yak gauharand. Choon uzvi ba dard aaward rozgar, Digar uzvha ra na manand qarar. Tu keh az mehnat-e-deegran beghami, Nashayad keh naamet nahad aadmi.” (Human beings are members of a whole, In creation, of one essence and soul. If one member is afflicted with pain, Other members uneasy will remain. If you have no sympathy … Continue reading Floods and humanitarian medicine

The Turkish Germans to whom these racist comments mean little Thilo Sarrazin’s chitchat has nothing to do with their lives. And that’s why they feel neither disgusted or insulted Deniz Yücel guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 1 September 2010 14.00 BST Article history Who is central bank executive Thilo Sarrazin talking about when he accuses migrants from Islamic countries of unwillingness to integrate? Surely he can’t mean my sister Ilkay, who celebrates Christmas every year. She’s not religious, but she thinks that her two daughters could feel disadvantaged if they didn’t get any Christmas presents. He can’t be talking about my colleague Yasemin, … Continue reading The Turkish Germans and Thilo Sarrazin’s Panic Attack

The president’s health is in the spotlight – and it is hardline generals who are set to determine the face of Zimbabwe’s future Blessing-Miles Tendi guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 1 September 2010 19.07 BST Article history Informed sources lend credence to reports that Robert Mugabe is losing his physical powers. Photograph: Desmond Kwande/AFP/Getty ImagesDuring August, Robert Mugabe was pictured walking unsteadily and requiring the assistance of aides when going up and downstairs at various summits. The images sent long-running speculation in Zimbabwe about the state of Mugabe’s health – he is said to have a form of cancer – into overdrive. Mugabe … Continue reading After Mugabe Dies

The dark side of gay liberation Officially no one cares about a politician’s sexuality. The William Hague case shows that isn’t true Julian Glover guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 1 September 2010 20.33 BST Article history Gay, blue, proud and out? Then book your table at Tory conference pride next month. “Adam Rickitt will host the evening at Nightingales, Birmingham’s top gay club, and there will be appearances from cabinet members and high-profile MPs,” a party email urged last night. And then, moments later, news came that William Hague’s special adviser had resigned after an internet smear, and the foreign secretary felt so … Continue reading UK Still Has A Gay-Phobic Problem

Words in the blogosphere are powerful things, as the William Hague case shows. We must learn to self-police this new world Graeme Archer guardian.co.uk, Thursday 2 September 2010 10.59 BST Article history William Hague and former special adviser Chris Myers. Photograph: Xposurephotos.comI have a very good friend, called Ben, like me a Hackneyite. What we do is this: every six months or so we meet in a scuzzy pub in the middle of an afternoon, like schoolboys skiving off double maths, and we get very drunk on cheap white wine, and laugh at the various absurdities of modern life. Now, … Continue reading The end of privacy affects us all

Czech female MPs have reduced politics by posing as pin-ups Posing for a girly calendar is just one way Czech politicians have dodged engaging with issues that really matter Peggy Watson guardian.co.uk, Thursday 2 September 2010 12.00 BST Article history The publication of a 2011 calendar showing a number of newly-elected Czech women MPs in come-to-bed poses has caused something of a media furore in recent weeks. As the Wall Street Journal enthused: “A new generation of Czech women is coming of age that is embracing femininity and sex appeal while at the same time fighting for, and winning, more … Continue reading Czech Republics Democratic Tits!

By I.A. Rehman dawn.com It is quite clear that all these institutions have to bear with one another. The Supreme Court can never sack parliament or the media, nor will parliament ever be foolish or strong enough to abolish the Supreme Court or the media. But the extremist militants that are being reared by anti-secular elements, if they ever capture the state, will almost surely pack off parliament, the Supreme Court and the media into oblivion. The choice before the people of Pakistan has never been clearer. – File Photo. The spectre of secularism is haunting the privileged elite of … Continue reading Spectre of secularism

By Jawed Naqvi dawn.com What if Hindus take a similar approach over the Babri dispute? We can expect endless confabulations between the government and religious groups. We can expect yet another eclipse of the liberal middle ground that is not enamoured of religious disputes. – Photo by AP. Maulana Jalaluddin Umri was fasting when he met a clutch of journalists last week. India’s mainstream media had shown no interest in him so he decided to invite a few of those he believed could be trusted with his time-sensitive message. As it turned out what the 75-year old head of the … Continue reading Uncorking the Babri genie

The need to confront violence and injustice by Faris Islam dawn.com Watching the footage of the aftermath of the Lahore blast, it’s tragic how familiar a sight this has become across Pakistan. Too often, our national discourse been filled with angry citizens taking the law into their own hands. Before the Lahore bombings, we witnessed the gruesome lynching of two teenagers in Sialkot, a few weeks earlier Karachi erupted into flames of arson and looting following the murder of MPA Raza Haider. Prior to that, my home city of Karachi also burnt and bled after the Ashura blasts and of … Continue reading The need to confront these fiends

Dark farce by Nadeem F. Paracha Terrorist attacks by extremist organizations and the usual knee-jerk reactions that one gets to hear from the media and society in general have become a dark farce. The disgust of watching human beings blow themselves up in the presence of men, women and children soon converts itself into an anger that babbles its way across numerous fantastic theories about some imaginary villains. In the process, the terrorists go blame-free. We are a confused lot. And this is an understatement. At least some of the roots of such confusion lie in the dilemma former Pakistani … Continue reading Mullah Ki Puja walas