By Ibrahim Sajid Malick The writer is a Pakistani-American technologist and entrepreneur (ibrahim.malick@tribune.com.pk) Pop quiz: what are the names of Pakistan’s ambassadors to Chile, Malaysia, Venezuela, Brazil, or Russia? It is very likely that most people will not know this and there is a reason — these countries don’t get adequate visibility in Pakistan. Hussain Haqqani (US), Wajid Shamsul Hassan (UK) and Shahid Malik (India) are the few ambassadors whom the Pakistani media finds relevant, relegating all others to secondary positions. At the UN in New York, a venue that provides an effective medium to socialise ideas of national interest, … Continue reading Pakistan’s narrow foreign policy

Airport security, Pakistan-style By Naveen Naqvi The writer is a former TV morning show host (naveen.naqvi@tribune.com.pk) You would think going off to Europe for a week would be fun, yes? Think again if you’re taking a flight out of Karachi’s Jinnah Terminal. I’m one of those people who leaves home three-and-a-half hours before my flight is meant to leave. For a 6:15 am departure, means being in the car at 2:45 in the morning. There is some attempt to sleep — basically a three hour ‘nap’ or a euphemism for tossing and turning. In these less than ideal circumstances we … Continue reading Pakistan-style Airport security

Not all extremists are terrorists, says ex-jihadist By Salman Siddiqui Mugshots of three US citizens caught in Pakistan trying to join militant organisations. KARACHI: “There’s a difference between an extremist and a terrorist. All terrorists are extremists but not all extremists are terrorists,” claimed a former member of a UK-based jihadist group, Hizb ut Tahrir. Majid Nawaz explained that an extremist may impose his ideology on people through non-violent means as compared to a terrorist. However, he quickly added that both are equally reprehensible and must be condemned openly by the civil society. The NGO Individualland organised a seminar ‘Citizens … Continue reading Not all extremists are terrorists?

Macedonia and Greece live up to Balkan stereotype The Greek and Macedonian governments are absurdly mired in backward-looking defensiveness over their country’s identities Ivo Petkovski guardian.co.uk, Friday 25 June 2010 15.00 BST Article history There has long been a plan to erect a 40m statue of Alexander the Great in Skopje’s main public square. Photograph: Unknown/ Bettmann/CORBISAs any fan of Asterix the Gaul can confirm, national stereotypes are funny because they tend to carry a grain of truth. They give us a broad caricature of a people and their quirks, and also, crucially, how those people are perceived from the … Continue reading Macedonian and Greek leaders to wrestle in the nude?

World leaders beware: there are John Terrys everywhere Traditional hierarchies are crumbling, and it isn’t only football managers left having to deal with teams full of soloists Mark Lawson guardian.co.uk, Friday 25 June 2010 20.00 BST Article history In the business and political cultures the popular metaphor of “singing from the same song sheet” conveys the idea of an organisation as a united choir. But as traditional systems of hierarchy break down in tie-less, open-plan offices, some employees may understandably feel encouraged to drop the photocopied page. This week two footballers – England’s John Terry and Nicolas Anelka of France … Continue reading We are all ‘Leaders’

Richard Dawkins and the atheist school Dawkins has said he’d like to set up an atheist school. But would it really be able to teach religion as anthropology, without bias? Nick Spencer guardian.co.uk, Friday 25 June 2010 13.29 BST Article history So, Richard Dawkins has promised – no, that’s too strong – intimated that he might set up an atheist school, as he would presumably have the right to under new government “free school” plans. During a chat on mumsnet he responded to a few suggestions that he start “an atheist free school” by saying he liked the idea very … Continue reading Will Mullah Richard Dawkins set up an atheist school?

Pakistan watches Google, other sites for blasphemy dawn.com Pakistan will start monitoring seven major websites, including Google, for anti-Islamic content, said an official. — File Photo Pakistan to get four F-16 tomorrow ISLAMABAD: An official says Pakistan will start monitoring seven major websites, including Google, for anti-Islamic content. It also is blocking at least 17 other, lesser-known sites it deems offensive to Muslims. The decision comes in response to a recent order from a judge in Punjab province. Pakistan Telecommunication Authority spokesman Khurram Mehran said Friday that the sites to be monitored include Yahoo, Google, MSN, Hotmail, YouTube, Amazon and … Continue reading Pakistan unleashes the Mullahs on Google!

Defying traditional rivalry for a winning combination dawn.com Qureshi and Bopanna have stayed in each other’s homes, and want to stage a goodwill exhibition at year’s end at the Wagah border crossing between India and Pakistan. —Reuters Photo Aisam Qureshi, Rohan Bopanna in Wimbledon round two WIMBLEDON: An Indian and a Pakistani hope their partnership in the men’s doubles at Wimbledon can chip away at the enmity between their countries, which have fought three wars since independence from Britain in 1947. Rohan Bopanna of India and Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi of Pakistan also want to win, and they did so Wednesday in … Continue reading Stop War, Start Tennis

Honour and terror By Rafia Zakaria dawn.com Aqsa Pervez. –File Photo The killers of 16-year-old Aqsa Pervez were convicted on June 18. Mohammad Pervez and Waqas Ahmed, Aqsa’s father and brother, were sentenced to life in prison by a jury in Ontario, Canada. Aqsa was killed after being picked up by her brother from her school bus stop. She was taken to the family home where she was found dead by the police. DNA material belonging to her brother was found under her fingernails and her father confessed to the murder. According to accounts published in Canadian newspapers, Mohammad Pervez … Continue reading Canadian Muslims and Honour

Young people in Saudi Arabia are torn between conservative ideology at home and the world outside Fahad Faruqui guardian.co.uk, Friday 25 June 2010 08.00 BST Article history MTV’s True Life documentary series recently featured a group of young Saudis grappling with the kingdom’s rigid social norms – and their cry for change stirred bitter emotions in conservative quarters. They weren’t talking about politics, but about themselves and their desire to live the life they choose. Their demands may seem mundane, but in a way, they are far more radical than calling for democracy or political reform because they strike at … Continue reading Saudi youth are struggling with their identities