Fauzia Yazdani Female empowerment will not happen through political slogans, but through carefully designed policy interventions that focus on integrating women so as to further gender mainstreaming I was part of the critical mass of women that was created to celebrate the International Women’s Day in Islamabad, jointly organised by the Ministry of Women’s Development (MOWD) and PTV on March 8, 2010. The critical mass had to wait, as usual, for almost two hours for the prime minister to grace the occasion. It was a show of pomp that failed to dedicate a moment of silence to recognise the large … Continue reading Equal rights and equal opportunities

Dr Khalil Ahmad For Libertarians, religious freedom is an inseparable part of this natural personal freedom that the Constitution of 1973 so purposefully protects. Protecting religious freedom as a fundamental right is not only morally, spiritually, and intellectually of greater merit but is also socially harmonious Secularism is an old song that keeps reverberating in the liberal, enlightened, progressive, leftist, and socialist circles of Pakistan. Earlier this January, news from Bangladesh that its Supreme Court banned the use of religion by political parties provided a fresh impetus to the choir. Since then a plethora of op-ed pieces appreciating and envying … Continue reading Do we need secularism?

By Daily Mail Reporter This motorist was spotted by police driving with her car bonnet wide open, peering through the tiny gap to see where she was going. When incredulous officers pulled her over, the 53-year-old woman told them the bonnet was faulty and she was on her way to get it repaired. The woman had been using a four inch gap between her dashboard and the bonnet to steer her car through a busy seaside town. Spot the driver: The bonnet of the car was completely up as it was being driven Officers in Weymouth, Dorset were carrying out … Continue reading What do you mean I can’t see the road, officer? Woman pulled over driving with a VERY faulty bonnet

This stunning series of images captures the moments a starling is chased down and snatched in mid-air by a bald eagle. By Andy Bloxham telegraph.co.uk Previous 1 of 3 Images Next The bald eagle is native to North America can reach a wingspan of up to eight feet. Photo: SOLENT The bald eagle is native to North America can reach a wingspan of up to eight feet. Photo: SOLENT The bald eagle is native to North America can reach a wingspan of up to eight feet. Photo: SOLENT The photographs capture the bird of prey wheeling into position behind the songbird, then preparing … Continue reading Starling snatched mid-air by eagle in spectacular photos

A British expat who claims to have no gender is thought to have become the first person to be officially recognised as neither male or female. By Heidi Blake telegraph May-Welby said: ‘The concepts of man or woman don?t fit me. The simplest solution is not to have any sex identification’ Norrie May-Welby, 48, was born a man but had a sex change operation in 1990, at the age of 28. After becoming unhappy as a woman, May-Welby decided to become a “neuter”. The 48-year-old is now officially recognised as a person of no specific gender. May-Welby emigrated to Australia … Continue reading Briton is recognised as world’s first officially genderless person

When a Chinese college student posted a message announcing her desire to find a boyfriend she wasn’t prepared for the overwhelming response. telegraph.co.uk Previous 1 of 2 Images Next Zhang Mengqian Photo: REX FEATURES Zhang Mengqian’s boyfriend advert attracts thousands of suitors, Chengdu, Sichuan province Photo: REX FEATURES After leaving the message, thousands of eager potential boyfriends swarmed to the dormitory building where Zhang Mengqian lives. The mass gathering occurred after the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China in Chengdu, in southwest China’s Sichuan province, declared March 7 and 8 as a girls’ day for the female students. The university, which … Continue reading China: girl’s boyfriend advert attracts thousands of suitors

Donna Simpson has an unusual ambition: she wants to be the world’s fattest woman. Telegraph.co.uk Previous 1 of 2 Images Next Donna Simpson , who weighs 600lbs, tucks into a McDonalds at her home in in Old Bridge, New Jersey Photo: BARCROFT Donna Simpson uses a mobility scooter to carry the family’s $750 a week food shop Photo: BARCROFT Miss Simpson, 42, from New Jersey, USA, already holds the Guinness World Record as the world’s biggest mum. She was 520lbs when she had daughter Jacqueline, three, becoming the largest woman to give birth. Related Articles The mother of two eating herself to death … Continue reading Donna Simpson: woman who wants to be world’s fattest

JNews will provide a critical Jewish perspective, but one that arises out of deep empathy for both Israelis and Palestinians Miri Weingarten guardian.co.uk, The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is one of the most destabilising conflicts in the world. Yet consumers of media receive confusing messages about what is happening in the region, who is responsible for the regular outbreaks of violence and what could and should be done to reach a comprehensive and just peace. All too often, the experiences, concerns and needs of ordinary people on the ground are lost in a fog of partisan rhetoric. And the ubiquitous use of … Continue reading New voice on the Middle East conflict?

By Qurat ul ain Siddiqui Abdul Sattar Edhi, the founder of the Edhi Foundation, is arguably the most renowned philanthropist in Pakistan. – Eefa Khalid/Dawn.com dawn.com Abdul Sattar Edhi, the founder of the Edhi Foundation, is unarguably the most renowned philanthropist in Pakistan. He began his work in 1951 with the opening of a free, one-room medical clinic in Karachi. Currently, his foundation runs 250 centres across the country and houses more than 2,000 children at any given time. The centres also provide free burial of unclaimed bodies, free health care and dispensaries, rehabilitation of drug addicts, free assistance for … Continue reading “Pakistan is at a critical make-or-break stage”

By Jawed Naqvi A journalist holds a placard during a protest against the attack on media by members of a Hindu hard-line political party Shiv Sena, in Mumbai, India, Saturday, Nov. 21, 2009. — AP dawn.com We could be witnessing a rare and overdue shift in the Indian media’s approach to issues that were hitherto seen as taboo. It is not common in this era of easy jingoism to find journalists, with their own notions of patriotism and nationalism, questioning axioms of state policy towards, say, its intelligence outfits. This ice has now been broken. A tentative though absorbing discussion … Continue reading Are Indian media’s ‘Dirty Dozen’ really dirty enough?