By Mohammed Abbasi For six centuries the medieval knight dominated the battlefield and influenced the Western world greatly. The armored, mounted warrior, born in Middle Ages, revolutionized warfare and became the foundation of the new political structure known as feudalism. The Church put the medieval knight to the ultimate test-the First Crusade of 1095. The Church, which Christianized almost all of the knights, gave them a very high status in society, one that was sought after even by kings and princes. In the end, the legendary knights of the Middle Ages were lost in a world in which there was … Continue reading Samurai or Knight?

Thomas Weber and Robert J. Burrowes Contents 1. Introduction 2. Reasons for Nonviolence 3. Types of Nonviolence 4. What is Nonviolent Action? T1. Types of Nonviolence T2. The Major Dimensions 5. Nonviolent Action in Australia 6. Are Means Separate from Ends? 7. Ideological Nonviolence 8. Structural Analysis – Understanding Hidden Violence 9. The Dynamics of Nonviolence 10. Nonviolence and Human Unity 11. Conclusion A1. Further Reading Printer Friendly Version 1. Introduction “People try nonviolence for a week, and when it ‘doesn’t work’ they go back to violence, which hasn’t worked for centuries.” -Theodore Roszak In recent years there has been … Continue reading Nonviolence: An Introduction

Mir Jamilur Rahman Pakistan is facing various kinds of armed conflicts presently. With the Taliban and Al Qaeda using suicide bombers to achieve their goals in this region, our armed forces along with NATO forces are busy in clearing out militants and terrorists. However, today we won’t talk about terrorism acts carried out by militant organisation. Rather, we will discuss the individual acts of killing which are on the increase. Only a psychoanalyst can explain this phenomenon that why murders are on the rise, but one thing is certain: Pakistanis, perhaps due to remaining under pressure for such a long … Continue reading Violent Pakistan

Dr Maleeha Lodhi The writer is a former envoy to the US and the UK, and a former editor of The News. Politics and political life are being transformed across the world by the dynamics of the digital era. The broadcast media’s reach and direct action by citizens and civil society using the media and communication technology are changing the nature of political engagement. This is encroaching upon the traditional sphere of political parties, which are no longer the only determinant of the political game. Pakistan is no exception to this global trend. The rapid advance of the broadcast media … Continue reading Who sets the political agenda in Pakistan?

Rakesh Mani It’s one of the most remarkable campaigns the subcontinent has seen: a joint peace initiative run by the Times of India, India’s most powerful media empire, and the Jang group, Pakistan’s most influential media group. Their joint ‘Aman ki Asha’ (Hope for Peace) initiative looks to develop a stronger Track II channel in the diplomatic and cultural relations between India and Pakistan. The Urdu language Jang newspaper’s involvement is relevant, and crucial, although the Jang Group’s English language The News is also involved. However, it is probably the vernacular Jang reader who needs to be made more open … Continue reading The stars are aligned

Mosharraf Zaidi Since 2003 there have been 2,947 Pakistani soldiers that have embraced shahadat fighting the menace of terrorism. I do not know and cannot recall, offhand, the name of a single one of those 2,947 Pakistani heroes. One name that I do know, and will be able to recall for a long time to come is David James Hartman. David James Hartman was twenty-seven years old. His son Mikey is only a year old. His wife Cherise is pregnant with their second child. The Hartmans first met at Kadena High School at the US Air Force Base in Okinawa, … Continue reading DJ Hartman & 2,947 Pakistanis

Marvi Sirmed A section of the media is putting the credibility of the entire media at risk by siding blindly with the political interests of one political party. Chasing small-term superficial benefits and satisfying the fragile egos of a few anchorpersons is going to curtail the freedom of the media at the hands of the media itself There is a judicial crisis, the media says. This claim seems to be correct if one realises the level of urgency the Supreme Court showed in responding to a presidential notification. This notification was nothing bigger than the elevation of the senior-most judge … Continue reading Let reason prevail or else?

Carlos Fuentes In Yucatán, you never see the water. It flows underground, beneath a fragile sheath of earth and limestone. Occasionally, that delicate Yucatec skin blossoms in eyes of water, in liquid ponds — the cenotes — that attest to the existence of a mysterious subterranean current. For me, love is like those hidden rivers and unexpected streams of Yucatán. On occasion our lives come to resemble those infinite chasms that would be fathomless if we did not find, at the very bottom of the void, a flowing river, at times placid and navigable, wide or narrow, at times steep, … Continue reading Love and evil?