In the midst of the political tussle between the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has been a distant observer for the large part. For a party with rock solid ideological roots, this is not a healthy sign. For a party that has historically been Pakistan’s most potent left-wing force…
No insight from B.C. NDP as they approve Site C Dam
There are times when the winds of change blow. Times when darkness appears to be distant, and the bastion of light seems to be on the horizon. Much like a poet who has found its long lost muse. Much like a romantic who has found new love. There are also times when you think the NDP…
The Housing Crisis & Canada
After years of stagnate wages and rising costs for everything from housing to education, many Canadians are deep in debt, with very little money saved. The family debt-to-income ratio in 1993 was 90 per cent. In 2017, it had soared to over 174 per cent. A recent Ipsos survey found that over 50 per cent…
Jean Swanson Has Achieved Victory In Defeat
On Saturday night, the first by-election in Vancouver since 1992 came to a conclusion. In one way, it was history repeating itself. In most other ways, it wasn’t. In terms of similarities, a Non-Partisan Association’s (NPA) candidate emerged victorious, as was the case in 1992. Back then it was Lynne Kennedy, now it is Hector Bremner. Unlike…
Pakistan and the Ahmaddiya Community
We have been here. This is not the first, nor will this be the last time. The Ahmadiyya community is under attack again. Surprised? You shouldn’t be. Remember Ashfaq Ahmed, the veterinary? Remember the chakwal mosque burning? Remember the signs outside Hafeez Centre in Lahore? Remember the US based doctor, Mehdi Ali Qamar? Remember Professor…
ISIS and Pakistan
There is the lush screen scenery. There are the picturesque Margalla Hills. There are the curve-friendly roads on these hills that remind one of Vital Signs and Junaid Jamshed. There is the crisp and cool weather. There is a particular calm never found in other major cities of the country. Then there is the Lal Masjid – the antithesis of everything in Islamabad –…
Kashmir: The perfect combination of Vital Signs and EP
Despite being an avid music lover, I’ve stopped following contemporary Pakistani music for quite a while now. It would not be incorrect to claim that things took a wrong turn ever since Rohail Hyatt left Coke Studio. However, the recently concluded Pepsi Battle of the Bands has changed that. And it really is down to one band alone…
Urdu Poem : Kahan Main Kahan Tum
din ki lehro ko choomti hui ye fazaa raat ki aghosh main hoti hui fanaa subh-o-shaam laati hai aik hee paighaam kahain main, kahan tum, har pal anjaan ranjh aur khushi se hamara jo naata hai yeh soch ke bazaar main na mil paye ga kabhi ye ishq ye pyar,sab hai qaid ka doosra…
Nawaz Must Not Resign
The earliest memory of television I have is Pakistan winning the 1992 Cricket World Cup. I don’t recall what happened on TV afterwards or how things got there, but I vaguely remember Nawaz Sharif’s sombre looking face on the television set in our living room a year later. Nawaz was prime minister. That’s all I was old enough to…
How To Tell a Pakistani and Indian Apart : 101
A shared history, a shared border and shared languages, ( or different variants of them ) and almost similar dress codes are among some of the things that are similar about India and Pakistan. Combined demographically, they make up some of the largest immigrant populations in Canada. However, Pakistanis like myself are regularly mistaken for…
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