• May 2, 2016
• Freedom of Expression, Front Page, Publications and Reports

Pakistan is witnessing worrying new policies and practices that can have serious consequences on freedom of expression and safety of media in the country, according to the Pakistan Press Freedom Report issued by Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) on World Press Freedom Day commemorated globally on May 3. The report cites aggressive system of editorial advice […]

• May 2, 2016
• Social Media

KARACHI: The government made 471 requests to Facebook for data related to 706 accounts/users in the latter half of last year, marking a two-fold increase in the number of requests made to the social networking site during the first six months of 2015. The details were given in a bi-annual transparency report, “Global Government Requests […]

• May 2, 2016
• Arts and Entertainment

Karachi The Women of the World (WoW) Festival, which Karachi now has the distinction of being the first Asian city to celebrate, was a precious opportunity to evaluate the place women had carved for themselves in a traditional set-up and also be acquainted with the various shortcomings. These views were expressed by Jim Booth, country […]

• May 2, 2016
• Access to Information

Right to information is a swanky topic. It is the perfect candidate for foreign-funded seminars, suitably lubricated with high-teas in five-star hotels. Pakistan has a plethora of right to information laws. Do they actually perform their function, or do they simply serve as a façade of our ‘soft image’? There are at least five major […]

• May 2, 2016
• General News

Random thoughts In this column, I will concentrate on those Quranic verses dealing with the protection of women’s rights. “And of His Signs is that He has created mates for you from your own kind that you may find peace in them and He has set between you love and mercy. Surely there are Signs […]

• May 2, 2016
• General News

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali is likely to consider a government request today (Monday) about constituting a commission on the Panama leaks upon his return from Turkey. On April 23, the government wrote a letter to the apex court, requesting it to form a commission to probe the authenticity of the information contained in […]