WDF, WAF, AAM and other feminist and women rights organisations condemn threats hurled by JUI to Dr Arfana Mallah; demand release of Dr Sajid Soomro and others   Herald Report Islamabad, June 12: Pakistan’s leading feminist organisations have condemned the harassment of a prominent academic and activist through a malicious campaign by religious zealots in Sindh. In a joint statement …

Dr Asim Sajjad Akhtar   THE budget will be presented in the National Assembly today, much ado about nothing. On the surface of it, the main opposition parties will refrain from debate because of the pandemic, no more than 86 MNAs attending the budget session due to social distancing protocols. In truth, decisions about Pakistan’s economy have been made by …

  Dr Farzana Bari Heralded as the greatest equaliser of our times, the coronavirus pandemic was expected to blur boundaries of class, race, and gender, and become the common denominator for lifestyles across the world. But two months yet into a global lockdown, this judgement has proven absolutely wrong. The pandemic like all complex emergencies, including armed conflicts and natural …

The decision will add to the woes of PWDs that make 15 per cent of the population, says activist News Desk Islamabad: The human rights defenders have condemned the government’s decision to abolish two per cent employment quota for differently-abled persons in public and private entities. In a statement issued on Sunday, the Potohar Mental Health Association (PMHA) termed the …

She is among the top 100 influential Sikhs below 30 years age.   Pakistan’s first Sikh female journalist, Manmeet Kaur, has been nominated for a prestigious award in the United Kingdom. Manmeet Kaur, 25, has been selected as one of the 100 most influential Sikh personalities under 30 years of age around the world by the UK based ‘The Sikh …

by Asim Sajjad Akhtar THE dastardly attacks which took the lives of over 40 mostly Hazara civilians in Kabul and Nangarhar earlier this week barely raised an eyebrow in the Pakistani mainstream. The attack on the maternity ward of a hospital which killed and maimed newborns was especially gut-wrenching. Yet aside from a couple of perfunctory condemnations from official places, …

By Gul Hammad Farooqi CHITRAL: As the fear of the people of Chitral rises due to the spike in coronavirus cases in the Hindu Kush mountainous region, so does the anxiety of the Tehsil Municipal Administration (TMA) staffers who have not yet been paid their salaries for the last three months. The TMA officials are performing duty in a very …

While Covid-19 has busted the myth of success and efficiency of the market economy and governance with the failing façade of profiteering at the cost of human welfare, people need to raise voice for their basic rights and push the state to improve the education and health systems Muhammad Ali-Musofer The Coronavirus pandemic has disrupted and paralysed the social and …

Covid-19 pandemic affecting human rights, weakest segments of society invisible and unheard, notes HRCP in its flagship report High Asia Herald Report Islamabad: Pakistan’s human rights record is worrisome as curbs on dissenting views increased. The outbreak of Coronasvirus will have far-reaching effects on people’s economic and social rights fundamental rights, says a report. “Widespread social and economic marginalisation have …

Migrant workers in India, Pakistan and Nepal are crushed by poverty as earnings come to an abrupt halt in the lockdown forced by the Covid-19 pandemic, says a report compiled by Joydeep Gupta, Zofeen T Ebrahim, Ramesh Bhushal, published in thethirdpole.net online magazine. News Desk Across South Asia, the impact of the Covid-19 on livelihoods has been extreme. Despite being an outlier …