South Asia Citizens Web

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) is concerned over allegations that elements associated with the administration at Balochistan University use campus surveillance videos – including those filmed by ‘secret’ cameras – to harass and blackmail students.

The 2014 military coup against the democratically elected government of Yingluck Shinawatra prompted hundreds of people to flee Thailand and go into exile, especially among supporters of Ms. Yingluck and her brother Thaksin, also a former prime minister who was deposed. Many backers of the Shinawatras, the so-called red shirts, went to neighboring countries seeking sanctuary, legally or not.

In 1981, the University Grants Commission of Pakistan issued a directive for authors and publishers of school and college textbooks which stated, “The depiction of Jinnah should be that of a man of orthodox religious views who sought the creation of an Islamic state. The ulema should be promoted as genuine heroes of the Pakistan Movement. There should be an emphasis on ritualistic Islam, together with a rejection of liberal interpretations of the religion. The books should guide students towards the ultimate goal of Pakistan, i.e., the creation of a completely Islamised State.” The complete text of the directive can be found in Mutala-i-Pakistan, published in 1983 by Allama Iqbal Open University.

Indian government has spun the story using national media that their clampdown on civil liberties in Kashmir with an increased military presence, summary arrests of all mainstream and separatist leaders and the communication blockade has made the unfolding of this new reality peaceful and that majority of the people are very happy. . We found exactly the opposite.

When the Constitution was adopted by the people and the Indian republic was created, there was hope in the air. One felt that in some near future, the society would move towards becoming genuinely secular and tolerant . . . But is all lost, lost together — has India slid into an irreversible Talibanization of the mind?