Famine, From Bad to Worse
Posted by Malik Siraj Akbar on August 30, 2011 · Leave a Comment
By Malik Siraj Akbar As the famine in southern Somalia worsens, aid experts fear that corruption and the politics of terrorism are crimping the flow of humanitarian relief to areas where starvation is worst. Abundant U.S. aid targeted for the Horn of Africa cannot directly reach starving people in southern Somalia because it’s blocked by … Read more
Junior Taseer’s Abduction Stuns Pakistani Liberals
Posted by Malik Siraj Akbar on August 27, 2011 · Leave a Comment
A son of Salmaan Taseer, the liberal governor of the country’s powerful Punjab province who was shot dead by his own security guard in Islamabad in January, has been kidnapped by masked gunmen in Lahore. Taseer’s loss did not end the family’s miseries nor did the tragedy dissuade them to speak up for liberal values … Read more
Filed under Malik Siraj Akbar · Tagged with Malik Siraj Akbar article on Shahbaz Taseer, Shahbaz Taseer
Book Review: The Taliban Shuffle: Strange Days in Afghanistan and Pakistan
Posted by Malik Siraj Akbar on August 27, 2011 · Leave a Comment
By Malik Siraj Akbar The former South Asia bureau chief of Chicago Tribune Kim Barker represents perhaps the last generation of the romanticized breed of journalists called foreign correspondents. Several media organizations have shut down foreign bureaus and recalled their international correspondents because of unmanageable economic circumstances. With the advent of social media and envious … Read more
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Governor Magsi’s Thunder Embarrasses IG FC
Posted by Malik Siraj Akbar on August 27, 2011 · Leave a Comment
In order to accurately grasp the situation in Balochistan, one needs to understand the undemocratic influence of the Inspector General of the Frontier Corps (FC) over the elected civil administration. Major General Obaidullah Khan, a non-native of Balochistan, says he does not recognize the fresh report by Human Rights Watch (HRW) about Balochsitan. In his … Read more
Hurricane Irene
Posted by Malik Siraj Akbar on August 26, 2011 · Leave a Comment
We are getting ready for Hurricane Irene. President Obama said “all indications point to this being a historic hurricane.” They say it is going to be the worst hurricane hitting the east coast in the past one hundred years. . Seven states, including Virginia, have declared a state of emergency. People are making initial preparations … Read more
Filed under Malik Siraj Akbar · Tagged with Hurricane Irene
IPS Story Quotes Malik Siraj Akbar About Targeted Killings of Hazara and Shias in Balochistan
Posted by Malik Siraj Akbar on August 26, 2011 · Leave a Comment
Respected Pakistani journalist Zofeen Ebrahim, who extensively covers development and human rights issues, has quoted me in her article For Shia Hazaras, it’s Funeral After Funeral about the plight of the Hazara, Shias living in Balochistan. The article has been published by IPSNews. She writes, “”Hazara killings do not make headlines because Balochistan is sandwiched between … Read more
Filed under Malik Siraj Akbar · Tagged with Zofeen Ebrahim, Zofeen Ebrahim article about Shia Hazaras
A Talk-Show That Resembled an India-Pakistan Cricket Match
Posted by Malik Siraj Akbar on August 26, 2011 · Leave a Comment
It was so much like a cricket match. To be accurate, it was like an India-Pakistan cricketing event. I have one more reason to bill this talk-show as a cricket competition: My favorite team (guess which one? Marvi Eleven, of course!) did not play well at the outset. Our team lost a couple of wickets … Read more
Filed under Malik Siraj Akbar · Tagged with Marvi Sarmad and Zaid Hamid debate on Express TV
The End of Insurgency?
Posted by Malik Siraj Akbar on August 24, 2011 · 6 Comments
Baloch nationalist leader Bramdagh Bugti, 30, has spoken for the first time since fleeing from Afghanistan to seek asylum in Switzerland. The New York Times has not only run a fresh profile-like story about Mr. Bugti but also shared an unseen picture of the popular guerrilla leader. In the fresh get-up, Mr. Bugti looks like … Read more
Filed under Malik Siraj Akbar · Tagged with Baloch armed resistance, Baloch National Front, Baloch Republican Party, Bramdagh Bugti, Carlotta Gall
Perils of reporting in Balochistan
Posted by Malik Siraj Akbar on August 22, 2011 · Leave a Comment
Journalism in Balochistan is a murky world where press releases and catchy headlines may cost reporters their lives.
Balochistan’s Forgotten Saleem Shahzad (s)
Posted by Malik Siraj Akbar on August 17, 2011 · Leave a Comment
Saleem Shahzad, the Asia Times journalist, who was allegedly killed by the Inter-Services Intelligence, today epitomizes journalistic courage. His name is also intertwined with reporters’ extraordinary reactions in Pakistan to the murder of a fellow colleague by the country’s invisible soldiers. When the investigative reporters’ dead body was recovered two days after his mysterious disappearance … Read more
