Mustafa Qadri

In Pakistan, violence is crudely justified as defence of Islam. The government must defend human rights and the rule of law Mustafa Qadri, guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 2 March 2011 20:00 GMT Despite repeated climbdowns by the Pakistan government to appease extremists over the blasphemy laws, the minorities minister’s assassination proves there is no room for compromise. It [...]

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CONSTITUTIONAL changes dilute presidential powers but leave minorities in the cold.

Democratic politics is often unpredictable. In Pakistan, it tends to be a rollercoaster, regardless of whether an elected government is in power. Despite these tendencies, not to mention a universally loathed President, unabated war against the Taliban, a stagnant economy and severe energy shortages, a broad coalition of Pakistani politicians has, to rephrase Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani, just made the “impossible” possible.

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Today and yesterday I visited Karachi’s Hindu community at two different ‘mandirs’ or temples. One was in the Lighthouse district of the city. From the main road you would be forgiven for not knowing it exists because it is surrounded by markets. The only entrance to the tempe is through a small alleyway covered by [...]

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