Mustafa Qadri

As Pakistan celebrates Independence Day, Mustafa Qadri looks at the country’s unstable beginnings, troubled history and the miracle of its continued existence

“The religious bigot considers me an infidel
And the infidel deems me to be a Muslim!”

With these immortal words, Pakistan’s national poet Mohammad Iqbal captured the eternal quandary that is Pakistan.

The nation created for the subcontinent’s Muslims has always struggle to define itself — is it meant to be an Islamic state or a state for Indian Muslims?

[Read more →]

My latest report from Pakistan, a reflection on the nation on the 69th anniversary of the Lahore Resolution of 1940, was published in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s ‘Unleashed’ website today:

Ordinary People Power

Mustafa Qadri

Monday was Republic Day in Pakistan, the 69th anniversary of the moment when, under the Lahore Resolution, the idea of Pakistan was formally adopted by the subcontinent’s Muslim leadership. Seven years later, on August 14, 1947, the idea would turn into the reality of an independent state.

[Read more →]

“Maulvi Sahib! What is Pakistan?” After careful thought he replied: “It’s a place in India where they make razors.”

[Read more →]