Current Projects

CRSS-IBT Form the Grand Jirga of Swat-Kohistan

On April 17th, 2011, a grand Jirga (Council of Elders) comprising representative from five Union Councils of Swat-Kohistan(Bahrain, Kalam and Madyan¶of six union councils) was organized by Idara Baraye Taleem-o-Taraqi (IBT), Bahrain, Swat, in collaboration with Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS), Islamabad in Bahrain Swat. The Jirga was attended by more than 150 people from the worst flood cum militancy affected union councils namely Bahrain, Kalam, Utror, Mankiyal, Balakot, Bishigram and Madyan. The Jirga assessed the rehabilitation efforts by the government and humanitarian organizations and termed them unsatisfactory and insufficient. The speakers at the Jirga were frustrated at the slow intervention by the government. They unanimously quoted the hitherto infrastructure particularly the damaged road to the tourists– destinations as Bahrain, Kalam, Utror, Ushu and Madyan as an example of the incompetence of the government. The government could not restore the road (N-95) from Chirkri (Fatepur) to Kalam for all kind of traffic in spite the lapse of more than eight months since the floods in the area in July 2010. Speakers at the Jirga expressed grave concerns over the negligence of the rehabilitation of the tourist area; and on the lack of a tangible roadmap by the government for the reconstruction of the destroyed infrastructure.Speaking to the Jirga ex-provincial minister Malik Mohammad Didar told that the representatives did not mobilize the government on the issues prevailing in Swat Kohistan. He further told that the MPA and MNA should have raised the problems and hardships faced by the people at every forum but unfortunately they haven–t. As a testimony to this alleged sloth by the elected representatives, Habibullah, ex- Nazim union council Kalam, shared his experience of their meeting with the federal minister for communication. He told that they found the minister utterly unaware of the closure of the road for over eight months. While...

Journalism Held Hostage

(Courtesy: Prof. Syed Irfan Ashraf, Faculty, University of Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) IN February, about 50 journalists who report from the tribal conflict zones of Pakistan and Afghanistan met in Kabul. They discussed issues related to war reporting and the need for a cross-border network to help media professionals overcome the growing challenges they are facing. The speakers complained that combatant forces had weakened journalistic freedom and were using reporters as pawns in the theatre of war. Some reporters admitted to facing an ethical dilemma. Objective coverage, they said, brings threats but partisan journalism wins them the confidence of the warring parties. Growing anarchy has made access to information dependent on the will of the military and the militants. Both have shown little tolerance in allowing reporters to work independently. In threatening circumstances, journalists feel little hesitation in toeing the line, which has made journalism subservient to military strategies. More importantly, it has provided journalists with an excuse to justify anything in the name of insecurity, making professional dishonesty the norm in war reporting. Ethically, any defensive measure is justified if it helps reporters keep safe. In the local context, however, this provisional compromise is of little help in ensuring their security. Meanwhile, it has killed in them the spirit of initiative. There is a growing realisation that journalism in a hostile situation is mainly about serving the combatants. This has caused complacency in war reporters. They take pride in their relationship with militants, who often invite them to cover terror at the source. In the southern parts of Afghanistan, the situation is worse. Reporters-cum-cameramen are taken on embedded missions to shoot events like film directors. For their part, they do not hesitate to guide militants about how to act on camera. Such unethical exercises end in laundering half-truths in the name of...

Pakistan’s Blasphemy Law and its Consequences

The controversial Blasphemy Law, enacted in its current form during the military dictatorship of General Ziaul Haq in the 1980s, has made big headlines in and outside Pakistan. Oflate, the world came to know about it only when former governor of the Punjab province, Salman Taseer, was gunned down by his guard Mumtaz Qaderi on January 4th, 2011. Qaderi said Taseer, aman of liberal and moderate religious thoughts, had committed blasphemy by visiting a Christian lady Aasia Bibi, convicted to death for blaspheming the Holy Prophet Mohammad. Almost two monthslater, Shahbaz Bhatti, the minister for Minorities Affairs, was assassinated on March 2nd in front of his mother's house. His crime; he had been advocating changes to the law of blasphemy to prevent itsabuse by unscrupulous people, particularly in the rural areas. Statistics suggest that people, in order to settle personal scores, to take revenge, or to implicate rivals in crippling litigation, tend to lodgecomplaints againt rivals under the Blasphemy Law. Even otherwise, a number of innocent people have lost their lives under the ruse of having committed blasphemy. A human rights activist, and a CRSS associate, Mohammad Nafees, based in Karachi, has painstakingly compiled statistics on injustices and murders that have been committed under the excuse ofBlasphemy Law. These statistics are quite revealing and instructive and the CRSS is posting them for a wider audience to get a glimpse of the consequences that the Blasphemy Act has entailed. more...

Pakistan's Blasphemy Law and its Consequences

The controversial Blasphemy Law, enacted in its current form during the military dictatorship of General Ziaul Haq in the 1980s, has made big headlines in and outside Pakistan. Oflate, the world came to know about it only when former governor of the Punjab province, Salman Taseer, was gunned down by his guard Mumtaz Qaderi on January 4th, 2011. Qaderi said Taseer, aman of liberal and moderate religious thoughts, had committed blasphemy by visiting a Christian lady Aasia Bibi, convicted to death for blaspheming the Holy Prophet Mohammad. Almost two monthslater, Shahbaz Bhatti, the minister for Minorities Affairs, was assassinated on March 2nd in front of his mother's house. His crime; he had been advocating changes to the law of blasphemy to prevent itsabuse by unscrupulous people, particularly in the rural areas. Statistics suggest that people, in order to settle personal scores, to take revenge, or to implicate rivals in crippling litigation, tend to lodgecomplaints againt rivals under the Blasphemy Law. Even otherwise, a number of innocent people have lost their lives under the ruse of having committed blasphemy. A human rights activist, and a CRSS associate, Mohammad Nafees, based in Karachi, has painstakingly compiled statistics on injustices and murders that have been committed under the excuse ofBlasphemy Law. These statistics are quite revealing and instructive and the CRSS is posting them for a wider audience to get a glimpse of the consequences that the Blasphemy Act has entailed. more...

Pakistan's Blasphemy Law and its Consequences

The controversial Blasphemy Law, enacted in its current form during the military dictatorship of General Ziaul Haq in the 1980s, has made big headlines in and outside Pakistan. Oflate, the world came to know about it only when former governor of the Punjab province, Salman Taseer, was gunned down by his guard Mumtaz Qaderi on January 4th, 2011. Qaderi said Taseer, aman of liberal and moderate religious thoughts, had committed blasphemy by visiting a Christian lady Aasia Bibi, convicted to death for blaspheming the Holy Prophet Mohammad. Almost two monthslater, Shahbaz Bhatti, the minister for Minorities Affairs, was assassinated on March 2nd in front of his mother's house. His crime; he had been advocating changes to the law of blasphemy to prevent itsabuse by unscrupulous people, particularly in the rural areas. Statistics suggest that people, in order to settle personal scores, to take revenge, or to implicate rivals in crippling litigation, tend to lodgecomplaints againt rivals under the Blasphemy Law. Even otherwise, a number of innocent people have lost their lives under the ruse of having committed blasphemy. A human rights activist, and a CRSS associate, Mohammad Nafees, based in Karachi, has painstakingly compiled statistics on injustices and murders that have been committed under the excuse ofBlasphemy Law. These statistics are quite revealing and instructive and the CRSS is posting them for a wider audience to get a glimpse of the consequences that the Blasphemy Act has entailed. more...

Al Qaeda’s Final Dance: A Deadly Tango for Two

Adding to his last article Why the People of Tunisia and Egypt Confirm the Bankruptcy of Al Qaeda's Tactics, Drs. Peter Knoope further elaborates as to how the citizenries of different Middle Eastern countries are struggling for more freedoms and their democratic rights. Their non-violent political struggle is what is considered the deadly blow to Al Qaeda violent philosophy and strategy for a political change. Eelco Kessles MA also contributed to this interesting article. Drs. Knoope and Kessles are officials of the International Centre for Counter-terrorism, Hague (Netherlands). The popular uprisings in Northern Africa and the Middle East carry a very strong message. They are showing us, professionals involved in the field of counter-terrorism, and our politicians the best way forward in our struggle against political violence. The message is that the best way to take away the support for terrorist actions, and the ideology that fuels them, is supporting socio-political freedom and above all increased political space. The repressive regimes in Northern Africa and beyond have tried, and succeeded, to convince the world that the choice was either supporting their authoritarian rule or to be stuck with the only possible alternative: Islamic fundamentalism. This Islamic fundamentalism is, according to these regimes, either embodied by Al Qaeda, or in the more sophisticated version by the Muslim Brotherhood. In the dictators– discourse, the former would inevitably create a breeding ground for violent jihadism, whilst the latter would attempt a totalitarian takeover via democratic elections of the one-man, one-vote, one-time variety. This narrative is now being shattered by the citizens of the greater Middle East region. The people do not demand a new government based on Sharia, this uprising is not about differing religious interpretations. On the contrary, it is about political space, freedom and ´ yes, the word is out there ´ democracy. Interestingly, Al Qaeda...

Al Qaeda's Final Dance: A Deadly Tango for Two

Adding to his last article Why the People of Tunisia and Egypt Confirm the Bankruptcy of Al Qaeda's Tactics, Drs. Peter Knoope further elaborates as to how the citizenries of different Middle Eastern countries are struggling for more freedoms and their democratic rights. Their non-violent political struggle is what is considered the deadly blow to Al Qaeda violent philosophy and strategy for a political change. Eelco Kessles MA also contributed to this interesting article. Drs. Knoope and Kessles are officials of the International Centre for Counter-terrorism, Hague (Netherlands). The popular uprisings in Northern Africa and the Middle East carry a very strong message. They are showing us, professionals involved in the field of counter-terrorism, and our politicians the best way forward in our struggle against political violence. The message is that the best way to take away the support for terrorist actions, and the ideology that fuels them, is supporting socio-political freedom and above all increased political space. The repressive regimes in Northern Africa and beyond have tried, and succeeded, to convince the world that the choice was either supporting their authoritarian rule or to be stuck with the only possible alternative: Islamic fundamentalism. This Islamic fundamentalism is, according to these regimes, either embodied by Al Qaeda, or in the more sophisticated version by the Muslim Brotherhood. In the dictators– discourse, the former would inevitably create a breeding ground for violent jihadism, whilst the latter would attempt a totalitarian takeover via democratic elections of the one-man, one-vote, one-time variety. This narrative is now being shattered by the citizens of the greater Middle East region. The people do not demand a new government based on Sharia, this uprising is not about differing religious interpretations. On the contrary, it is about political space, freedom and ´ yes, the word is out there ´ democracy. Interestingly, Al Qaeda...

CRSS Condemns Minister’s Murder

The brutal and cold-blooded assassination Tuesday morning of Pakistan's Christian minister for Minority Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti by rabid armed militants - masquerading as Taliban and Al Qaeda followers - has stunned almost every body and sent shock waves across the country. This is the second high-profile murder after the January 4 assassination of former Punjab Governor Salman Taseer by his own guard in capital Islamabad. Both Taseer and Bhatti have been in the forefront of a campaign aimed at amending the country Blasphemy Law, enshrined in the federal constitution as Article 295. Its clause 'C' proscribes death for desecration of the Holy Quran or insulting the Prophet Mohammad. Though Bhatti toned down his campaign for changing the law in the aftermath of Governor Taseer assassination, he continued to receive anonymous threats by purported Taliban, asking him to refrain from speaking about the Blasphemy Law, which former dictator General Ziaul Haq had reinforced in the late 1980s by inserting the death penalty for the offenders. A pamphlet dropped at the residence of the former minorities– minister by Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan [TTP] Punjab reads as ¿the same is the fate of the one who commits blasphemy–. Reports compiled by civil society members, including a Karachi-based activist Nafees Mohammad say that a total of 34 people have been killed extra-judicially in Pakistan during 1990-2010 following charges of blasphemy. These include 15 Muslims, 16 Christians, two Ahmadis and one Hindu. Giving the latest of the blasphemy-related incidents in the country, Mohammad says as that as many as 10 persons have been charged under the blasphemy law during the first two months of 2011 alone. Quoting reports in the daily Dawn, Mohammad said about 35 blasphemy cases were reported during 2010 in Southern Punjab alone, where most radical Islamist groups are based. Southern Punjab is a predominantly rural, tribal and backward region where 42 million of Pakistan roughly 180...

CRSS Condemns Minister's Murder

The brutal and cold-blooded assassination Tuesday morning of Pakistan's Christian minister for Minority Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti by rabid armed militants - masquerading as Taliban and Al Qaeda followers - has stunned almost every body and sent shock waves across the country. This is the second high-profile murder after the January 4 assassination of former Punjab Governor Salman Taseer by his own guard in capital Islamabad. Both Taseer and Bhatti have been in the forefront of a campaign aimed at amending the country Blasphemy Law, enshrined in the federal constitution as Article 295. Its clause 'C' proscribes death for desecration of the Holy Quran or insulting the Prophet Mohammad. Though Bhatti toned down his campaign for changing the law in the aftermath of Governor Taseer assassination, he continued to receive anonymous threats by purported Taliban, asking him to refrain from speaking about the Blasphemy Law, which former dictator General Ziaul Haq had reinforced in the late 1980s by inserting the death penalty for the offenders. A pamphlet dropped at the residence of the former minorities– minister by Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan [TTP] Punjab reads as ¿the same is the fate of the one who commits blasphemy–. Reports compiled by civil society members, including a Karachi-based activist Nafees Mohammad say that a total of 34 people have been killed extra-judicially in Pakistan during 1990-2010 following charges of blasphemy. These include 15 Muslims, 16 Christians, two Ahmadis and one Hindu. Giving the latest of the blasphemy-related incidents in the country, Mohammad says as that as many as 10 persons have been charged under the blasphemy law during the first two months of 2011 alone. Quoting reports in the daily Dawn, Mohammad said about 35 blasphemy cases were reported during 2010 in Southern Punjab alone, where most radical Islamist groups are based. Southern Punjab is a predominantly rural, tribal and backward region where 42 million of Pakistan roughly 180...

CRSS Launches Research Reports

Pakistan SecurityChallenges Afghan Jihad & Emergence of Transnational Networks As a follow-up of its activities in 2010, the CRSS has published four research reports that deal with some of the most pressing contemporary issues facing Pakistan. One report lists the causes that impede stability of Pakistan and have been at the heart of the country's continuous crisis of governance and instability. The second looks at the crisis in the troubled province of Balochistan. The third report offers a brief overview of the socio-political dynamics of Pakistan's largest city ´ Karachi ´ on the Arabian sea. The fourth report traces the evolution of Afghan jihadist forces into trans-national Islamist networks, led and inspired by Al-Qaeda and the Muslim Brotherhood. These reports are an attempt to provide readers interested in the subject with an insight into the inter-play among various socio-political stakeholders in the society. As far as the 'Causes of Instability in Pakistan' is concerned, it lists several factors - the most important structural and triggering causes - that underlie Pakistan's continuous political turmoil and the economic crisis, accentuated by the questionable war against terrorism that was unleashed almost a decade ago. This report draws a distinction between 'structural' and 'trigger' causes of instability. Based on a wide range of interviews with important stake-holders across the social, political, economic and military spectrum, the Centre was able to pinpoint the Objectives' Resolution, the unbalanced civil-military relations, absence of good governance, inter-provincial disharmony, the armed forces' predominance of foreign policy, the country's geography, the vague status of FATA, as some of the structural causes of instability. On the other hand, some of the events of international dimensions such as the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the post 9/11 war on terror, Pakistani military operations in the FATA and Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa regions, the...