A blog about Governance and Democracy in Pakistan
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Did Imran Khan miss his CMC moment and lose Kashmir?
By Syed Sharfuddin* If the 1999 Kargil war was the botched Bay of Pigs invasion for Islamabad, the unprecedented step taken by New Delhi on 5 August 2019 to annex and divide the occupied state of Jammu and Kashmir was no less than the U2 plane discovery about USSR placing nuclear missiles inside Cuba in 1962 […]
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Post August 2019 Status of Jammu & Kashmir and Options for Pakistan
By Syed Sharfuddin* Following the 5 August 2019 action by India withdrawing the special status of the Indian Held Kashmir granted under Article 370 of the Indian Constitution and declaring it as two Union Territories on 6 August 2019, there was a strong reaction in Kashmir, as well as in Pakistan but also a national […]
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India’s Illegal Annexation of Kashmir Opens New Opportunities for Pakistan
By Syed Sharfuddin* Executive Summary Contrary to the general feeling in Pakistan that India’s unexpected action of 5 August 2019 has sealed the fate of the Indian Held Jammu and Kashmir (IHK), the move has opened new opportunities for Pakistan and Azad Kashmir, which were not possible to avail prior to 5 August. Rather than […]
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To Honour the Political Will of the People of AJK & IHK, Pakistan should enact Legislation to make Kashmir the 6th Province of Pakistan and then talk Peace with India.
By Syed Sharfuddin* Executive Summary In the aftermath of India’s revocation of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution on the disputed territory of Indian Held Kashmir, it is no longer feasible for Pakistan to maintain the status quo on Kashmir along the UNMOGIP observed Line of Control. As an immediate first step, Pakistan should honour […]
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A Critique of the ICJ Ruling of 17 July 2019 on the Case of Commander Kulbhushan Sudhir Jadhav, Indian Navy, cover name, Hussein Mubarak Patel, Businessman
By Syed Sharfuddin In May 2017, India filed an application against Pakistan at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Hague, maintaining that Pakistan had breached its obligations under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 1963 (the Convention) to provide a fair trial to its national, Kulbhushan Sudhir Jadhav, who was arrested in […]
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Remembering Srebrenica 24 Years After
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Okey, We Bought Imran Khan’s Dream last July but What’s Next!
By Syed Sharfuddin Last July I was packing my bags and tidying up my papers to fly to Pakistan. The assignment was to accompany the Commonwealth Observer Group for the 2018 General Election as an independent Political Consultant. While in Pakistan I observed that the dream PTI leader Imran Khan sold to the public for […]
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Pakistan Electoral System: Multiple Constituency Candidatures and their Impact on By-Elections
Syed Sharfuddin On 14 October 2018 over 5 million voters will be going to the polls again to elect public representatives for the vacant 35 seats in the federal National Assembly and Provincial Assemblies of Pakistan. According to Pakistan Election Commission, over 300 candidates are contesting in the forthcoming bye-elections. Only last July, these seats […]
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The Power of Establishment: Myth and Reality
By Syed Sharfuddin It seems there is always more credit given to military establishment by the Pakistani public than it actually deserves. Whether this credit is borne out of a deep embedded fear of an overwhelming brutal force tapping their phone calls and scanning their e-conversations, or it is an expression of the public respect […]
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Level-Playing Field in Pakistan’s General Election 2018
By Syed Sharfuddin Pakistan completed its eleventh general election last month amidst serious security concerns, questions about the role of the military establishment in election and reported restrictions on certain media houses and journalists to prevent them from discussing sensitive issues. The elections were observed by 19000 volunteers from Fair and Free Election Network (FAFEN), […]
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