Category: Pakistan

‘Harder edge’ to China’s sharp power threatens democracies

     

China is pushing to build up cultural “soft power” to complement the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a $60 billion infrastructure program it has launched as part of the Asian… Read more »

With Kashmir erased, has India’s democracy ‘died in silence’?

     

  Protests were held in several cities (Reuters) in Pakistan after India revoked the special status of the disputed Jammu and Kashmir region. Islamabad said it will “exercise all possible… Read more »

Pakistan’s military targets feminist icon

     

Gulalai Ismail is one of Pakistan’s best-known women’s rights crusaders, speaking out about forced marriages, gang rapes and crushed dreams. Her groundbreaking work has carried her around the world, winning her… Read more »

Can new social contract restore faith in democracy?

     

Labor unions have played a critical role in democratic transitions, in sustaining democracy and  as civil society groups advancing pluralism and democratic norms. So the latest annual Global Rights Index from the… Read more »

The New Normal? From non-state actors to ‘terrorist governors’

     

The Venezuelan regime’s mobilization of violent colectivo gangs against opposition protesters is only the latest instance of authoritarian regimes orchestrating illiberal non-state actors to counter democratic forces. Some non-state actors… Read more »

China’s Belt and Road initiative: lessons from Malaysia and Pakistan

     

China’s Belt and Road Initiative has been described by President Xi Jinping as the “project of the century.” But with resistance growing, the vulnerabilities of China’s ascent are beginning to reveal opportunities for… Read more »

Pakistan’s Erdogan? Imran Khan’s populism is ‘bent toward Islamism’

     

It’s been a difficult few days for the party that used to run Pakistan, The New York Times reports: First, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, known as the P.M.L.-N., came a… Read more »