Peace, please: ‘I didn’t raise my boy to kill or be killed’

Source: Farahnaz Zahidi | Express Tribune

It was a suicide blast in a Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa market that changed 43-year-old Zahra Bibi’s life forever. Her son, Shahid Hussain, 13, suffered severe injuries…

For Malala Yousafzai

at fourteen she has

so much to live for

but surely not

a bullet in her head

to show the cowardice

of those who can not

stand up and face

a girl of fourteen

because her stand

in their face

makes them afraid

of an idea that she represents

and which may

cast doubts among

the professed guardians

of a religion to which…

Abdul was just 20 years old when he drove his father to the medical clinic one day for an exam. He dropped his father off, then left to run a few errands, saying nonchalantly that he would be back by the time the tests were done. But..he never showed up at the clinic. It was as if he had disappeared into thin air. His family agonized over what had happened to the young man, who – as the oldest son -- had worked as a laborer to support his parents and siblings in the wake of his father’s…

“I will never forget what the American soldiers did to my country, my tribe and my family. They violated our national sovereignty and our Islamic laws. They killed my son and my younger brother. They destroyed my home. If I see the soldiers who are responsible for this – if I have the opportunity -- I will kill them.” (translated from Pashto)

These are the chilling words of Kareem Khan, a Pakistani journalist from a tribe in Northern Waziristan, whose compound was destroyed by a…

http://www.peacebuildinginpakistan.com/2012/09/30/drone-terror-in-pakistan/

My friends and family have gradually gotten used to the fact that the fight for Palestinian rights is my passion; they may not understand it totally, but they accept and even embrace it. A few have even occasionally asked me why I don’t just move to the Gaza Strip, where I have increasingly returned since 2009. (The answer, in part: I also want to be a part of my daughters’ lives.) 

Are you a budding filmmaker, or simply somebody who is passionate about bringing about positive change in the world? Then why not enter the Encompass Trust “Superheroes for Peace” competition?!

Here at Encompass we believe that it is the little things that we do in life that make the difference. Whether it’s giving someone a smile or helping a neighbour with their shopping, it’s the little acts that make us all heroes in the global battle to bring world peace!…

Dear Reader

In my last blog I discussed the tragic murder of Farida Afridi in Pakistan.

We are currently trying to make contact with Imran Khan's office at Tehreek-e-Insaf in Pakistan - to see if they will make a statement about the murder of Faridi

We have sent them emails but have had no response.

If you have any direct contact and can assist us please let me know

Many thanks

Chris

Assassination of Farida Afridi

On Friday 6th July, we learnt that Farida Afridi, co-founder of SAWERA, Safeworld Field Partner in…

http://www.peacebuildinginpakistan.com/2012/06/06/glocs-unblocked-what-pakistan-stands-to-gain/

Following protracted negotiations, the Pakistani government appears close to reaching an agreement on the resumption of NATO supply lines…

Prominent historian and philosopher Noam Chomsky and a dozen other leading authors and activists have appealed for the immediate release of five political prisoners who have languished behind the bars in Pakistan’s northern Gilgit-Baltistan region for raising the voice of victims of climate change.



Noam Chomsky and other 12 major personalities of academia, politics, activism and journalism have called on the Government of Pakistan to drop the charge it has manufactured against a…

A new project aims to counter ‘violent extremism’ by connecting former self-identified extremists with ‘at risk’ youths.

Self-identified former “extremists” and survivors have formed a social network aimed at helping young people avoid political violence and gang culture. The Against Violent Extremism network believes that radicalization is less of a religious and ideological issue…

Why the nonprofit sector — as we have already seen in Hamilton — is in danger?

Jahan Zeb , Tue May 01 2012 - This article is published in the Hamilton Spectator Canada- both in print and online version.

Slow-to-respond boards must look at new policies, new governance models

The continued economic downturn and cuts in funding and services by all the three levels of government have put the nonprofit sector in a difficult situation.

The sector is…

Is Peace through Nonviolence Possible in AfPak?

Jahan Zeb

March 19, 2012

Jahan Zeb comments on the enduring contribution of historical figure Bacha Khan to transforming conflict through nonviolence in Afghanistan, Pakistan and…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3iiWNZesWwg

Hindi and Urdu is one language when spoken but written in two different scripts hence it is the only major language of the world with this characteristic, says Pakistani artist Syed Mohammad Anwar, a lawyer by profession. He has highlighted this aspect of the language through his calligraphic work, first of its kind, saying it can be used together with other…

• The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace released a new report discussing the threat of the terrorist group Lashkare-Taiba (LeT) in South Asia. The report suggests that the group is the second most dangerous terrorist group in the region, after al-Qaeda.
• The United States named…

• Two NATO soldiers were reportedly shot dead in southern Afghanistan by two Afghans, including a man believed to be a soldier on Thursday. On Friday, the country’s top religious council…

• US Secretary of State Clinton announced she had a “constructive discussion” of common concerns with her counterpart in Pakistan on Thursday; new details about American drone strikes were revealed by Reuters; Pakistani jets…

• President Karzai of Afghanistan confronted the Pakistani leadership on Thursday during a visit to Islamabad, accusing Pakistani officials of harbouring the Taliban; he also was quoted as saying there were secret contacts between the US, Afghan governments and the Taliban, and that the…

• A criminal court on the island nation of the Maldives issued an arrest warrant for the first democratically-elected President, Mohammed Nasheed, who awaited arrest in his home on Thursday, following last week’s alleged coup attempt. The ousted President…