Liberty without any framework of order always moves toward anarchy. History teaches that every society, when given complete freedom without any boundaries, sooner or later collapses under its own weight. That is why every liberty must carry certain limits. No state in the world—whether it claims to be democratic, socialist, or authoritarian ever allows a...
Category: Columns
Selective Empathy: Why Certain Genocides Remain Unacknowledged
As the world marks Genocide Prevention Day on 9 December and Human Rights Day on 10 December, we are reminded that remembrance must lead to responsibility, and responsibility must lead to justice for every community, without exception. Dr. Rakhshinda Perveen shares her reflections for IBC. Preamble: These are some of my reflections on a subject...
A Life Caught in Pressure
In the public eye, politics often appears as a game — of power, privilege, and corruption. Yet behind that glitter lies a dark web of pressure, fear, and compulsion that entraps nearly every politician. The truth is that those who seem powerful are often the most helpless. In our political system, the politician stands like...
Meant to Lead Tomorrow, Forced to Hold Back Today
Structurally restrained, socially vibrant yet politically invisible, emotionally drained and culturally undervalued – this defines Pakistan’s youth today. Youth in Pakistan are glorified as tomorrow’s leaders but denied a voice in today’s decisions. They fill classroom, energize streets through protests and rallies, organize cultural and community events and amplify collective voices through digital activism. However,...
Why we’re short on water
The contradiction, full reservoirs and yet shortages, reveals Pakistan’s real water crisis After years of drought, the 2025 monsoon brought abundance. Pakistan’s reservoirs were full. Tarbela, Mangla and Chashma were filled close to capacity at the beginning of Kharif. Yet the Indus River System Authority announced an 8% shortage for the Rabi season. The contradiction,...
A Few Impressions – Where Literature Meets Lived History
After nearly 15 years of nonfunded singular advocacy for creating empathy for the “stranded, shunned, and stigmatized” patriots whom I also call the Abandoned Pakistanis—I decided to take another intellectual risk. This time, the risk involved inviting thinkers and empaths in the twin cities into a reflective and meaningful conversation inspired by my most recent...
National Commission for Minority Rights Bill 2025
On 2 December 2025, Pakistan’s Parliament—meeting in a joint sitting of the National Assembly and the Senate—approved the National Commission for Minority Rights Bill 2025. The bill, introduced by Law Minister Azam Nazir Tarar, seeks to establish a permanent national body dedicated to safeguarding the rights of non-Muslim citizens. The legislation secured 160 votes in...
Pakistan Movement: A Critical Reassessment
The story of Pakistan’s creation is often narrated as a straightforward struggle of a united Muslim community under a visionary leadership. Yet when we examine the historical landscape more critically, the movement appears far more complex, shaped less by internal political preparations and more by the shifting global realities that weakened the British Empire. A...
Our Moral Crisis and the Way We Treat Each Other
We live in a time where information travels faster than ever. With one click, we can see news, opinions, and videos from all over the world. But even with this progress, our moral values seem to be getting weaker. We make quick judgments, react without thinking, and speak without understanding. This is the real moral...
The Prison of Our Thinking
There are countless kinds of people in this world countless colors countless voices. But among them are some whom we look at, yet never really see People to whom we give a place under the open sky but inside the roofs of our hearts we never spare even a single corner for them. My society...