We should occasionally take time to appreciate and salute the political commentators and columnists who continue to struggle through their pen to make Pakistan what it was meant to be: a democratic, pluralistic and modern Muslim state at peace with itself and its neighbors.
In this spirit, I want to honor these courageous columnists and writers who continue working towards this goal, despite hurdles in their way. In my opinion – supported by many other friends who I talked to on this issue – these men and women are doing a great service to the true cause and ideals of Pakistan. The list is drawn from those who write regularly in Pakistani English newspapers/magazines. A quote from a recent article is provided for each columnist to exemplify their work.
1. Ardeshir Cowasjee (Dawn)
“On the 59th anniversary of Independence we continue to be ruled by a vast government made up of members of dubious political parties all of whom claim to have” (of grandeur, no doubt, and of nothing else).”
2. Ghazi Salahuddin (The News)
“One great tragedy in our lives is that these people who may recognise the folly of the government’s action keep quiet because they want to retain their positions in the power structure. Such moral bankruptcy is the cancer of our political governance.”
3. Khalid Hasan (Daily Times)
(Also see earlier ATP Post here)
“Jefferson’s ghost must have risen from his grave in rural Virginia when Ghumman (a Pakistani minister visiting the US) declaimed that since democracy was the root of all evils, he would rather have a ‘dictator.’ He also informed his flabbergasted audience that ‘democracy has not worked in Pakistan and it has failed over and over again.’ The Minister is also either poor at counting or his history is about as strong as my quantum physics, because he went on to say that in the last two and a half centuries, nobody had dared to go into Pakistan’s tribal territories as Gen Musharraf had. ‘We now have a leader who wants to establish Rule of Law in that area.'”
“If what is happening in Waziristan is Rule of Law, then I am migrating to Darfur.”
4. Khaled Ahmed (Daily Times)
(Also see earlier ATP Post here)
“As realpolitik, Pakistan followed the best course in Cold War even though the Pacts were unpopular. When the Soviet Union collapsed, India was found holding the Friendship treaties with no benefit and Pakistan’s strategy was proved successful. Pakistan had taken the US for a ride, equipped its army on false pretenses, and fought unsuccessful wars with India for which America was not to blame. Now economic historians think Ayub’s was the best period in our history. A similar verdict is in store for Musharraf when he is gone. We keep on rejecting our history and the strategies of realistic survival followed by our leaders, some of them un-elected. Denial of what others see as good for us links up with a self-flagellating collective psyche. This is death-wish, pure and simple.”
5. Naseem Zehra (The News)
(On Baluchistan): “Indeed what the government must not do is go on the military and political offensive to neutralise the brewing crisis. Threats, warnings, ultimatums and maximalist positions will only worsen the situation. It could push either side ‘against the wall’ decreasing possibility of an amicable settlement of genuine grievances. We could then be headed towards greater difficulties, dovetailing into other unresolved challenges of politics, security and democracy.”
6. Amir Mir (Newsline and Outlook)
(On refusing to take ‘APNS best journalist award’ from Gen. Musharraf’s hands): “It isn’t that I detest Musharraf beyond forgiveness; it’s just that I love my principles more. I don’t know what Musharraf loves. But it isn’t the Constitution.”
7. Ahmed Rashid (Guardian and Nation)
“Al Qaeda’s money, inspiration and organizational abilities have helped turn Pakistan’s Pashtun belt into the extremist base it is today, but U.S. and Pakistani policies have helped more.”
8. Prof. Khawaja Masud (The News)
“We must continue to march intoxicated with the Quaid – shy and splendid idealism – till we realise the dream of Pakistan as visualised by Quaid-e-Azam i.e. democracy, social justice, tolerance, open mind and heart.”
9. Amina Jilani (Nation)
“The majority of our tried, tested and failed politicians, for the larger part of their political lives and when they are not haymaking, are mired in inertia.”
10. Ayaz Amir (Dawn)
“Hezbollah has no F-16s but it is running rings around one of the best armies in the world. We can have 500 F-16s in our air force but given the crisis of resolve we face, we will remain a country ready to jump at the sound of a single phone call.”
Hasan Abbas is author of Pakistan’s Drift into Extremism, a keen purveyor of political news and commentary of Pakistan, and maintains the blog Watandost: Inside News about Pakistan, where this post first appeared.
I was talking about Irfan Hussain’s columns in Dawn. He mostly writes about current affairs there.
I just did some googling and found Dawn’s circulation, as admitted by the newspaper itself in 1996.
The claimed circulation is 115000 in 1996. Ten years since, I don’t know what it might be.
The News International claims to be the largest English daily (presumably by circulation, though it is not specified). It claims a circulation of 140000.
I am not sure what the circulation of the Nation is, but is probably small. My guess, based on the above numbers is that the total circulation of English language newspapers is about 400,000.
How do these numbers compare to circulation for the Urdu press?
The leading Urdu daily, Jang, claims a circulation of 800,000 (source: same link as for the News)
I couldn’t find numbers for Nawa-e-Waqt.
But in any case, the Urdu newspapers seem to have circulation almost an order of magnitude higher. So shouldn’t a discussion of the top columnists include at least some Urdu columnists too? Are there any that write both in English and Urdu?
[quote comment=”4499″]
BTW, what is the readership of the English press in Pakistan?” [/quote]
Sridhar,
The newspaper readership in Pakistan is a guarded secret — by the publishers. I don’t know why? No one knows the exact figures.
But among the English newspapers (there are only 3 or 4 daily newspapers of significance) Dawn has probably the highest circulation and is read the most in Karachi. It is also popular among the bureaucracy in Islamabad and elsewhere. The News is probably number 2 and is read more in Punjab and is said to be popular among the business and professional class. Daily Times is probably at number 3 and is said to be read by the intellectual elite, mostly in Lahore. Its online readership, however, is said to be pretty large. The Nation would be at number 4. There are one or two other papers but of not much consequence.
Yes, Urdu papers are cheaper but nothing in Pakistan is priced at Rs. 1.50 or 2.00!
I asked the question about readership but it wasn’t tangential to the main point of this discussion. I asked because most of the columnists people have listed are from the English press. But if it is not read, it is probably not very influential. There are probably pretty influential columnists in the Urdu press and I wanted to find out who they are.
MQ:
Irfan Husain has two different columns. The one in Dawn is usually on political issues and he does not waste time on his personal travels, food etc. there. His column in the Daily Times on the other hand tends to be mostly about these and I don’t even read them any more as a consequence.
He is a liberal, has views that run contrary to the established (i.e. establishment) wisdom, but I notice a limit beyond which he seems to not want to go. Also, his columns are not particularly insightful, though any contribution on the liberal side is welcome. Overall, he is a good columnist, but not one you read for new insights. His columns read like the letters written by a good uncle of mine – always good, uplifting thoughts, but things that I had thought of on my own anyway.
BTW, what is the readership of the English press in Pakistan? I ask because I found out recently that English newspapers in Pakistan are quite expensive (@Rs. 13-15 for an issue). It seems excessive to me given that I am used to the Rs. 1.50-2.50 range for a newspaper in India, whether in English or in some other language. Are Urdu newspapers in Pakistan significantly cheaper?