Reforming the tribal areas
	On 20th March, the parliament of North West Frontier Province passed a resolution by majority vote, asking the federal government to immediately stop the military operations in Waziristan. On the 22nd of March, the chief minister of NWFP spoke of the plight of many tribesmen and their families, who had fled Waziristan and sought refuge in the districts of Tank and D.I Khan. He pleaded for federal support for the internal refugees. Once population begins to shift then evidently a law and order problem has distilled into guerilla war; a notch higher than an insurgency. More » Posted by Khalid Aziz on 22th March, 2006

	Changing relationships
	There is a need to re-think our foreign policy after the very clear pronouncements of the US President during his visit to South Asia. He said that the US shared common values with India; while with Pakistan the US shared interests. After this unequivocal pronouncement, no further explanation is required. It is evident that values are more permanent; interests keep on shifting. The time has come to recognize this and move towards permanent peace with both India and Afghanistan. More » Posted by Khalid Aziz on 31st March, 2006

	Storm in a tea-cup or cynical maneuvering?
	The recent episode has left a bad taste and has shown that the religious rights morals were those of the other political parties; the PPPP and the ANP party machines were pilloried for their “corruption” in the past. If you recollect in the articulation of issues by media before the last election, corruption was used as the stick with which the secular parties were beaten blue by the state. More » Posted by Khalid Aziz on 11 April, 2006

	Are we a failed state?
	The following recent happenings should make us pause and reflect; a joint secretary of the ministry of finance is slapped and beaten by a rude and uncultured parliamentary secretary from Punjab; an NWFP minister accompanied by his religious party workers enter a private wedding celebration at night and ask to interview the bridegroom to make sure that it is a genuine wedding and the partying was not for other pleasures. More » Posted by Khalid Aziz on 12th May, 2006

	Implementation of Millennium Development Goals in NWFP, Pakistan
	The MDG goals need to be more closely aligned with other provincial activities under taken through different policy reform programme like the MTDF, PRSP or the new World Bank credit. The throw-forward of all the policy prescriptions will be way beyond this province’s capacity; we are in many ways mimicking the regime prevailing during the period of the Social Action Plan, which was again a pro-poor programme, which met an untimely end. Are the MDGs heading the same way – a monetary melt down? I hope not because that will be tragic. More » Posted by Khalid Aziz on 18th May, 2006

	Will peace return to tribal area?
	The insurgency in the meantime has gotten worse; the control of part of tribal areas has vanished; the influence of the Islamists has increased and they have developed a powerful presence in the border districts of NWFP; they are now poised to increase both their proselytizing and anti state activities. It is predicted that they will have a telling influence on the 2007 elections, which will naturally favour the MMA alliance in NWFP and in the National Assembly; it is only a matter of time before they fan out into central Punjab. More » Posted by Khalid Aziz on 4/6/2006

	Is poverty an ethical concept?
	I think it is wrong for Wall to say that he is unsure about the size of poverty reduction during the last 3 years. It is wrong because poverty reduction measures do specify the reduction that will be brought about. It is important because millions of livelihoods are adversely affected by lower reduction of poverty. It is wrong because Pakistan is already committed to the Millennium Development Goal 1, which binds her to halve the population living on or below the poverty line by 2015. If the measurement is put into doubt, then what are we speaking about? More » Posted by Khalid Aziz on 14th July,2006

	The Current Crises in the Middle East
	Israel considers itself a state in constant war with its neighbors, who are more in number, potentially rich and have the strategic advantage of geography. Israel takes pride in its military prowess and believes that it has brainwashed the Arabs to accept its supremacy; its present reaction apparently looks disproportionate; however, Israel views it as a challenge to its domination, both physical and mental. More seriously for it, the kidnapping is seen as a challenge to the Israeli concept of military superiority in the Arab world. Israel believes that not re-establishing this myth will destroy the unity of the Israel Defense Force. It further believes that if IDF weakens, it is only a matter of time before Israel disappears from the map; this in brief is the extent of the Israeli fears flowing from this kidnapping; it is no small matter for it. More » Posted by Khalid Aziz on 16th July 2006