Table of Contents
Preface xi
I Democratic Transition
Introduction 3
1 Pakistan's Ruling Coalition Must Not Splinter 6
2 Suicide Democrats 11
3 To Undo the Vicious Past 15
4 Should We Bid Farewell to Democracy in Pakistan? 21
5 How Instability Is Garnered 27
6 Democratic Governance Is the Only Option 34
7 Pakistan's Democracy Remains Fragile 42
8 Consensus Is Vital for Democracy 50
9 Governance Crises Cannot be Tackled by Old Formula of Changing Faces 56
10 Will the Court Punish Officials Who Violated their Oath? 61
11 Time for Complete Justice 67
12 Challenges of Political Transition 72
13 A Risky Transition? 78
II Security, Conflict & Extremism
Introduction 85
1 On Benazir's Death 87
2 Suicide Bombing-The Narratives of Terror 90
3 Confronting Militancy 94
4 What Is the Threat? What Is the Way Out? 99
5 Salmaan Taseer's Assassination and State Failures 105
6 Address Radicahzation Before It's Too Late 111
7 Karachi Continues to Bleed 119
8 Myth and Reality of Extremism 125
9 The Killing of Shias Is a Rude Wake-up Call for the State and Society 131
10 Fighting the Existential Battle 138
11 Polio. Extremism and a Failing State 144
12 Reassessing Pakistan's Security Paradigm 150
13 Different Strands ofViolence 155
14 Balochistan - Pushed to the Wall 161
15 It's Time to Engage with Baloch Nationalists 167
III Governance, Institutions & Reform
Introduction 173
1 Civil Service Reform for Improving State Capacity 175
2 Poverty and Inequality - The Brewing Storm 181
3 Pakistani Reform - The Task Ahead 185
4 Pakistan's Crumbling Institutions 192
5 Innovations for Public Accountability 199
6 A Reform Agenda to Address Challenges 205
7 18th Amendment - More Questions than Answers 210
8 Devolution - Unpacking the Higher Education Commission Debate 216
9 Devolution of Powers-The Challenges Ahead 223
10 Towards a Decentralized Pakistan 230
11 The Debate on New Provinces in Pakistan 238
12 Tackling the Local Governance Crisis 244
13 Civil Service Is No Longer an Alluring Job for the Youth 249
14 Dealing with the Devastating Floods 254
IV Foreign Policy
Introduction 265
1 Policy Shifts Not War 267
2 Who Will Win the Game? 271
3 1971 - The Forgotten Silence 275
4 Say No to War 280
5 Irrational Discourse on Raymond Davis 284
6 Saving a Rocky Relationship 290
7 Pakistan - Fixing the Civil-Military Imbalance 295
8 No More Escape Routes 302
9 Time to Move On 307
V Media
Introduction 315
1 Pakistan's Media Opinion - The Column Industry 316
2 Beyond Censorship 322
3 Media Should Not Turn into a Holy Cow 327
4 Media Freedoms and judicial Accountability 333
5 Through the Looking Glass 339
6 Responsibility Must Anchor Freedom 343
Epilogue 349
Acknowledgements 355
