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General
Background
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The
Government of Pakistan
The official home page of Pakistan's government includes
a profile of the country's first president, Ali Jinnah,
incorporating streaming video and audio clips, as well
as profiles of the current president and current prime
minister. The site also links to Pakistani official news
and to several portals with more information about the
country.
CIA
World Factbook: Pakistan
The CIA World Factbook is updated annually but contains
selected information added throughout the year. The Pakistan
entry provides an overview of the country's economy as
well information on transnational issues involving Pakistan,
including refugees, illegal drug smuggling and the dispute
over Kashmir.
BBC
Profile: Pakistan
The BBC country profiles provide information on a country's
history, politics and economic background. The Pakistan
profile includes an extensive historical timeline of key
events, background and facts, a profile of General Pervez
Musharraf and media resources.
"A
Primer Guide to Understanding Pakistan"
This feature from The Washington Post addresses
several fundamental questions about Pakistan's relations
with the international community, including its relations
with India, the United States and groups on the United
States' list of terrorist organizations.
Pakistan
Virtual Library
This online resource of links about Pakistan is a regional
section of Sarai (South Asia Resource Access on the Internet),
a virtual library maintained by Columbia University. The
Pakistan Virtual Library includes regularly updated links
to Pakistan headline news and background on government
and law, economics, and culture. The library's currently
(March 2004) featured site is a photo essay about the
Pakistan folk art of truck painting.
"Lahore
Kite Festival Takes Off"
This is a BBC report on the annual kite-flying festival
celebrated each February in Lahore, Pakistan, that marks
the beginning of spring.
"Return
to Pakistan"
In this combination of personal essay and reportage, Salon.com's
Central Asia correspondent Asra Nomani writes from Lahore,
Pakistan weeks after 9/11, weighing in on her own experience
returning to the country of her birth, global lash outs
against the Muslim world, and what Nomani describes as
the rumblings of war.
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Ongoing Coverage From The New York Times
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On February 4, 2004, Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, founder and head of Pakistan's nuclear arms program, confessed to his nation in a televised speech that he had shared nuclear technology with Libya, North Korea and Iran. A day later, General Pervez Musharraf pardoned him, saying that as the father of the Islamic nuclear bomb, Dr. Khan remained a national hero. The international pages of The New York Times provide ongoing coverage, from reporters David Rohde and Amy Waldman, of Pakistan's recently unveiled international nuclear proliferation. (All stories require registration.)
"Delicate
Dance for Musharraf in Nuclear Case"
This article by David Rohde and Talat Hussein concisely
summarizes the extraordinary chain of events culminating
in the admission on national television by Pakistan's
top nuclear scientist, the much-revered Dr. Abdul Qadeer
Khan, that he sold nuclear weapons secrets. After the
apology, which opposition party members and Khan supporters
say was coerced, Pakistani president General Pervez Musharraf
also appeared on national television, granting Khan a
full pardon. The authors of this article mention the delicate
"balancing act" by not only Musharraf but also the Bush
administration in handling the case. (New York Times,
February 8, 2004)
"A
Tale of Nuclear Proliferation: How Pakistani Built His
Network"
Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, the father of Pakistan's atomic
bomb, recently admitted to selling nuclear weapons secrets
to Iran, North Korea and Libya. This article explores
the subterranean network of nuclear arms trafficking,
from Dubai to Pakistan, Malaysia to the Netherlands, and
shows how Dr. Khan and his operatives skirted International
Atomic Energy Agency rules and nonproliferation oversight.
(New York Times, February 12, 2004)
"General,
a 'Bridge' From Islam to the West, Worries About His Foundations"
New York Times reporter Amy Waldman conducted this
short interview with Pakistani president General Pervez
Musharraf after two assassination attempts on the president,
in as many weeks, took place in Rawalpindi, the nerve
center of Pakistan's military. (New York Times,
February 10, 2004)
"Pakistan
TV: A New Look at the News"
New York Times reporter Amy Waldman examines the
widespread popularity and influence of Geo TV, a private
channel, upon Pakistani media and society. The cable channel
began broadcasting in 2002 and was founded by a consortium
of private investors who hired consultants from CNN and
the BBC to train Geo TV's scrappy young staff. Not only
does Geo TV feature female reporters, but its live reports,
particularly in the wake of the recent assassination attempts
on President Musharraf, have shaken Pakistan's state-run
channel, PTV, out of its complacence. (New York Times,
January 25, 2004)
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Pakistan As a Nuclear Power
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"Musharraf
set on radical change in policy: Pakistani leader moving
surely on terror, new Kashmir strategy"
An article from San Francisco Chronicle foreign
service correspondent Juliette Terzieff addresses President
Musharraf's recent changes in policy, including the firing
of the so-called father of the Islamic bomb, Dr. Abdul
Qadeer Khan, and how these changes relate to the two assassination
attempts the president survived in December.
Proliferation
News and Resources: South Asia
Proliferation News and Resources of the Non-Proliferation
Project is an arm of the global policy program of the
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a private
nonprofit organization. The South Asia resources page
compiles current headlines about Pakistan's status as
a nuclear power and includes a 2002 map of Pakistan's
nuclear laboratories and test sites.
Nuclear
Threat Initiative: Pakistan Profile
This group was founded in 2001 by news mogul Ted Turner
and former U.S. Senator Sam Nunn. The Nuclear Threat Initiative
looks for ways to reduce the global threat posed by nuclear,
chemical and biological weapons. An online research library
features a wealth of detailed information about Pakistan's
arsenals of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons of
mass destruction, along with a chronology of the steps
in Pakistan's development as a nuclear power.
International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
The IAEA is the world's center for nuclear cooperation
and monitors nuclear proliferation worldwide. The director
general of the agency, Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei, recently
called for increased vigilance to thwart the developing
nuclear black market.
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Pakistan
and India
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CNN
Interactive Report on India and Pakistan
Fifty years after India and Pakistan gained independence
from Britain, this CNN site from 1997 presents the history
of India and Pakistan and of their tumultuous relationship
as neighbors. The site includes video and audio clips
of key moments in both countries' histories, timelines,
and links to breaking news about the two countries.
International
Crisis Group (ICG)
The ICG is a nonprofit, multinational organization that
produces regular reports through field research on areas
of the world that are at risk of engaging in deadly conflict.
Recent ICG reports following the organization's research
in Pakistan provide differing perspectives on the longtime
dispute over Kashmir, from the points of view of Islamabad,
New Dehli, Srinagar and "lessons from the past."
The
Guardian's Special Report on Kashmir
This special report from The Guardian in the United
Kingdom provides ongoing coverage of the disputed territory
of Kashmir. The comprehensive and up-to-the-minute site
includes reports that explain the history of the conflict,
an interactive guide to the region, a photo gallery, and
a timeline that chronicles key dates in the conflict between
India and Pakistan.
India-Pakistan
Dispute From PBS's Online NewsHour
The NewsHour's ongoing coverage of the various frontiers
of the conflict between India and Pakistan includes a
timeline of the dispute as well as detailed maps of the
region that lend geographic context to the regularly updated
news.
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Media Resources
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Pakistan
Press Foundation
The Pakistan Press Foundation is an independent media
research, documentation and training center whose stated
mission is to promote freedom of the press in Pakistan
and internationally.
The
Nation
This is the online version of an English-language newspaper
based in Lahore.
The
Dawn
This is the online version of Pakistan's most widely circulated
English-language newspaper, based in Karachi.
The
Weekly Independent
This is the online version of a weekly newspaper based
in Lahore.
Pakistan
News Service
Established in 1991, this online news wire service distributes
nonpartisan, independent news to 50 countries worldwide.
The
Friday Times
The Friday Times is an independent weekly newspaper
based in Lahore.
Geo TV
Geo TV is an extraordinarily popular independent television
broadcast company in Pakistan.
Pakistan
Television Corporation Inc.
This is the homepage to Pakistan's state-run television
corporation.
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