Pakistan – World map

Double standards in global politics: the dilemma between Iran and Israel

20Aug

By Rodrigo CintraNo Comments

Americas, Asia, U.S, Will, Israel, Middle East, Pakistan

Double standards in global politics: the dilemma between Iran and Israel

Iran's Foreign Minister's recent statement, classifying as hypocritical the position of the so-called "Group two 3" – made up of the United States, United Kingdom and France – in relation to a possible Iranian attack on Israel, reveals a deep tension in international relations and the recurring practice of double standards in global politics. The minister criticized the fact that these countries asked Iran to refrain from attacking Israel, without making the same request for Israel to stop its attacks and aggressive policies against the Palestinians. This type of criticism is not new, but gains relevance in times of high tension in the Middle East. Iran's position is based on the perception that there is unequal treatment for situations that, from their point of view, They are essentially....

the saga of india (Article 3) – the neighborhood with pakistan

4Sep

By Fausto GodoyNo Comments

Asia, India, Pakistan

the saga of india (Article 3) – the neighborhood with pakistan

Continuing the exercise of looking at India, I think it is important now to briefly recap its policy towards the immediate neighborhood and the guidelines that guided – and still guide – its relations with Pakistan. If we look at the map of the country we will see that the Indian subcontinent is a territory closed in on itself.: at North, the Himalayan mountain range constitutes a natural barrier, and to the south, the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal act as maritime borders. This has greater importance than merely cartographic, because it defines the unique character of Indian civilization. Although isolated by geography, India suffered the influence of people who entered its territory over the millennia and came to join the ancestral Dravidian population. ...

The independence of India and Pakistan: remembering history

17Aug

By Fausto GodoyNo Comments

Asia, India, Pakistan

The independence of India and Pakistan: remembering history

Yesterday and today Pakistan and India celebrated the 73rd anniversary of independence from Britain. Pakistan's occurred on 14 August 1947, and India right after, in the first minutes of the day 15. Minutes that ended the more than two hundred years that the court of Saint James reigned over British Raj, your “crown jewel”. Exhausted at the end of World War II and unable to maintain its colonial empire, England started at that moment the process of undoing its dominions; I could no longer claim that "the sun never set in the British Empire ..." India has emerged as a secular nation with a majority Hindu population and a large Muslim minority - the third largest in the world, numerically -, while Pakistan, with a large population...

8Jun

By Fausto GodoyNo Comments

Asia, Middle East, Pakistan, Turkey

Sufis and the path to paradise

"One day, the sun admitted:I'm just a shadow,I wish I could show you the infinite incandescence that launched my brilliant image. I wish I could show you, when you feel alone or in the dark,the surprising light of your own being." Khwaja Samsu d-Din Muhammad Hafez (1310 / 1337) I'm giving a course on Asian religions at ESPM - now “virtually” -, coincidentally at this time when a wicked virus is stealing from relatives and friends and confronting us, randomly, with the essential question for most of us, which is the inevitability of Death. In this tense climate - and imponderable -, I thought I could (should...) share with friends some re...

Kashmir: seeking to understand the legacy of colonialism

8Aug

By Fausto GodoyNo Comments

India, Pakistan

Kashmir: seeking to understand the legacy of colonialism

The government of India revoked, on the last day 05, two articles of its Constitution that established the special status that the State of Jammu-Kashmir has enjoyed since the country's independence, in 1947. Among the legal “embezzlement” are the right to the Constitution itself and exclusive rights for the indigenous population. With this, the region loses its autonomy and is treated like any other state in India. What would be the consequences? I propose to friends to revisit History: The British Crown dominated India from 1858 a 1947. But, at the end of World War II, exhausted, she started the process of decolonizing her territories, starting with the British Raj. For so much, sent a London jurist to Delhi, Sir Cyril Radcliffe, who was tasked with drawing, whether cabinet...

23Jul

By Fausto GodoyNo Comments

Afghanistan, India, Pakistan

About Sufism

I am preparing a series of lectures on Islam for the International Relations course at ESPM. This is a topic that I am very interested in, mainly due to the prejudices that are rampant in the West regarding the Muslim faith and community. Having served throughout my career in six countries where Islam is a major presence - India (a 3ª. largest Muslim community on the planet), Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Kazakhstan and Jordan - and living with many of its nuances - from fundamentalist severity in Pakistan and Afghanistan to “liberalism” in Kazakhstan - I decided to deepen my studies on Islam and share with friends what I could learn.. And one of the themes that most fascinate me in this universe is Sufism, the mystical current that seeks direct contact...