Dr. Rafi Amir-ud-Din’s journalistic writings published in "The News International" 2019-2020

1. Unanswered questions

"There are two extreme positions. One view denounces all restrictions on individual liberty as a threat to fundamental human rights. The other view looks at the easing of lockdown as a rejection of science."

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/655939-unanswered-questions

2. Covid-19 and food insecurity

“Pakistan is among the 55 countries projected to face acute food insecurity as a result of the global pandemic. These countries are vulnerable to food insecurity because they have little or no capacity to absorb the economic aspects of the health crisis”

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/649247-covid-19-and-food-insecurity

3. COVID-19: the many fault lines

“Coronavirus has exposed several fault lines in our individual and communal lives. We saw people taking a strong exception to the management of the pandemic when it was in its early stages in Pakistan” 

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/635424-covid-19-the-many-fault-lines

4. Is coronavirus a biological weapon?

“Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an outbreak of respiratory illness caused by a novel (new) coronavirus. It is now an officially declared global pandemic. According to the latest reports, there are 125,048 confirmed cases of COVID-19”

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/629091-is-coronavirus-a-biological-weapon

5. Language and development

“The language issue has haunted this nation from day one. When Pakistan won freedom from the British Raj in 1947, English was the official language in British India. Pakistan inherited a lot of intractable problems at the time of independence. The question of official language readily became a major issue and deeply divided the body politic”

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/621743-language-and-development

6. Dispelling myths about mental health

“Given the limited fiscal space available to the governments for mental health, it should at least sensitise the people that mental disorders are just like physical disorders”

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/614383-dispelling-myths-about-mental-health

7. The debate on transparency

“When people fear they may be unable to afford even the basic necessities with lawful means, they are under pressure to indulge in corrupt practices”

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/607489-the-debate-on-transparency

8. Politics of government jobs

“When people fear they may be unable to afford even the basic necessities with lawful means, they are under pressure to indulge in corrupt practices”

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/600561-politics-of-government-jobs

9. How to address gender disparities?

“The World Economic Forum recently published its Global Gender Gap Index Report which ranks countries with respect to gender disparity. Pakistan ranked 151 out of 153 countries”

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/593475-how-to-address-gender-disparities

10. More real than imagined

“Since climate change is a matter of national security for Pakistan, our laws need to set clear milestones for climate change action”

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/582958-more-real-than-imagined

11. The age of students’ rights

“Students should adopt a responsible narrative and make use of appropriate rhetoric to achieve their rights. A sustained and rational struggle for their rights within the constitutional limits is what they should aim at.”

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/576193-the-age-of-students-rights

12. Focusing on higher education in Pakistan

“A big problem for the education system in Pakistan is that it has to operate within the existing institutional arrangement”

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/569765-focusing-on-higher-education

 

13. Learning from the laureates

“We can learn a lot from Nobel laureates who have changed the lives of millions of poor people around the world”

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/568813-learning-laureates

14. Domestic violence - the way out

“In Pakistan, social norms look favourably at the women who stoically suffer the marital abuse, while the women who report the marital abuse or seek legal redress are looked at with distrust.”

      https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/568734-domestic-violence-way

15. Capitalising on the youth bulge

“Given the fact that about 10 percent of the youth in Pakistan are unemployed and have no vocational or technical skills, a proactive strategy to address the problem is needed”

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/568629-capitalising-youth-bulge

16. Poverty and child mortality

“Child mortality figures in Pakistan are worrying and demand immediate steps to remedy the situation”

https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/568449-poverty-child-mortality