Posts tagged blogosphere

Report: Humanitarian Crisis in Pakistan

6
2 years ago
by Ammar in , ,

I’ve compiled a report on the humanitarian crisis that Pakistan faces today. The report has been published at “Global Voices Online“, a community of more than 200 bloggers around the world who work together to bring you translations and reports from blogs and citizen media everywhere, with emphasis on voices that are not ordinarily heard in international mainstream media.

The report highlights how the Pakistani Blogosphere has reacted to the crisis and gives you an in-sight to cyber activism in Pakistan.

Pakistan has been hit by a severe humanitarian crisis as a result of the military onslaught against the Taliban insurgency. The valley of Swat is in Pakistan’s Malakand division, a beautiful valley often dubbed as another heaven on planet earth. It used to be a prominent tourist resort before it was struck by militancy and extremism of the local Taliban.

It is being reported that over one million (some reports even suggest that figure stands at near 2 million) people have fled their homes from various areas in the Malakand division and FATA including Buner, Dir and Swat. These “Internally Displaced People” (IDPs) are seeking refuge in other areas of Pakistan. Temporary camps have been established in the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) where registered IDPs are provided food and shelter.

The crisis is huge. The problems seem impossible to overcome. But Pakistan as a nation has always proved its resilience and unity in testing times. In this regard, a massive relief effort has been launched by many organizations and individuals. The Pakistani Blogosphere is also taking a leading role to provide relief to our Pakistani brothers and sisters in distress.

Read the Full Report at: http://globalvoicesonline.org/2009/05/21/pakistan-a-humanitarian-crisis/

National Bloggers Conference, 2009

12
2 years ago
by Ammar in , , ,

April 18th, 2009 marked a major landmark for the Pakistani Blogosphere. The first National Conference held at the Regent Plaza in Karachi is being hailed as the first initiative of its kind in the entire region. The event was hosted by the Sindh IT department and organized by the MQM-PRAC (Professionals Research and Advisory Council).

Sindh Minister for IT, Mr. Raza Haroon, Chief guest Mr. Farooq Sattar and Mr. Cowasjee were amongst the prominent people who attended the conference to witness how blogging has grown and continues to do so in Pakistan.

18042009480The event kicked off with lots and lts of appreciation for an 11 year old girl, Umaima Adil, for her certification as the world’s youngest Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP). This was followed by a welcome speech from Mr. Raza Haroon and then came the speakers -bloggers! It was great listening to all of them.

I had the honour of meeting the IT minister Mr. Raza Haroon, Jehan Ara, Dr. Awab Alvi, Rabia Garib, Batool Habib, SAWJ, Ammar Yasir, Munir Usman, Faizuddin Alim and of course Assad Ullah and Hamza Zafar who had tagged along with me!

And yes I would also like to appreciate the fact that despite the event being organized by the MQM-PRAC, there were no flags around. They truly deserve credit for rising above party-politics and conducting this show wonderfully.

And we, as bloggers, are proud that our efforts and our voices have been recognized by the Government. This is an achievement. A landmark. A historical event.

I was covering the event live via twitter @ http://www.twitter.com/ammar_faheem and was also live blogged here & here

May the Almighty Bless you all.

SAWJ is GONE

14
2 years ago
by Ammar in

Love him, hate him, loath him, adore him – but the reality is – he is GONE. He spoke to me before he decided to. He has left. He has, undoubtedly, been what has kept our little blogosphere alive.

Here’s his farewell post: http://blog.ratedsawj.com/2009/02/12/khuda-hafiz

That is all I have to say. We will all miss you, Ali. And some day, tum bohat maar khaao ge!

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