Photo : Dawn
NIAS Area Studies
PAKISTAN READER
Photo : Dawn
PR Daily Brief | 03 November 2025, Monday | Vol 5, No.271
SOCIETY
PFUJ call for stronger protection and justice for journalists in Pakistan
On 3 November, Dawn reported that the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) has requested the government to ensure the safety and security of journalists. As in the year 2025, Journalists conditions remain precarious as per data shown by several reports. Also, Pakistan was ranked 158th out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index by Reporters without Borders for the year 2025. On International Day to End Impunity for Crime Against Journalists, PM Shehbaz Sharif in his remarks vowed to take steps for protection of journalists. He initiated steps to ensure effective investigation, justice, and prosecution in cases of crimes of attacks and killings against journalists. (“PM vows to take steps for effective probe, prosecution of crimes against journalists,” Dawn, 3 November 2025; “Call for holding press attackers accountable,” Dawn, 3 November 2025)
POK
No-Confidence motion in the "AJK" assembly delayed amid PPP’s internal consultations
On 3 November, The News International reported that the No-Confidence motion in the "AJK" Assembly was delayed again amid political uncertainty in the region. Pakistan People's Party failed to submit a no-confidence motion despite having the support of more members than required as per the constitution for passing a no confidence motion. The name for nominated successor remains undecided, although the PPP Chairman claimed that nomination of a new Prime Ministerial candidate is not an issue for the party, as all members are committed to follow party endorsements. The "AJK" law minister announced that the PPP will bring no confidence motion in the "AJK" assembly within four days. He also claimed that the decision is getting delayed because of the consultation with the stakeholders. (“No-trust motion against AJK premier planned within four days, says minister,” The News International, 3 November, 2025; “AJK no-trust motion faces delay despite PPP’s majority claim,” The News International, 3 November 2025)
JUDICIARY
PTI set to challenge the Punjab Local Government Bill 2025 before Lahore High Court
On 3 November, Dawn reported that the PTI is set to challenge the Punjab Local Government Bill 2025 before the Lahore High Court, seeking a stay order against what it calls “unconstitutional provisions.” The party contends that several clauses in the bill contradict Articles 17, 32, and 140-A of the Constitution, which guarantee political participation, local governance, and devolution of power. PTI leaders object to the bill’s non-party-based, one-vote multi-member system, arguing it undermines the role of political parties and strengthens administrative control over elected local representatives. The party also criticised the bill’s centralisation of financial powers and indefinite appointment of administrators. These provisions, PTI claims, violate the principle of local autonomy and are unconstitutional. PTI called for restoring direct elections for union council chairpersons, establishing a fixed five-year tenure, ensuring a clear election schedule for local governments, and having strict limits on executive interference and administrative authority. The bill, passed in mid-October, has faced broader opposition for deferring local government powers indefinitely and enabling executive interference in local governance. (Amjad Mahmood, “PTI set to move Lahore High Court against Punjab local govt bill,” Dawn, 3 November 2025)
ECONOMY
World Bank urges Pakistan to revise skewed trade agreements
On 3 November, Dawn reported that the World Bank has advised Pakistan to look into its skewed preferential trade agreements with other countries. The World Bank mentioned agreements with ten countries. As exports are continuously declining for the last three decades, from 16 per cent of GDP in 1990s to just around 10 per cent in 2024. There is a need for a market-determined and flexible exchange rate to ensure export competitiveness. Factors such as Cost of customs management, logistics, excessive regulation, and heavy state presence, cost of electricity, lack of digital infrastructure in the economy also constraint exports market in Pakistan. (“ WB asks Pakistan to overhaul skewed trade pacts,” Dawn, 3 November 2025)
Editorials/Opinions
SECURITY
Maleeha Lodhi, "The nuclear imperative," Dawn, 3 November 2025
“Pakistan’s pursuit of a nuclear weapons capability was unambiguously security-driven. Two key developments shaped the decision. First, the Indian intervention in Pakistan’s dismemberment and military defeat in 1971. The second turning point was India’s 1974 nuclear explosion. The never-again thinking that followed 1971 — and fear of more Indian aggression — led to the strategic conclusion that Pakistan could only rely on itself for its security...India’s motivation to go nuclear was driven less by security and more by its quest for great-power status and prestige..."
SOCIETY
Bina Shah, "Unequal partners," Dawn, 3 November 2025
"Chief Justice Ayesha Malik recently wrote a landmark judgement in the case of Dr Seema Hanif Khan, who was denied the dissolution of her marriage by the Peshawar High Court. Justice Malik ruled that a woman does not need the consent of her husband to obtain a khula, that any accusation of “disobedience” cannot be accepted without evidence, and that psychological abuse is a valid reason for a woman to seek dissolution of a marriage. This is why it’s so vital that we have a female judge in the Supreme Court. Islam gives women their rights but men have constructed so many limitations and qualifiers that women have been trapped in awful, abusive marriages for nearly a century. It took a female judge to restore a woman’s right to khula and to set legal precedent for future Pakistani women to avail of that right in the 21st century. We could call this a feminist action, even if no woman in Pakistan wants to call herself a feminist."
EXTERNAL RELATIONS
Editorial, "Confused messaging," Dawn, 3 November 2025
"WHEN it comes to sensitive foreign issues involving Pakistan, there is a need to project a coherent narrative clear of contradictions. With regard to the possible deployment of Pakistani troops as part of the International Stabilisation Force in occupied Gaza, mixed messages from official quarters have added to the confusion, and allowed inimical actors to manufacture unverified claims regarding this country’s future role in the Strip."
ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE CHANGE
Editorial, "The climate bill comes due," The News, 3 November 2025
"A small group of farmers from Sindh may have just launched one of the most significant legal challenges in the global fight for climate justice. Their decision to take two German giants – RWE and Heidelberg – to court for damages caused by Pakistan’s devastating 2022 floods is essentially a demand for global accountability. When entire communities in the Global South lose their livelihoods while powerful corporations in the wealthy Global North continue to profit from pollution, the call for climate reparations becomes a matter of survival. Pakistan contributes less than one per cent to global greenhouse gas emissions and yet remains on the frontlines of the climate crisis."
MEDIA
Editorial, "Defenceless journos," The Express Tribune, 3 November 2025
"Appallingly, the authorities have never moved beyond lip service on devising any workable mechanism for protection of journalists and coming good on domestic and international commitments. Contrarily, they have introduced harsher laws to make life even more difficult and dangerous for the journalist fraternity. One wonders whether there will ever be any genuine reform exercise, led by genuine stakeholders, guaranteeing safety and security of journalists and deterrent action against culprits."
POLITICS
Tariq Rahman, "The Original Sin Of Pakistan’s Politics: Democracy Preached, Monarchy Practised," The Friday Tribune, 31 October 2025
"The absence of intra-party democracy is not a blemish; it is the original sin. Parties preach democracy to the nation while practising monarchy within. The result is predictable: cycles of civilian autocracy punctuated by military intervention. Until leadership is earned through service rather than birthright, Pakistan’s democracy will remain just that: a performance, rehearsed and repeated, but never truly realised."