Stories by Rafia Zakaria

Rafia Zakaria is an attorney and human rights activist. She is a columnist for DAWN Pakistan and a regular contributor for Al Jazeera America, Dissent, Guernica and many other publications.

She is the author of The Upstairs Wife: An Intimate History of Pakistan (Beacon Press 2015). She tweets @rafiazakaria

Rafia Zakaria
India’s killer tourists

India’s killer tourists

Hosting those accused of such acts without demanding accountability raises its own moral questions, but this is a truth that India, drowning in its own hatreds.
Updated 26 Sep, 2026 09:04am
For Ishmal

For Ishmal

Once media attention ends, no one pursues cases of assault and murder.
Published 19 Sep, 2026 04:18am
The end of 9/11

The end of 9/11

The years since 9/11 have done their damage.
Published 12 Sep, 2026 04:55am
A horse and a man

A horse and a man

The assumption animals are unfeeling creatures is wrong.
Published 05 Sep, 2026 04:01am
No safe place

No safe place

Millions of Pakistani women suffer abuse.
Updated 29 Aug, 2026 04:15pm
Protecting privacy

Protecting privacy

Pakistan hasn’t kept pace with the demands of data protection.
Published 22 Aug, 2026 04:12am
Death in Karachi

Death in Karachi

No one is more alone than a victim of crime in Karachi.
Updated 15 Aug, 2026 08:54am
Rattled Democrats

Rattled Democrats

El-Sayed’s win shows how much the US electorate has changed.
Published 08 Aug, 2026 05:24am
Dirty data centres

Dirty data centres

Who pays the price when power and water are diverted to computers?
Published 01 Aug, 2026 05:36am
Roaches rising

Roaches rising

People in India want what was once unimaginable.
Published 25 Jul, 2026 05:05am
Exporting doctors

Exporting doctors

Pakistanis, the world may soon learn, are excellent doctors.
Published 18 Jul, 2026 06:32am
Tough living

Tough living

Karachi belongs to everyone and, therefore, to no one at all.
Updated 11 Jul, 2026 01:12pm
Captive at home

Captive at home

A patriarchal society teaches women to hate themselves.
Published 04 Jul, 2026 04:55am
Not all men?

Not all men?

It is possible for men to stand with women.
Updated 20 Jun, 2026 01:15pm
Going it alone

Going it alone

The idea of staying single is becoming increasingly acceptable.
Published 06 Jun, 2026 06:07am
Vanishing jobs

Vanishing jobs

Tech workers are the worst positioned to absorb the AI shock.
Published 30 May, 2026 06:05am
Gulaan’s story

Gulaan’s story

‘I know I will be killed,” she said.
Published 16 May, 2026 05:48am
Farewell to Dubai

Farewell to Dubai

Alignments are changing in the Middle East, especially as high tensions between the US-Israel alliance and Iran show no signs of abating.
Updated 09 May, 2026 08:38am
India’s delusions

India’s delusions

Denying reality is the cornerstone of India’s worldview.
Updated 25 Apr, 2026 09:50am