Hina Rabbani Khar Offers Hope to Pakistan

Shehrbano Taseer writes in Guardian UK

Indian foreign minister, SM Krishna, and his Pakistan counterpart, Hina Rabbani Khar, arrive for talks in New Delhi, India.

As soon as Hina Rabbani Khar touched down in New Delhi last week to meet SM Krishna, her Indian counterpart, #HRK and #Birkin – her initials and the name of her handbag – began trending worldwide on Twitter.

Across the border, reactions to Khar – who, at 34, is Pakistan's youngest foreign minister – were surprising. The Indian media gushed ("First they sent bombs, now they send bombshells"), while Pakistan's was less enamoured ("Does this expensively dressed minister represent a country which is under hefty debt?"). But Khar – Hermes purse, Roberto Cavalli sunglasses and all – very much represents Pakistan. And especially Pakistani political culture.

The rich-poor disconnect in Pakistan is increasing. A 2010 study estimated that 32% of Pakistan's 180 million population subsists below the poverty line. According to the Human Development Index, 60.3% live on under $2 a day. Wealth distribution in Pakistan is highly uneven and the richest pay little in taxes; Khar only paid Rs8,000 (less than £60) in taxes last year. So her ability to accessorise while millions in her country are homeless jobless and malnourished is hardly surprising. It is indicative of the gulf between the haves

The land between KRH and HRK (Hina Rabbani Khar)

By : Asha' Rehman
The Indian audiences have been treated to many Pakistani images between Hina Rabbani Khar (already considered worthy of the ‘HRK’ acronym) and Raj Kapoor’s Khush Rang Heena (KRH). I wouldn’t say that they represent two opposite sides of Pakistan. Only to my mind they do signify two opposing Indian approaches to locating the lost Pakistani cousin.
Pakistani perceptions of India are hard to change. Two years after I made my last trip to India, many Pakistanis I meet still wonder if I am speaking the truth when I tell them about the ready friends I found myself surrounded by across the Wagha.

Between Raj Kapoor’s Khush Rang Hina and Hina Rabbani Khar, my Indian friends have essentially been busy in showing off parts of Pakistan that sell to the Indian market - AP Photo

I can see that some of these Pakistanis find it hard to believe how a Pundit who wore a pleasant smile and sported Jeetendra-white patent shoes could take us on a trip through my grandfather’s village. The Pakistanis are perplexed – should I say a wee bit disappointed? – that I never ran into the standard notorious enemy in India. And yes they are amused and patriotically pleased when I relate to them how my little son’s inborn prejudice for the Pakistani flag gave his grownup minders a few anxious moments during that trip.
Since we live in Lahore and away from the flag-infested life in a Kati Pahari or Lyari or an Azizabad, the only flags my younger son, now 5, is familiar with happens to be the national flag of Pakistan. To his uncluttered mind that is the only flag that exists in the world, the result being that over time he has developed this little habit of greeting all flags with the chant of “Pakistan zindabad”.
Pakistan zindabad — This is precisely how he reacted at one instance in India, his inspiration a few flags fluttering atop a Hindu mandir.  Back home, there have been occasions where I as a proud father have been made to feel as if, short of installing the Pakistani flag on Laal Qila in Dilli,

'Hina Charms Indian Papers'

New Delhi: A flurry of flattering headlines yesterday greeted Pakistan's 34-year-old first woman foreign minister.

Hina Rabbani Khar, the news and youngest, 34 years old, Pakistani Foreign Minister, with her 79 years old Indian counterpart SM Krishna 

Hina Rabbani Khar's picture adorned the front pages of most Indian newspapers.

‘Pak Puts On Its Best Face', said The Times of India, the biggest-selling English-language daily, while mass circulation Hindi newspaper Navbharat Times said India was 'sweating over the model-like minister'.

 

‘Pak bomb lands in India', joked the Mumbai Mirror.

The Mail Today tabloid devoted space to Khar's choice of outfit and her fashion sense.

'Tasteful accessories — Roberto Cavalli sunglasses, oversized Hermes Birkin bag and classic pearl jewellery — added a hint of glamour to her look,' it said.

The Telegraph drew comparisons between Khar and her 79-year-old counterpart S.M. Krishna.

'In the unkind world of adjectives, the odds are stacked against SMK and in favour of HRK,' it said, using the ministers' initials. 'Khar carries with ease descriptions such as ‘stunning' and ‘petite'.'

India's style mavens estimate that her accessories alone -- a pearl necklace, Birkin bag and Cavalli sunglasses among them -- probably cost her upwards of $30,000,

A Shaky Dialogue

Dawn 29 July 2011, Opinion
By: Cyril Almeida 


IT looked good, it sounded good — and in the fraught world of Pak-India relations, that was probably good enough, for now.
The young Pakistani princess outshone her dapper Indian counterpart; the media was agog; and the outside world looked on approvingly. So are the constituencies for peace in India and Pakistan back with a bang? Not quite.
What this week has been about is atmospherics and optics. Make the environment in which talks are conducted more congenial and make all the noises necessary to reassure the other side of interest in talks — without ceding anything meaningful on any front.
Improving atmospherics and optics is nothing to scoff at when you’re talking about a six-decade-old problem to rival any other on the global stage. But Pakistan and India have been down this road many times before. It is reasonable to ask, will this time be any different?
On the Indian side, the peace constituency appears to have been bolstered by at least four things. The Indian PM and his national security adviser are still keen on better ties with Pakistan. The US is pushing for an improvement in Pak-India relations because of the potential regional dividends.
India has realised that the post-Mumbai attempt to diplomatically isolate Pakistan was a bad idea because the rest of the world doesn’t see Pakistan through an Indian lens. And India wants to see the Mumbai perpetrators brought to justice, something unlikely to ever occur if India disengages Pakistan.
But the first real public test for the peace constituency in India will come when it has to push domestically for a deal on some of the mid-level stuff, a deal on Sir Creek perhaps or more

Hina Rabbani Khar, the New Foreign Minister, Praised in India

Hindustan Times Report

Hina Rabbani Khar - a style icon

Pearls, Roberto Cavalli shades and a Birkin bag, speculated to be worth Rs 17 lakh — Pakistan’s youngest and first woman foreign minister, Hina Rabbani Khar has got people talking about her impeccable style sense during her ongoing Delhi visit. The 34-year-old is quite a style icon back in her own country, reveal Pakistan’s noted fashion designers. 

“She dresses conservatively, conscious of the fact that she represents a Muslim state. Her brief to the designer is not to make body-hugging dresses. But she’s extremely stylish,” says Lahore-based Honey Waqar, who has designed for Khar. “Politicians here are usually not aware about brands, but she knows a lot and loves accessorising with stylish bags,” says Islamabad-based designer Sobia Nazir. “In private gatherings, you’d spot her in trendy jeans,” adds Karachi-based designer Faiza Samee.


Delhi’s fashion circuit and even Twitter was abuzz with style talk about her on Tuesday. “I love the understated pearls. The bag gives a formal and crisp flavour,” says designer Nida Mahmood. “Hina Rabbani Khar is the newest stylista in India,” tweeted  Himanshu Parmekar. Meanwhile, all the talk about her fashion sense made some wonder if the focus is being taken away from what she’s in India for. “If Hina Rabbani were a male foreign minister of Pakistan, would she EVER be deconstructed in terms

Pakistan's New and Youngest Foreign Minister, Hina Rabbani Khar