SIX days ago, The Lancet published an extraordinary article, titled ‘The Lancet and Colonialism: Past, Present, and Future’. The authors include two Pakistanis: Prof Mishal S. Khan, the lead author, and Muhammad Naveed Noor, along with Thirusha Naidu, Irene Torres, Jesse B. Bump and Seye Abimbola.

The Lancet is a 200-year-old peer reviewed weekly medical journal from the UK. The first issue appeared on Oct 5, 1823, and the latest on March 30, 2024. As an influential journal it has the highest impact factor. Since its launch, the journal has expanded into a family of more than 20 specialty journals and has set up a number of global Lancet Commissions on various important issues in medicine and healthcare.

The journal has seen a lot in its last two centuries of existence — from the 1820s, when the first trains were just getting onto the track, to the present times, when we live in a hyper-connected global village powered by IT and AI. Apart from pivotal advances in medical sciences, many of which The Lancet itself reported over the 200 years, the journal also lived through many eras of political, economic and social upheaval. When it started, slavery was still the norm and colonialism was rife.

While beginning the bicentennial year, the editorial in the journal in January last year mentioned that, “while we cherish our independence and acknowledge our privileged position … we also recognise that The Lancet has, at times, been complicit in grievous violations of human rights. The legacy of colonialism inevitably looms large in our history. During the coming year, we........

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