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Faranak Amidi presents global stories from the Fifth Floor, home to the BBC’s 40 Language Services

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The Fifth Floor: 23/10/2015 11:06 GMT: Why Pakistan's Army Chief Has a Hashtag

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Raheel Sharif

23/10/2015 11:06 GMT

23/10/2015 11:06 GMT: Why Pakistan's Army Chief Has a Hashtag

Why Pakistan's Army Chief Has a Hashtag

BBC World Service - The Fifth Floor, Why Pakistan's Army Chief Has a Hashtag

What's behind the hashtag #ThankyouRaheelSharif? And is it really serious?

Pakistan's army chief, how leaders are depicted in art, the dogs of Turkmenistan, what Xi Jinping should see in London, Mexico's disappeared women, in praise of Urdu poetry.

His face is one the back of trucks, he has had a mosque named after him and there are social media campaigns calling for an extension on his term. General Raheel Sharif is the army chief of Pakistan, but his popularity appears to exceed that of political leaders in the country. He's seen by some as a saviour who will eliminate terrorism, corruption and electricity shortages. But there has been a backlash - satirical tweets thanking Raheel Sharif for everything from good weather to a successful flirtation. But with Pakistan's history of a wobbly democracy is this just a spontaneous campaign? Amber Shamsi examines General Raheel Sharif's personality cult.

World Leaders in Art
Earlier this month President Putin celebrated his 63rd birthday. The date was marked with a special exhibition of portraits of him in various different heroic guises from Putin as Batman to Putin as Gandhi and even Putin as Robin Hood. He is of course not the first world leader to have been set to canvas and immortalised. On the Fifth Floor this week we're looking at the most memorable depictions of world leaders in art and the long lasting effects of those images. We're joined by BBC Russian's Famil Ismailov and Egyptian journalist Dina Demrdash

Central Asia's Top Dogs
With new research claiming that today's dogs can trace their origins to Central Asia, we hear about the region's most impressive breed - the Alabay sheepdog of Turkmenistan.  Famous for being strong enough to fight off wolves, the Alabay is also a trusted member of the family. Mecan Navruzov, a Turkmen working with BBC Monitoring, grew up with them, and tells us why they are a source of national pride.  

What Xi Should See
As Chinese president Xi Jinping ends his 4-day visit to Britain, we go round the Fifth Floor for an alternative tour. No Buckingham Palace or trade exhibitions.  Instead, he's recommended to dance the tango at a famous London meat market, or try his luck at the dog races.  An insight into what Fifth Floorers have discovered and enjoyed since moving to the UK.

Mexico's Disappeared Women
Lourdes Heredia is a Mexican journalist. She left her home country 20 years ago to follow her dream of becoming a journalist. On a recent visit back, she met an old friend, an investigative reporter who has been covering the story of Mexico's disappeared women. A story that is well documented internationally but very seldom reported inside the country. What Lourdes heard, changed the way she thought about her country, and about ever returning home.

In Praise of Urdu Poetry
So which poet would you choose to represent your nation? This week Aliya Nazki challenges two colleagues from the Urdu service to a poetry duel. Their task is to decide which poet will best represent the Urdu language. For a region that is passionate about its poetry this is not an easy business.  Aliya chose Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib, her colleagues Hussain Askari and Qandeel Shaam respectively chose Jon Elia and Faiz Ahmed Faiz. 


And Fifi Haroon shares her favourite stories from the world wide web this week

Picture: A Pakistani artist paints a poster thanking Raheel Sharif

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