The problem with a soft image on March 24, 2018Projecting a soft image of Pakistan has almost become a mantra with the Pakistani right wing and the security state. The political left has consistently pointed to the futility of projecting such an image without the ‘soft’ substance to back it up. The security state nevertheless, has taken it on as a project in itself, […]
Public art and ugly lies on March 9, 2018If one wants to understand the Pakistani state, the above sculpture by the Governor House at Kashmir point in Murree, might be instructive. The sculpture has three horsemen in supposed Arab, Mughal and British colonial liveries, trotting towards the visual barrier with images of Mr MA Jinnah and Dr Muhammad Iqbal. In the visual field […]
Asma, Malala and misogyny on February 22, 2018Upon hearing of Asma Jehangir passing away, I had the same feeling, when more than a decade ago, a friend asked as we walked along: did you hear? Edward Said died. I felt strength leaving my legs, and I had to sit down. As long as intellects like Said and activists like Asma are around, […]
The dark side of NGOs on February 6, 2018I remember in the 1990s I was working with a local NGO promoting participatory rural development in central Punjab. I was asked to go to the EME College, to talk to the research staff there and see if we could help do field testing for their solar ovens. I was received by a very polite […]
Can the security state continue? on January 20, 2018“Colonel Sahib’s son is taking the flight to London,” so said my driver to the ASF man at the gate of Islamabad airport. To my keen humiliation, the young man immediately waved us through, without bothering to even check the boot of the car. I am a middle aged academic. Surely, my driver shouldn’t have […]
Pakistan has never learnt from history on January 4, 2018This new year a short piece and a book by Ahsan Butt, a young academic at George Mason University, in Fairfax, Virginia, USA, has given a useful reminder of what led to the genocidal war in East Pakistan. The lessons from history are inescapable but if learned could change the shape of the future for […]
Future visions for Israel on December 20, 2017The Trump administration has finally delivered on something that the US Congress had been insisting on for a while — that the US embassy in Israel move from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The move has been greeted with muted condemnation by governments of Muslim countries. Israel’s closest ally in the region, Saudi Arabia didn’t even […]
Of academics, experts and nation building on December 5, 2017Through most of my academic career, I always felt a little uneasy every time I went to a regional conference on South Asia or Pakistan. Many, if not most of my Pakistani colleagues tended to have such vast panoramic views and narratives about Pakistan. Some explained civil-military relations, others spoke of the role of religion […]
Of post colonial angst on November 14, 2017The pre-independence generation in Pakistan is intellectually profoundly impressed by the West and its scientific modernity. Yet culturally my parents’ generation is completely Pakistani/South Asian in its habits and outlook. Most people in this generation are fans of Aloo-Gosht (meat curry), local mannerisms, and would be loath to eat out unless they are traveling. For […]
Students’ identity politics and its discontents on October 31, 2017The recent disturbances at the Quaid-e-Azam University (QAU) between Baloch and Sindhi student federation councils, are symptomatic of the almost fatal malaise that afflicts Pakistani society and higher education. The train of events that has brought the premier institution of higher education to stand still, and then in considerable disrepute is well known. The sub-text […]