Dr Fawad Kaiser

Ever since elections brought the PML-N into power in Pakistan, there has been a profound political vacuum at the heart of the region. There is a brutal truth in Pakistan: if there is a political vacuum, a saga of violence will fill it. There is no point in talking of a faltering in the electoral […]

Who communicates what to whom, in what voice and why? Why do countless Pakistani people go along with what is said on television? Why are so many people impressed by the power of broadcast media? Media power is a crucial, although often taken for granted, concept. We assume the media is powerful because if it […]

The anecdote has been reconstituted by so many sources that it has entered the realm of political mythology. It is a story that has gained wide currency because it illustrates the deep, dark and complicated symbiosis between the father-son political leadership in more than four decades of the PPP’s political history. There have been a […]

Pakistani Norwegians have a strong presence in higher education, media and politics. First generation Pakistani Norwegians can be distinguished from the mainstream in several demographic aspects while second generation Pakistani Norwegians have gone on to become professionals and politicians. The diaspora began during the 1970s when first generation Pakistani Norwegians arrived in Norway as guest […]

Following last Tuesday’s crash of flight 9525 in the French Alps, the disturbing realisation was that one of the co-pilots of the Germanwings jetliner orchestrated its deadly descent into the French mountainside. This has made the general public ask: how do we know if airlines are taking necessary precautions to see whether their crew is […]

At least 15 people were killed and more than 70 injured when two Taliban suicide bombers attacked two churches in Lahore. Do we not consider this genocide? The militants are killing people in the name of Allah and telling people that anyone who kills a Christian will go straight to heaven. That is their message. […]

The Partnership Action Plan against Terrorism (PAP-T) can facilitate greater intelligence sharing and cooperation in areas such as border security, terrorism-related training and exercises, the development of capabilities for defence against terrorist attacks and for managing the consequences of such an attack. Borders are one of the first lines of defence against terrorism. Islamabad and […]

While not all would agree with the negative assertion that the future of the National Action Plan (NAP) is uncertain, the comment raises an important point. NAP itself has a clear institutional incentive to adapt and take on a counterterrorism role in order to ensure its own survival as a national security programme. Thus, the […]

The application of military courts is part of a wider dynamic that signifies the abandoning of the notion of delayed justice as a temporary situation. This dynamic is leading toward a de facto annexation and the creation of a parallel legal system under military control. The partial and formal application of criminal law in the […]

On December 16, 2014, Pakistan became deeply shocked to learn of the murder of more than 100 children by a group of terrorists. In the wake of these events, Pakistan’s population displayed symptoms of collective emotional shock and bereavement, and endeavoured to come to terms with these feelings as a community. In addition to individual […]