Started by the editors of Pakistaniaat: A Journal of Pakistan Studies, this is a public forum for all those interested in Pakistani history, culture, and politics. We hope that our readers will use this forum to comment on our regular posts about the journal and about other Pakistan-related matters.
About Pakistaniaat: A Journal of Pakistan Studies
Pakistaniaat is a refereed, multidisciplinary, and open access academic journal offering a forum for scholarly and creative engagement with various aspects of Pakistani history, culture, literature, and politics. Housed in the English Department of the University of North Texas, Pakistaniaat is a sponsored journal of the American Institute of Pakistan Studies. Available online as well as in print, Pakistaniaat publishes three issues per year. All sales of our Print Version support our online open access mission.
To loud applause at a special distribution ceremony on Pakistan Day, PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif declared: “We do not give weapons in the hands of youngsters, we give them laptops; we give them education”. The laptop scheme is the brainchild of kid brother Shahbaz Sharif, chief minister of Punjab. He says that the Punjab...
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Gilani or no Gilani, the democratic process should prevail and the current government should be allowed to continue and complete its term for the first time in political history of Pakistan. Continuing its tradition, Pakistan has revealed another surprise in its political basket that has astonished the whole world.The Supreme Court of Pakistan has...
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According to UNICEF, while child labor is a global problem, children in the Global South are most vulnerable. Surprisingly, most of these children are from Asian countries I was startled the other day to see a Pakistani name on the official website of the U.S. Department of Labor. First thought it was a mistake...
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Background: Tzortzis (Greek, lives in London) converted to Islam and is now hugely popular among young Muslims. Pervez Hoodbhoy received a doctorate in nuclear physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and currently teaches physics and political science at LUMS (Lahore). He previously taught at...
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(The details of the track built in 1930 by the British) “For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel’s sake. The great affair is to move.” — Robert Louis Stevenson Overview: Two senior colleagues who are avid travelers of the mountains one Dr. Syed Mahmood Raza...
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Sarbaland Shah is a young educated man who works for an IT firm in Lahore. Despite his education and impressive expertise in information technology, he believes strongly that America is behind all the ills of Muslims all over the world. For him, Osama Bin Laden (OBL) is a hero who can never be captured...
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Grading universities is not an easy task. As in a beauty contest, opinions and tastes count. But the task is important because universities, which seek students and funds, are nowadays aggressively advertising themselves. And so, one hears some rather astonishing, even bizarre, claims. For example, surrounded by machine guns and Rangers, Karachi University...
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Pakistani politics is an endless procession of surprises. The expected never occurs and hardly ever in the expected manner. So, those of us who thought Nawaz, the judges and the khakis combined would pull a genie out of a BlackBerry and Husain Haqqani would be hanged are, well, a tad disappointed. But don’t bow...
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Media as warmongers
In assuming this role as warmongers voluntarily, news media flare up the war hysteria and promote conflict and tension between rival nations. In this role the mainstream media do not kill people directly; they create a mindset to destroy the perceived “others”. “Although there may be doubts about the media’s peacemaking potential, it can...
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