Pakistan's Elections Debates: An Analysis of Electoral Knowledge Production
The political debates are the major indicators to open a dialogue and to set the tone of politics in society. The elections' debates in Pakistan are directly linked with the nature of the state and its ideological and elite composition. The post-colonial state structure and its reflection in electoral politics is a dominant determining factor which led to induce order through objectifying in existing electoral status quo. The dominant forces on the electoral scene have the power to interpret the existing knowledge production and debate for their own interest. Both objectivities and subjectivities in which electoral debates operate are in control of the post-colonial state structure. This paper is an attempt to explore the articulation of electoral debates in academic knowledge production. Further, how does existing academic debate explain the nature of electoral politics? Why?The purposively selected academic debates on elections revolved around functionalist and interpretivist paradigms influenced by the existing debate between subjectivity and objectivity. The descriptive method has been applied in exploring a research question under study.
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Elections, Knowledge Production, Pakistan, Political Debate, Post-Colonialism
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(1) Muhammad Shakeel Ahmad
Assistant Professor, Centre for Policy Studies, COMSATS University, Islamabad, Pakistan. Post-Doctoral Fellow, School of Politics and International Relations, The University of Nottingham United Kingd
Views: 440 · Downloads: 0
Publicity, Propaganda and Press: All India Muslim League in Propagation of Demand for Pakistan
The evolution and growth of press in the Subcontinent revolutionized the flow of information and propagation of political activities. All-India Muslim League went through the process of reorganization in the late 1930's and the new political resolve needed more publicity and propaganda to expand further among the masses. League handled the need of the hour by starting its party-owned newspapers while the provincial Leagues and some of the League organs launched their newspapers to publicize policy and program of the party. The major share in the press came from the Leaguers and pro League newspapers from all over India. The last phase of the freedom movement witnessed the emergence of a more radical and outspoken press in support of the demand for Pakistan. Overseas publicity and press remained weak ground for League due it financial constraints. The Middle East zone was omnipresent in League's activities due to its Islamist stance.England publicity wing started working quite late but it remained successful in making a mark over the minds of the public. The American front was neglected and only a few appearances were available to propagate League and its demand for Pakistan.
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Press, League, Propaganda, Demand for Pakistan, Newspapers
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(1) Muhammad Anwar
Lecturer, Department of Pakistan Studies and History, National University of Modern, Languages, Islamabad, Pakistan.
(2) Shahzad Qaisar
Lecturer (Visiting), Department of Pakistan Studies and History, National University of Modern Languages, Islamabad, Pakistan.
(3) Jamila Begum
Lecturer, Department of Education, National University of Modern Languages, Islamabad, Pakistan.
Views: 658 · Downloads: 0
Exploring the Policies for Coverage of Minorities Issues in Pakistani Electronic Media
Issues faced by the Christians of Punjab on various occasions have been reported by the media; however, they have been on the rise in recent years. Media organizations aim to provide coverage and address minorities issues, and also follow policies and procedures for better interest of all involved. This research paper attempts to look into the policies of electronic media organizations as well as the media regulatory body regarding coverage of issues faced by the Christians. In-depth interviews of officials in policymaking; four from media and two from the electronic media regulatory authority resulted that the authority has clear written policies for media content as to the coverage of minorities issues which is to avoid any coverage inciting hatred or fear among people. It also brings forth media’s unwritten policies and practices with regards to covering issues related to Pakistan Christian minority and priorities given to the coverage.
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Christians, Electronic Media, Media Coverage, Media Policy, Media Regulation, Pakistan, Religious Minorities.
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(1) Rachel Aruna Joshua
PhD Scholar, Department of Mass Communication, Lahore College for Women University, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan.
(2) Anjum Zia
Professor, Department of Mass Communication, Lahore College for Women University, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan.
Views: 1,369 · Downloads: 0
Micro-Takaful by Takaful Operators in Pakistan: Problems and their Solutions from the Practitioners' Perspective
This study investigates the underlying reasons behind the limited offering of micro-takaful(insurance) products by takaful operators in Pakistan and suggests solutions to enhance thegrowth of micro-takaful products in the country. The study is qualitative in nature. The researchers conducted atotal of twenty (20) semi-structured interviews of relevant Islamic finance practitioners (5 sales heads, 5 businessheads, 5 product development heads, and 5 sales agents) working at all five takaful operators (Dawood FamilyTakaful Ltd., Pak-Qatar General Takaful, Pak-Qatar Family Takaful, Pak Kuwait Takaful, Takaful Pakistan Limited)operating in Pakistan. NVIVO 12 software was used for generating items, codes, word clouds and text searchqueries. According to the findings of this study, the issues faced by practitioners include the poor financialcondition of the public, lack of sufficient funds with takaful operators, lack of cooperation among takaful operators,lack of customer awareness and interest, lack of takaful experts and diversified takaful products, absence of aculture of takaful practices, and lack of research and product development in the field of micro-takaful.Academicians should develop suitable micro-takaful products according to the needs of the public, and theregulator can require takaful operators to offer micro-takaful products.
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Challenges, Micro-Takaful, Pakistan, Solutions, Takaful Operators
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(1) Mohammad Ayaz
Associate Professor, Department of Banking and Finance, University of Management and Technology (UMT), Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan.
(2) Maryam Saeed
PhD Scholar, Department of Banking and Finance, University of Management and Technology (UMT), Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan.
(3) Muhammad Ather Ashraf
Department of Banking and Finance, University of Management and Technology (UMT), Pakistan.
Views: 1,008 · Downloads: 0
Politics of Electoral Symbols in Pakistan
Electoral symbols have a significant role in electoral campaigns. Political parties used stamps to propagate their political stance and to organize political behavior around their programs. The political symbolism demonstrates different meanings to different people due to their socio-political orientations.Some political parties tried to use electoral symbols more proactively than others. These multi-layered meanings led to the articulate political interests of social groups. There are many questions unanswered regarding the impact and use of the political symbol. Can election symbols influence particular areas more than the rest of the country? Does electoral symbol matter in electoral victory? This paper is an attempt to explore the politics and use of symbols in electoral politics. In the electoral politics of Pakistan, the study of electoral symbols is unique due to its multiple uses in highly polarized electoral contexts. The study concludes that political parties use electoral symbols tactfully to maximize their vote bank. A qualitative approach has been used to investigate a core question
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Electoral Symbols, Pakistan, Voting, Symbolism, Political Parties
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(1) Muhammad Shakeel Ahmad
Assistant Professor, Centre for Policy Studies, COMSATS University-Islamabad, Pakistan
Views: 614 · Downloads: 0
Instability in Afghanistan and its Impact on the Security of Pakistan
Security implausibility due to a long history of conflict and the poor governess made a major contribution to making Afghanistan one of the unstable countries in the world, which poses a potential security risk for their surroundings. Instability in Afghanistan has a great impact on the security of Pakistan.Afghanistan's ability to overcome its security problems has a significant impact not only on the security and development of Pakistan but also the entire region. Furthermore, this paper will provide an overview of the importance, suggestions, and security policy of Pakistan. The Obama administration's strategy in Pakistan, particularly-in FATA, in which US drone strikes occurred, has generated insecurity in Pakistan. Therefore, the Imran Khan Government severely opposes the drone strikes and calls it a violation of the sovereignty and honor of the country.Finally, the paper highlights insecurity and instability in Afghanistan has serious regional implications. Consequently,a stable Afghanistan is more likely to make a contribution to regional security and serve as an economic partner
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Afghanistan, Pakistan, Obama, FATA, South Asia
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(1) Manzoor Khan Afridi
Associate Professor, Department of Politics & IR, International Islamic University Islamabad, Pakistan
(2) Rubina Ali
PhD Scholar, Department of Politics & IR, International Islamic University Islamabad, Pakistan
Views: 426 · Downloads: 0
Women in Academic Debates: Analysis of Academic Scholarship on Islam and Women Politics in Pakistan
The primary purpose of parliamentarian is to make legislation to enable the lives of the people as per the requirements of the teachings of Islam (Quran and Sunnah) as described in Objectives Resolution 1949 and the constitution of 1973. In the parliamentary system of Pakistan, women's share as elected representatives is very low. Despite a low share in representation, there are some women's voices that reflect the sentiments of Islamic legislation. There is a wide array of academic scholarship on Islam and women's politics. This scholarship is divided into dogmatic conservative interpretation and liberal and modern interpretation. The dogmatic interpretive knowledge production is not in favour of women's political space but on the other side, modern liberal interpretive knowledge production explains the concept of modernity in Islam and favoured women's political participation. This paper explains the nature of knowledge production on Islam and women politics within the framework of dogmatism and modern interpretive perspective. The modern interpretivism claim that women have equal rights in political representation on the principle of gender equality. Dogmatists claim that women need to live as per prescribed limits set by the sacred injunctions.
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Islam, Knowledge, Women, Politics, Pakistan
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(1) Saiqa Jabeen Shouket
MPhil Scholar, Department of Islamic and Religious Studies, Hazara University, Mansehra, KP, Pakistan.
(2) Muhammad Shakeel Ahmad
Assistant Professor, Centre for Policy Studies, COMSATS University, Islamabad, Pakistan.
Views: 482 · Downloads: 0
Socio-Cultural Barriers of Safe Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Practices in South Punjab Pakistan
Access to safe drinking water and sanitation is the basic right of every human being which directly influence health and social outcomes. Without adopting a project to its cultural settings, the project has very little or no chance for success or to be sustainable. The objective of the present study was to examine the socio-cultural barriers towards safe water, sanitation and hygiene practices in southern Punjab, Pakistan. It was a mixed method of research comprising qualitative and quantitative design. The qualitative data was collected through FGDs, and quantitative data was collected through an interview schedule. It was found that Cultural constraints like satisfaction and reliability towards traditional and myth-based norms are hampering the water, sanitation and hygiene practices. It is necessary to start comprehensive programs of WASH sector development with a special focus on social mobilization for the transformation of social norms along with resource allocation to improve WASH conditions/practices.
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Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH), Socio-Cultural, Cultural Norms, Social Mobilization, Southern Punjab, Pakistan
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(1) Hasan Ghaffoor
PhD Scholar, Department of Sociology, Government College University, Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan.
(2) Muhammad Farooq
Associate Professor, Department of Sociology, Government College University, Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan.
(3) Sadaf Mahmood
Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, Government College University, Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan.
Views: 2,039 · Downloads: 0
Acid Violence in Pakistan: A Study on Women Victims of Acid Attacks in Karachi
Acid violence is a horrible act of gender violence in orthodox societies. A study was conducted to know the reasons for the acid violence against women in Pakistani society. For this purpose, female acid attack survivors were recruited from Karachi city of Sindh province in Pakistan. We found personal conflicts and rejection of marriage proposals as major reasons for acid attacks on women. The majority of the victims are being humiliated due to disfiguring of body parts and forced to live in isolation. This study recommends strong legal framework preparation by government authorities to curb such incidents and rehabilitate acid victims.
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Acid Violence, Gender Violence, Women Victims, Pakistan
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(1) Sadia Ismail
MS Scholar, SMI University, Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan.
(2) Subhash Guriro
Associate Professor, Department of Social Development, SMI University, Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan.
(3) Muhammad Kamil Lakho
Lecturer, Department of Social Development, SMI University, Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan.
Views: 1,007 · Downloads: 0
Begum Zari Sarfaraz: Her Role and Contribution in Pakistan Movement
In this brief article, an attempt has been made to revisit the Pakistan Movement in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, former North-West Frontier Province, which acquired a unique character in the sense that here the job of motivating the women was quite difficult because of the strict cultural values and way of life of women folk. Therefore the job of persuading women to participate in the freedom movement seemed difficult. In such circumstances, Begum Zari Sarfaraz rose up from the folk of Women and continued her effort despite discouraging conditions. In this paper, the role and contribution of Begum Zari Sarfaraz, the Khatoon-e-Sarhad, during the Pakistan Movement has been discussed and evaluated. In the line of this argument, the crucial struggle that she led during the final phase of the partition drama will be explored. As far as the literature on Begum Zari Sarfaraz is concerned, very little has been written on her personality as well as on her contribution to the cause of Pakistan.
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Pakistan Movement, Women Muslim League, Elections, Civil Disobedience Movement, Referendum
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(1) Shaista Gohar
Lecturer, Department of Pakistan Studies, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, KP, Pakistan.
(2) Nelofar Ehsan
Lecturer, Department of Political Science, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, KP, Pakistan.
(3) Ayaz Ali Shah
Lecturer, Department of Political Science, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, KP, Pakistan.
Views: 1,954 · Downloads: 0
