Pakistonomy

Pakistan’s parliament has historically been one of the weakest institutions in the country, but even by those standards, events that transpired over this past week have set a new low. Masked men entered parliament and took away numerous PTI legislators, who were subsequently arrested by the police. This has caused an uproar across the country, with the PTI leading the charge in terms of talking about the sustained and accelerating decimation of the rule of law and democracy in the country. In this episode, Uzair talks to Salman Akram Raja about what happened in parliament and what comes next. Mr. Raja is Secretary General of the PTI and a senior supreme court lawyer. We also talked about coalition building and how the PTI intends to reach out to other groups who have been protesting against similar violations for years. Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 1:45 What happened in parliament? 8:30 Ways to strengthen parliament 13:50 Situation in the judiciary 20:45 What is the PTI’s overall engagement strategy? 26:10 Gandapur, divisions, and coalition building 31:40 PTI’s outreach to PTM and others

In this episode, Uzair talks to Tabarak Rehman who is attempting to become the first person ever to run 1,400 kilometers across the length of Pakistan to raise awareness around the country’s education crisis. His goal is to raise $1 million for The Citizens Foundation, an incredible non-profit that operates nearly 2,000 schools in Pakistan. Tabarak is a New York-based Turnaround & Restructuring Consultant at AlixPartners, who’s also super passionate about educating Pakistani students. Through his social media, he has guided hundreds of Pakistani students toward higher education in the U.S., even helping secure over a million dollars in student loans for at least 30 of them. His academic journey started from his boarding high school, Cadet College Hasan Abdal after which he went to IBA Karachi for his undergrad and then Northeastern University in Boston, where he earned his Master's degree. He also holds a CFA Charter. You can support Tabarak’s cause here - https://fundraise.tcfglobal.org/fundraiser/384593207740/tabarak-runs-across-pakistan-for-education Follow Tabarak’s run here - https://www.instagram.com/tabarakruns/ Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 3:20 Tabarak’s journey 14:45 Resources for getting an education in the US 20:30 Running 1,400 kilometers 26:30 Training regimen 32:00 How to help 38:10 Reading recommendations Reading recommendations: - David and Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell - The Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason - Built to Last by James C. Collins and Jerry I. Porras

In this episode, Uzair talks to Dr. Ilhan Niaz about where Pakistan stands today and the nature of the status quo ruling the country. We also talked about the mainstreaming of anti-establishment views and what that means for the politics in the country. Finally, we also talked about modernization and the role of the Protestant Reformation in kick-starting this process in Europe, and whether Pakistan has the core ingredients to modernize. Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 1:30 Independence Day 2024 4:15 Where did Pakistan go wrong? 14:50 Assessing the status quo today 21:00 Anti-establishment views in Punjab 29:15 Protestant Reformation and modernity 39:55 Can Pakistan modernize? 51:50 Reading recommendations Reading recommendations - Great State – China and the World by Timothy Brook - Asad Rahim’s essay in Dawn - https://www.dawn.com/news/1852072/the-two-partitions-polemics-purges-and-pakistans-first-opposition-party

In this episode, Uzair talks to Amb. Shamsher Mubin Chowdhury about what led to the collapse of the Hasina regime in Bangladesh and what comes next for the country. We focused on the reasons why younger citizens were angry with the government and reports of violence against Hindus over the last few days. We also discussed whether foreign agencies led to Hasina’s ouster. Amb. Chowdhury is a war hero who took active part in the Bangladesh War of Liberation in 1971. For his bravery and contribution in the battlefield the Government of Bangladesh conferred upon him the gallantry award Bir Bikram. He has also served as a top diplomat for Bangladesh around the world, including as Ambassador of Bangladesh to the United States of America, with concurrent accreditation to Colombia, Brazil and Mexico from 2005 to 2007. Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 2:20 What just happened? 17:40 Claims of foreign involvement 29:20 Secularism in Bangladesh 40:05 What comes next?

Balochistan’s city of Gwadar has been the center of protests for the last few days. Roads and highways leading into the city have been blocked and countless protestors have been arrested. Uzair talks to Dr. Mahvish Ahmad to figure out what is going on in the province and better understand the underlying reasons for the crisis in Balochistan. Dr. Mahvish Ahmad is an Assistant Professor in Human Rights and Politics. Before joining LSE, she was an A.W. Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow at the Centre for Humanities Research, University of the Western Cape. She completed her PhD in Sociology at Cambridge. Earlier, Mahvish was a journalist covering military and insurgent violence in the Pakistan-Afghanistan region, and co-founded the bilingual Urdu/English magazine Tanqeed with Madiha Tahir. She is currently completing a book on state violence in Pakistan’s southern province of Balochistan. Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 2:05 What’s going on in the province? 7:00 Multiple issues driving protests 13:30 Missing persons 19:05 Resource extraction 25:40 Historical drivers 32:55 Baloch protestors v. TLP 37:10 Islamabad politics and Balochistan 42:05 Evolution of Baloch society 51:05 Path forward 57:20 Reading recommendations Reading recommendations: - https://loksujag.com/special-edition/bloch-women-long-march - https://repositories.lib.utexas.edu/items/dee93c5f-6f5e-43a8-bfd7-e79de8d2d35f - https://caravanmagazine.in/reportage/home-front-changing-insurgency-balochistan - https://www.scribd.com/document/554334646/The-Problem-of-Greater-Balochistan-PDFDrive

In this episode, Uzair talks to Zaigham Khan about the ongoing polycrisis in Pakistan and the path forward. We focused on the structural drivers of this conflict, in particular the breaking down of the post-Zia social contract that has sustained Pakistan’s political economy for decades. Zaigham argues that the PTI’s popularity is a symptom of the underlying breakdown of this social contract and that repression is unlikely to yield any sustainable stability in the country. We also discussed why fundamental reforms of the political economy are needed to even sustain the various elite factions ruling the country today. Zaigham Khan is an anthropologist and political analyst. You can follow him on X @zaighamkhan. Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 1:45 What is causing the crisis? 8:50 PTI’s conversion to constitutionalism 18:30 Elite conflict in Pakistan 28:50 Can same page be sustained? 33:45 Why are the elite fighting within? 42:10 Breakdown of the status quo 46:50 Establishment view on repression 56:20 Reading recommendations Reading recommendations - The Alif Laila and other mythological books - Masnavi by Rumi - Political Conflict in Pakistan by Dr. Mohammad Waseem

In this episode, Uzair talks to Faysal Itani about the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. We talked about the current state of play, the strategic goals for both sides, and the role of the United States, Iran, and other powers. Faysal Itani is a Senior Director at the New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy. He is also an adjunct professor of Middle East politics at Georgetown University. Itani was born in and grew up in Beirut, Lebanon, and has lived and worked in several Middle East countries. Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 1:45 Current state of play 21:10 Washington’s appetite for regional conflict 29:10 Role of US politics and elections 33:25 Key risks to watch 37:40 Role of China and Russia 41:40 Reading recommendations Reading recommendations: - Warriors of God by Nicholas Blanford - The Iron Wall by Avi Shlaim - History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides

In this episode, Uzair talks to Zahid Hussain about the latest in Pakistan, where the Sharif government has announced it will seek to ban Imran Khan’s PTI. This is a dangerous move and Zahid helps us understand why this reflects the ruling regime’s weakness. We also talked about internal politics within the Pakistan Army and why this confrontation is headed in a very dangerous direction for Pakistan. Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 1:45 PTI ban reasons 14:05 Surveillance in Pakistan 19:20 Supreme Court v. Establishment 28:30 Internal politics of the army 37:00 What comes next?

In this episode, Uzair talks to Gilles Verniers about the recent French parliamentary election results. With many expecting gridlock in Paris, Gilles helps us understand what the results mean and what comes next for the country. Gilles Verniers is Karl Loewenstein Fellow and Visiting Assistant Professor of Political Science at Amherst College, and Senior Fellow at the Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi. He also holds affiliations with the Centre for Advanced Studies of India at UPenn, and the Centre de Sciences Humaines in New Delhi. His research focuses on Indian electoral and party politics, political representation, women and minorities participation in politics and India’s democratic trajectory. He regularly contributes to various Indian media and was based in Delhi from 2005 to 2023. He graduated from Sciences Po, Paris. You can read his recent pieces on the elections here: - https://m.thewire.in/article/world/france-election-far-right-marine-le-pen-macron - https://thewire.in/world/france-dodges-a-bullet-for-now-but-sinks-in-uncertainty Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 2:05 Understanding the differences in the groups 9:30 The normalization of the far-right 20:40 Lack of coalition culture in France 30:05 Personalization of acrimony 33:01 The left’s agenda and its foreign policy 38:20 Reading recommendations Reading recommendations - Cas Mudde, The Far Right Today (2019) - James Shields (2007), The Extreme Right in France: From Pétain to Le Pen

This episode is about assessing Joe Biden’s foreign policy as it relates to the ongoing conflict in Gaza. While not a whole lot has changed in terms of the substance of US policy towards Palestine and Israel, a lot has indeed changed in terms of the political discourse in Washington. Uzair talked to Matt Duss about these developments and the long-term implications of Biden’s foreign policy choices. We also talked about the prospects for a broad agreement with Saudi Arabia, and the ways in which communities can engage at the grassroots levels to influence foreign policy. Matt Duss is Executive Vice-President at the Center for International Policy. The Center for International Policy is a woman-led, progressive, independent nonprofit center for research, education, and advocacy working to advance a more peaceful, just, and sustainable U.S. approach to foreign policy. Before joining CIP, Duss was a visiting scholar in the American Statecraft Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. From 2017-22, Duss was foreign policy advisor to Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt). Duss’s work has been widely published, including in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Foreign Affairs, The Nation, The American Prospect, and Foreign Policy. Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 2:20 What has changed in Washington? 5:20 Role of AIPAC 8:40 America’s leverage over Israel 12:20 Impact of the presidential debate 18:35 Long-term implications of US choices 22:10 Saudi-Israel normalization 27:10 Key risks on the horizon 30:30 What can we do to change policy? 32:45 Reading recommendations Reading recommendations - The Price of Peace: Money, Democracy, and the Life of John Maynard Keynes by Zachary D. Carter - Miles: The Autobiography by Miles Davis and Quincy Troupe