A visiting delegate from Egypt’s prestigious Al-Azhar University said that the extremist elements have nothing to do with Islam. The delegate’s head, Dr. Yusuf Amen, a professor at Al-Azhar University, underscored the need for peace, as advocated by Islam, saying that the world cannot progress without peace. “Those on the wrong path should come back”, … Read more
While journalists have the power to change narratives on conflict and influence public opinion, in Pakistan they lack the required capacity and professional training to develop progressive approaches to analyze and report conflicts. Besides practicing fundamental skills of journalism such as impartiality, accuracy, balance and ethics of investigation, journalists reporting conflicts should also develop skills … Read more
Scholars, experts and representatives of civil society and human rights organizations watched and reviewed some short films, documentaries and songs produced by Pak Institute for Peace Studies in collaboration with Narratives Pvt. (Ltd.) as part of its ongoing program “Creating an environment that supports interfaith harmony, peace and democratic discourse in Pakistan.” Screened in Islamabad … Read more
The recent political transformation in Afghanistan was seen as shaping events in both Central and South Asia, including on regional security, and particularly affecting China, Iran and Russia. The recent signing of the BSA by President Ashraf ghani was viewed as signaling a shift in the security dynamic, with the withdrawal of foreign forces. Read … Read more
Pakistan’s Constitution is a national-level social contract and in the light of Islamic teachings every Pakistani is bound to abide by it. National-level disputes and conflicts, which are shared by all and not linked to certain religious sect or community, should be settled through the majority opinion. A minority cannot be granted the right to … Read more
Muslim jurists’ support for monarchy in times of discord, as an alternative system to Islamic caliphate, was based on their understanding that Islam does not provide a specific framework to run the state affairs. It has been left to Muslims to decide about their system of government with mutual consultation and consensus. Once a social … Read more
Islam has laid down some guiding principles on justice, rights and responsibilities, equality and rule of law, which should become the basis of any political system that undertakes to govern an Islamic state. In that regard democracy appears very close to Islam. These thoughts were expressed by leading religious scholars in a seminar on “Democracy … Read more
Religious scholars and religious-political parties will have to work for improvement in the current political system of Pakistan while staying within the country’s constitutional framework and system of government. Any system of government that is not based on social justice and fairness is opposed to one espoused in Islam. Islam does not support a single … Read more
Robust political will, enhanced operational capacity and depoliticizing of police force, and better coordination between law enforcement and intelligence agencies are imperative to effectively tackle the ongoing unrest and violence in Karachi. These views were expressed by speakers in a seminar on “Tackling violent conflict and extremism in Karachi” organized jointly by Pak Institute for … Read more
The lack of political will and accountability, delay in formulating education policy, insufficient education budget, declining standards and commercialization are the major obstacles in education prosperity in Pakistan. The government, policymakers and politicians should focus the education sector in order to overcome the education emergency in Pakistan. This was the consensus among participants of a … Read more