Current Projects

Deal or no deal?

April 19, 2009 marked a watershed in the Pakistani military establishment's unrealistic view of Islamist militant groups. The then general officer commanding, Major General Ejaz Awan, and his troops had convinced the aging Maulana Sufi Muhammad to denounce suicide bombings at a public rally in the heart of Mingora, the administrative headquarter of Swat valley. Live on private TV channels, and facing thousands of people at the Grassy Ground, Sufi did not condemned violence, but declared Western-style democracy, the Pakistani parliament, the Supreme Court and the state un-Islamic, and thus turned the tables on the army. It was an utter shock to the military establishment which had hoped to take the sting out of Mullah Fazlullah's terror campaign by having his father-in-law speak against violence by Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in the valley. All this happened in the context of the second peace deal in the area on February 19, 2009, which had taken place with mutual agreement between the Awami National Party and the General Headquarters, as yet another attempt to wrest Swat back from the TTP. But between February 19 and April 19, the TTP had ambushed or robbed dozens of military convoys, snatched government vehicles, practically run or occupied government offices, and sat in courts. The TTP had also ruthlessly executed three Pakistan Army commandos caught from the mountains between Swat and Buner. This prompted a meeting at the GHQ on April 25, wherein the alarmed top brass decided to go for the kill. "When you raise a puppy, it becomes a member of the family, but when it develops rabies, it becomes an enemy, and that is the time to cull it," Gen Awan had remarked when reminded of the unholy nexus that had existed between some Taliban factions and the security apparatus. The army seemed to have learned its first lesson the hard way. The eventual May 7 invasion of TTP strongholds in the Swat valley practically ended the peace deal and gradually took Swat to where...

Pakistan Elections 2013: A Review

The May 11 general elections in Pakistan brought to an end weeks of speculation as to whether this will happen at all. This exercises culminated in a massive victory for ex-premier Nawaz Sharif ¿s Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), PML-N , - a center right party both at the centre ( 186 seats) and his stronghold the most populist Punjab province (with two-thirds majority). The Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) - a center left party, suffered serious setbacks and managed only about 39 seats in the 342-strong lower house - the National Assembly- , followed by Pakistan Tehrik e Insaf (PTI) - a relatively new centrist Party lead by Imran Khan. Its 35 seats in the National Assembly and the simple majority in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa marked a big shift in Pakistan political landscape and underscored the craving for change in the status quo. With this mandate, one trend seemed obvious that the people of Pakistan, with the exception of Mutthadia Qaumi Movement- MQM (a party representing the immigrants, or the Mohajirs, in Karachi, who came from India after partition in 1947), rejected all other parties on grounds of their five year performance. One of the major concerns after the elections was the situation and result in conflict riddled province of Balochistan. With less than ten percent voter turnout, the polls were nothing less than a disappointment in the region. The only hope for the province came with the participation of the Balochistan National Party, lead by Sardar Akhtar Mengal - a Baloch nationalist leader. Yet after the elections, Mengal was not happy with the results as he accused the security establishment for using all resources to manipulate results against him and his party. But largely, most parties agreed on the outcome and are desperately trying to form the government in the country area-wise largest province. Now, as Nawaz Sharif is set to take charge at the centre for a third time, and Khan party has already formed the government in the northwestern province,...

State Religion and Democracy:

Turk Scholars at Peshawar University Peshawar:Distinguished scholars from Turkey, Dr Ali Murat YEL, Head of the Department of Sociology, Faith University and Dr. Nuri TINAZ, Associate Professor Marmara University, Istanbul at the University for Peshawar on May 28th, 2013. Both scholars interacted with almost 200 students and teachers on thetheme 'State Religion and Democracy. The lecture series is part of CRSS counter-radicalization programme with the support of Heinrich Boell Stiftung, Germany and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Turkey.

Separation of Religion from Politics: CRSS Discussion Forum with Turkish Scholars

Islamabad, (May 27, 2013): Discussion Forum organized at the Center on the theme 'Separation of Religion from Politics.' Distinguished scholars from Turkey, Dr Ali Murat YEL, Head of the Department of Sociology, Faith University and Dr. Nuri TINAZ, Associate Professor Marmara University, Istanbul, led the discussion on the subject with intellectuals and media representatives including Dr.Moeed Peerzada,Farrukh Pittafi, Yasir Abbas, Adnan Aurangzeb.

State, Religion and Democracy

Two distinguished scholars from Turkey, Dr. Nuri TINAZ, Associate Professor Marmara University, Istanbul and Dr. Ali Murat YEL, Head of the Department of Sociology, Fatih University on Monday, May 27th spoke at the National Defence University on 'State, Religion and Democracy,' marking the launch of a series of lectures that the Center for Research and Security Studies– (CRSS) has initiated as part of its counter-radicalization advocacy. Both professors gave a comprehensive overview of the historical perspective on Turkey ongoing evolution from the Republican-dominated constitutional framework to the socio-political transformation that the country has been undergoing since 1983. Supported by the Heinrich Boell Stiftung, Germany and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Turkey, the dialogue aims to trigger a debate inside Pakistan about the need to keep view politics and governance from a purely universal democratic and human rights perspective, rather than using religion as the soul guiding principle. Under this programme, CRSS plans to invite academicians, intellectuals and political representatives also from Indonesia and Malaysia to Pakistan for presentations on their respective systems on how their governments ensure social peace and sectarian/religious harmony. Dr. Ali Murat explained to the students and teachers of the NDU that Turkey is not evolving into a theocratic state. Nor is it transforming into a typical Anglo-Saxon secular democracy because Islam is part of life but not part of the state business in Turkey. It is borne by several surveys according to which less than seven percent of its population supports the shariat-based political system. He also highlighted the fact that most Turks agree the sharia should not be the foundation for constitution. Most people there agree that sin is a matter between God and individual while punishment for violation of the law is the duty of the state. Using the example of hijab, Ali Murat said that until 2007 head cover...

CRSS welcomes Richard Barrett as a Senior Research Fellow

The Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) welcomes Richard Barrett as a Senior Research Fellow and Strategic Consultant (based in New York). Mr. Barrett will advise CRSS on counter-terrorism, and CVE-related matters. Richard Barrett holds a Masters degree from Oxford University. Since April 2013 he has been a Senior Vice President at the Soufan Group: A consultancy advising Governments and private sector clients on security and political risk. From March 2004 to December 2012 he worked at the United Nations (UN) in New York and before that with the British Government. Mr Barrett has served in Canada, Jordan, Turkey, and at the United Kingdom Mission to the United Nations in New York. Moreover, Mr. Barrett possesses invaluable experience in CVE and counter-terrorism. He has appeared frequently on television and radio and is the author of several book chapters, articles and commentaries including op-eds for The Guardian, The New York Times, The Financial Times and The International Herald Tribune.

Analysis of May 11, 2013 General Elections: Pakistan’s RIGHT Swing or Vote for Reform?

On May 11, Pakistan spoke again. This time it is predominantly for centrist or right of the centre and religio-political parties. Statistics is mind boggling and explains how the unprecedented turnout (over 60 per cent) translated in more than 50 percent of the vote going to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif Pakistan Muslim League - PML-N - (1.40 million ), giving him more than two-thirds majority in the most populous Punjab province, and near absolute majority in the centre. Former cricket star Imran Khan Pakistan Tehrike-e-Insaf (PTI ) emerged as the virtual second force with slightly over 8 million votes), edging out the Pakistan Peoples– Party (PPP) -once dubbed as the only national party - which could muster 6.5 million votes ´ its worst performance in three decades. Interestingly, two factions of the Islamist, pro-Taliban groups - Jamiat Uleme-e-Islam - JUI-F received 1.5 million votes, while Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) ´ once a coalition partner of JUI-F, could attract only about 896,718 voters across Pakistan, the largest numbers falling in its favour in the northwestern regions. The ethno-political Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) ´ representing Urdu speaking immigrants from India - managed about 2.36 million votes, mostly in Karachi and Hyderabad, the second largest city of the southern Sindh. Given a 5-10 percent margin of error (largely because of incomplete or contested results of some constituencies) centrist and right-wing parties appear to have bagged roughly 25 million of the 86 million registered voters. If counted together with most of the vote cast in favour of independents, in Pakistan political capital of Punjab, in particular, the percentage of such vote may jump to well over 70 percent. In terms of seats, too, the parties have claimed more than 75 per cent seats in the 272 National Assembly. Does this imply Pakistan is slipping rightwards? Or is it simply a vote reflecting the craving for change in status quo? Certain indicators probably speak for...

Analysis of May 11, 2013 General Elections: Pakistan's RIGHT Swing or Vote for Reform?

On May 11, Pakistan spoke again. This time it is predominantly for centrist or right of the centre and religio-political parties. Statistics is mind boggling and explains how the unprecedented turnout (over 60 per cent) translated in more than 50 percent of the vote going to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif Pakistan Muslim League - PML-N - (1.40 million ), giving him more than two-thirds majority in the most populous Punjab province, and near absolute majority in the centre. Former cricket star Imran Khan Pakistan Tehrike-e-Insaf (PTI ) emerged as the virtual second force with slightly over 8 million votes), edging out the Pakistan Peoples– Party (PPP) -once dubbed as the only national party - which could muster 6.5 million votes ´ its worst performance in three decades. Interestingly, two factions of the Islamist, pro-Taliban groups - Jamiat Uleme-e-Islam - JUI-F received 1.5 million votes, while Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) ´ once a coalition partner of JUI-F, could attract only about 896,718 voters across Pakistan, the largest numbers falling in its favour in the northwestern regions. The ethno-political Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) ´ representing Urdu speaking immigrants from India - managed about 2.36 million votes, mostly in Karachi and Hyderabad, the second largest city of the southern Sindh. Given a 5-10 percent margin of error (largely because of incomplete or contested results of some constituencies) centrist and right-wing parties appear to have bagged roughly 25 million of the 86 million registered voters. If counted together with most of the vote cast in favour of independents, in Pakistan political capital of Punjab, in particular, the percentage of such vote may jump to well over 70 percent. In terms of seats, too, the parties have claimed more than 75 per cent seats in the 272 National Assembly. Does this imply Pakistan is slipping rightwards? Or is it simply a vote reflecting the craving for change in status quo? Certain indicators probably speak for...

Analysis of May 11, 2013 General Elections: Pakistan's RIGHT Swing or Vote for Reform?

On May 11, Pakistan spoke again. This time it is predominantly for centrist or right of the centre and religio-political parties. Statistics is mind boggling and explains how the unprecedented turnout (over 60 per cent) translated in more than 50 percent of the vote going to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif Pakistan Muslim League - PML-N - (1.40 million ), giving him more than two-thirds majority in the most populous Punjab province, and near absolute majority in the centre. Former cricket star Imran Khan Pakistan Tehrike-e-Insaf (PTI ) emerged as the virtual second force with slightly over 8 million votes), edging out the Pakistan Peoples– Party (PPP) -once dubbed as the only national party - which could muster 6.5 million votes ´ its worst performance in three decades. Interestingly, two factions of the Islamist, pro-Taliban groups - Jamiat Uleme-e-Islam - JUI-F received 1.5 million votes, while Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) ´ once a coalition partner of JUI-F, could attract only about 896,718 voters across Pakistan, the largest numbers falling in its favour in the northwestern regions. The ethno-political Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) ´ representing Urdu speaking immigrants from India - managed about 2.36 million votes, mostly in Karachi and Hyderabad, the second largest city of the southern Sindh. Given a 5-10 percent margin of error (largely because of incomplete or contested results of some constituencies) centrist and right-wing parties appear to have bagged roughly 25 million of the 86 million registered voters. If counted together with most of the vote cast in favour of independents, in Pakistan political capital of Punjab, in particular, the percentage of such vote may jump to well over 70 percent. In terms of seats, too, the parties have claimed more than 75 per cent seats in the 272 National Assembly. Does this imply Pakistan is slipping rightwards? Or is it simply a vote reflecting the craving for change in status quo? Certain indicators probably speak for...