The second day of the 8th edition of Afkar-e-Taaza ThinkFest saw a higher footfall from enthusiastic crowds who visited the Alhamra Halls located on the historic Mall Road in the buzzing provincial capital.
All sessions conducted on the last day of this literary festival saw maximum participation from people belonging to different age brackets, which infused the Q&A session with energy and fresh perspective on different topics that came under discussion in different sessions.
The day opened with the session titled “Can Muslims be Enlightened” that featured Ayesha Jalal (Tufts University, USA) and Raza Rumi (Naya Daur Media). The two speakers touched upon the important topic of the historical and ideological challenges surrounding Muslim identity, intellectual traditions and enlightenment.
Ayesha Jalal pointed out that the socially accepted meaning of faith in the Indian subcontinent was criminally altered by the British colonialists, thus turning it into a distinct identification factor. She appreciated the role of Sir Syed Ahmed Khan in identifying the colonial tactics of divide and rule which allowed him to challenge the historical colonial narrative with the progressive Aligarh Movement. She also touched upon the influence of Allama Iqbal in shaping the mindset of his people.
Jalal regretted that exceptional women were mostly excluded from Muslim history related to enlightenment.
During his talk, Raza Rumi discussed the many facets of Roshan Khayali (enlightenment) to challenge the orthodox ideology of faith and how secularism has been misrepresented as ladeeniyat (faithlessness) in Urdu literature which limited the scope of discussions on enlightenment in modern Muslim societies.
At the end of the session the speakers and participants agreed upon the importance of reviving Islamic intellectual traditions such as Ijtehad (independent reasoning). They were unanimous in their call to adopt enlightened thinking among Muslims to help them navigate the challenges of modern times while remaining firmly rooted in Islamic intellectual and spiritual traditions.
Another session titled “World Builders: Technology and the New Geopolitics” featured Bruno Macaes, former Portuguese minister and author of a book with the same title as this session, along with prominent journalist Khurram Hussain.
Throwing light on his book and elaborating on the term ‘World Builders’, Bruno explained that rapid advancements in technology has enabled humans to create and control artificial worlds, thus marking a significant shift in geopolitics. He said that moving forward from the traditional concept of controlling the physical world and shifting towards dominating artificial realms that are shaped by ever advancing technology.
Khurram and Bruno also mentioned the threat posed by China to existing world order by adopting cutting-edge technology without adopting Western values. He also addressed the misconception that globalisation equated to Westernisation by giving the example of McDonalds as a physical commodity rather than symbolising cultural dominance.
Khurram also posed the critical question to Bruno whether a rising power like China would be engaged in direct conflict by the US. Bruno downplayed the possibility of direct war by providing an alternate theory that a new superior system could replace existing systems without a war.
Session 2 of the day revolved around the topic ‘Is the Two-State Solution the Real Problem in the Middle East?’
The topic was discussed among Mahmood Mamdani (Columbia University) and Ejaz Haider (journalist) who explored the historical, political and ideological complexities of the Israel-Palestine conflict. Apart from discussing the two-state formula, the topic also focused on colonial and civil wars in the Middle East, Zionism and US-Israel relations.
The session concluded with both participants agreeing that the rigid two-state formula should be discarded and instead focus should be shifted towards addressing the deeply rooted historical and ideological questions that gave rise to the conflict in the first place.
The topic “Media in Polarised Times” attracted media students and professionals in good numbers. The panel discussed the changing role of media in the present chaotic times from a true and unbiased reflection of society and history to a biased and controlled propaganda tool used by world governments against their own citizens to push certain agendas and propaganda per every government’s perception. The participants agreed that media was no longer promoting facts but rather presenting the public with distorted or manipulated information.
A cultural session titled “Correcting Punjab’s Revisionist History” was also held to highlight the history of Punjab’s culture and language. The main speakers were Jugnu Mohsin (journalist) and Mushtaq Soofi (writer and poet).
The speakers shared the view that Punjab is unjustly criticised and wrongly painted as dominating the country’s resources and institutions, especially the military.
Soofi said that the image of Punjabis as passive people was not entirely true because they have also fought fiercely against foreign invaders, notably Alexander the Great.
The rich history of the region as a cradle of civilisation (Mohenjo-Daro) and the equally rich language of this region were highlighted by both the speakers in ample detail.
Session 4 for the day was about “AI, Fake News, and the Fight for Digital Rights” which brought together former Portuguese minister Bruno Macaes, Nighat Daad from the Digital Rights Foundation and Sadaf Khan from Media Matters for Democracy.
The main points of discussion were the transformative but often controversial impact of AI on information, governance, and digital rights. The panel highlighted the concerns arising from disinformation, ethical AI, and the geopolitical power dynamics that are shaping policies related to AI, particularly in the global south.
While approaching the topic from different angles, the participants concluded the session by emphasising the urgent need for responsible and ethical AI governance.
Moreover, audiences also enjoyed a session on “Building the Green Workforce: Skills for a Sustainable World/Pakistan”.
The distinguished panel for the talk included Linda Poppe from Survival International, Uzma Yousaf from Cambridge International, Khadim’s Amer from Punjab Group of Colleges, Ahmed Hakeem Khan from Punjab Skills Development Authority, and Abrar Chaudhry from Oxford University. The discussion revolves around preparing a green workforce and the idea of a shared future that promotes sustainability. The role of technology, computer science and AI in equipping individuals with the tools to usher a sustainable future were discussed at length.
“Chequered Past, Uncertain Future: A History of Pakistan” was among some of the most popular sessions of the day and was carried forward by Tahir Kamran (academic and author), Dora Gunsberger, and Marcus.
Replying to a query posed about the political systems introduced by the founding father of Pakistan, Tahir Kamran said that Jinnah was not democratic as is generally believed. He promoted a system where the prime minister was far inferior to the governor-general, with the latter exercising more power and influence than the former.
Sharing the inspiration for one of his books , Tahir Kamran said that the book was born out of a simple question: Is Pakistan an adequately imagined state? He said that with the creation of Pakistan a new kind of man (public) was created by the imperialists who was greatly influenced by imperial ideals. He said this was one reason why Pakistan never had a pure and meaningful anti-colonial movement, an idea that has recently gained currency in the country.
Similarly, Marcus said that the colonialists through colonialism dictated to Indians what it really meant to be an Indian. He said it was difficult to look at colonialism as a progressive and developing force, a point of view shared by Tahir Kamran as well.
While shattering the myth that British colonialists invested in infrastructure and cities, Tahir Kamran said that the colonising power really despised urban spaces since they were hard to govern due to intertwining social, political and ideological complexities.
Commenting on dynastic politics, Tahir Kamran termed this practice as a real pain for a modern state which almost always leads to the disruption of democratic systems and ideals.
Meanwhile, Dora highlighted her work concerned with religious movements and its influence on the social fabric of Pakistan, where she argued that these movements also led to fragmentation within the society. She said that polarisation was not always promoted by the state, but a great influencer in this connection were social movements of different shades.
Tahir Kamran also stressed that the founding fathers of Pakistan had no idea or future vision on how to run the country. He said that this is not a free country since we have failed to de-colonise culture and minds from the influence of brown goras. According to him, the struggle for real freedom was still ongoing.
Another popular session titled “Why is Pakistan Always in a Political Crisis” which was moderated by Mohammad Malick (journalist) and former-PM Shahid Khaqan Abbasi.
Abbasi said that any country that lacks the rule of law will never make progress because the economy cannot grow in an unstable environment.
He stressed that if the existence of a constitution for modern nation states means that it cannot be suspended or abused under any circumstances and had to be respected at all times by all stakeholders to ensure the survival of the social order.
Abbasi also criticised political forces/personalities who rejected the importance of the parliament and the Senate. He opined that the condition of the country would only improve if political parties used these two houses of democracy to fight for their rights. He also said that power struggle between institutions always proved toxic and counterproductive.
Abbas said that after spending more than three decades in politics, he has yet to see any real change in the country. He opined that the military establishment has to decide now whether to continue overreaching beyond the defined constitutional limits imposed on all state institutions. He concluded by saying that it’s either this, or the civilian setup should make a unified decision to gift all political seats to the military.
Nguồn bài viết : da88.com
.jpg)
