Reading Guide
The South Asian Idea offers a US$100 prize: See A Modern Fable
The South Asian Idea is serializing an unpublished novel about religious fundamentalism in twice-weekly installments beginning June 14, 2008.
Latest entry: July 22, 2008
About the Novel - A Gash in the World
Chapter 1 - An Architecture for India
Chapter 2 - An Interlocked World
Chapter 3 - Inventing the Future
Chapter 4 - A New Form of Life
Chapter 5 - The Idea of the Postmodern
The South Asian Idea
· The Most Recent Posts: Democracy in India – 6
· The Most Popular Post: Hindu-Muslim or Muslim-Hindu?
· About the Weblog: The South Asian Idea
· Chronological List of Posts: List of Posts
· Thematic Posts
Pakistan – After the Emergency
Helping Pakistan, Cricket in the Jungle, Between the Idea and the Reality falls the Shadow, A Middle Class ‘Revolution’, Time for Apologies, Cricket and Politics, Elections: Pakistan Style, Reflections on a Very Large Cabinet, Straws in the Wind, Getting to True Democracy, A Modern Fable
The Power of the Idea and the Poverty of the Imagination, Ah, New York Times…, There We Go Again…, The Cultivation of Democratic Governance, Idée Fixe, The Alternative to Unadulterated Democracy is not Dictatorship, Second-Best Institutions, The Art of Democracy, Democracy – A Historical Perspective
The Nature of Politics
The Politics of Identity, The Politics of Identity in Pakistan, Is There an Irrational Voter?, On Fundamentalism, More on Fundamentalism - 1, Hindu-Muslim or Muslim-Hindu?, The Politics of God
Lessons in Governance – the Asian Experience
Democracy in India - 1, The Dilemma of Democracy in Pakistan, Democracy in Sri Lanka, Democracy in Malaysia and the Importance of the Second-Best, Governance in Colonial Hong Kong – Lessons from Experience, Democracy in Japan – Electoral Rules Matter, And then there is China…, Democracy in India – 2, Democracy in India – 3, Democracy in India – 4, Democracy in India – 5, Building Democracy in Iraq, U.S. and South Asia…, Democracy in India – 6
Political Leadership
Leadership, It’s the Leadership, Stupid
Dynastic Succession
Dynasty and the Price of Politics: Do We Get the Leaders We Deserve?, The Degeneration of Politics, More on Dynasties and Modernity, Dynastic Succession: What is the difference between India and France?, Dynastic Succession and the Culture of South Asian Politics
Modernity in South Asia
How Modern is Modern?, More on Dynasties and Modernity, “Modern” and “Stupid”, Monarchy, Religion, Hierarchy and Modernity, Hierarchy, Dependence, Equality and Democracy, Individualism, Social Contract, Governance and Modernity, Equality, Individual Rights, Modernity and Democracy, Is There Such a Thing as a Modern South Asian?, More on the Modern South Asian - 1, The Middle Class Myth in India, More on the Modern South Asian – 2
Education
Milton and Ghalib, Ghalib Says – 1
May 22, 2008 at 9:14 am
It is the dialima of our country that we dont have sincere leaders to run the country in a smoother way. I wish we could make our future generation different from us and could be a true Pakistani in accordance with the vision of our Quaid-i-Azam,
M.Adeel Qureshi,
M.A. History,
M.a. International Relations,
M/Phil/PhD in monumental Archaeology (in process)
Lecturer,
University of Karachi
Karachi
0322-2539606
June 2, 2008 at 1:22 pm
Dear Dr.Samia,
I congratulate you for writing a very nice article entitled “The art of Democracy” which truly reflects that you are a very clear minded, and have a balnce approach about the problems which are currently posing problem for the integrity of Pakistan and its inhabitents. I totally agree with you that there is no harm for the exhibition of nude art in pakistan. Art is art, and it cannot be classified purely on the basis of nudity in it. People who do not like to see it may not see it, and who like to see it let them to see it. You are a great visionary, and a liberal minded person. Pl. keep up writing such things boldly, we like it. thanks.
June 29, 2008 at 5:26 am
Dear Dr. Altaf:
I wholeheartedly agree with your opinions expressed in today’s “Transformations and Trajectories” appearing in the June 29th DAWN Opinion section. It appears that in India, they are turning the American national motto “E Pluirbus Unum” on its head: Out of One, Many. There is a dearth of strong, transcendant leaders like Nehru and Gandhi (Mahatma and Indira); instead India has too many moral midgets guided by their selfish, communal interests. (Manmohan Singh has the right qualifications and temperament, but is weak.) Look at the cesspool from which many MPs come from - uneducated and unelightened goons and criminals.
Perhaps the communalization started with Mrs. Gandhi with her divisive policies that led to Sikh and Kashmiri separatist movements. Or perhaps it started with the Partition and its politics of division, rather than unity.
Best regards.
June 29, 2008 at 7:28 am
For Samia Altaf
ref yr piece today..on this subject: India-Pakistan
I suggest that about the only sane solution to this problem as also other problems in the neighbourhood..is for ALL these S. Asian countries to work as quickly as possible towards a Union of Independent States similar to the European Union of today..
An absoutely essential condition is, of course, that ALL Member States should be serious democracies..Pakistan appears to be finally making a start in that direction..I suggest that Pakistani leaders concentrate on making that a success..specifically towards that goal..Instead of continuing to make “poltical” short-term- effect statements which will keep the temperature adverse and high in India, putting backs up..making that goal postponable or even rejectable by India..Thereafter, hopefully, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka will also be motivated, seeing the initial success, and work towards joining..Later, hopefully, perhaps even Afganistan and even Iran.
A.Rajagopalan
July 1, 2008 at 3:39 pm
Transformations & Trajectories by Dr Altaf
Dr Altaf, Thank you for writing this and making us realize
that our governments have utterly failed us in realizing the genuinely secular & liberal democracies that both the countries’ founding fathers visualized. I hope people like L K Advani in India read your analysis. I have no hope that secularism will triumph or ever thrive in our countries unless we invent latter day Mustapha Kemal Ataturk(s). regards, P. Harimohan