LUMS Review

LUMS National Outreach Programme

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:53:17 -0500

LUMS recently released a newsletter on their National Outreach Programme (NOP). It gives a nice overview of the motivation, current progress, and future ambitions of the NOP initiative. LUMS is actively seeking funding support for this programme. You can view the newsletter as a PDF file here:

NOP Newsletter 2009

If you wish to make any donations, you can find a pledge form at the end of the newsletter.

NYC Dinner with Syed Babar Ali

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 12:10:47 -0500

Syed Babar Ali missed the reunion with the North America alumni last June due to an unavoidable clash of meetings. To make up for his lapse, he is coming again! Alumni, their spouse and friends are also welcome (everybody pays for self and accompanying members).

What? Dinner with Syed Babar Ali
When? Saturday, October 10, 2009
Time? 6:00pm - 8:30pm
City? New York, NY
Location? Ali Baba's Terrace, 862 Second Avenue - (46th and 2nd)
Why? Because SBA rocks.

Email address for RSVP:

LUMS Alumni Newsletter 2009

Sun, 20 Sep 2009 17:16:52 -0500

To keep alumni informed about the developments at LUMS as well as alumni news/achievements, the alumni department has developed a midyear newsletter. The first edition of this newsletter is embedded at the end of this post. Alternatively, a PDF version is also available:

LUMS Alumni Newsletter 2009

Refugees from Swat and Burner

Sun, 07 Jun 2009 02:13:16 -0500

Some quick observations made by Pervez Hoodbhoy after a relief trip to areas around Mardan for refugees from Swat, Buner, and Dir:

1. There are several tent cities along the Islamabad-Swabi-Mardan stretch. It is said that about 2 million people have been displaced. We spent some time in one of them (Sheikh Yasin Camp) but decided against depositing our precious supplies there. Every NGO in the world, Islamic and secular, seems to be in the camps. Yes, this is a real struggle for hearts and minds that will determine the future direction of the war -- and everyone knows it. A strong army presence in this particular camp helps assure a moderately fair distribution mechanism, maintain law and order, and deal with Taliban elements who may have infiltrated the refugees. I had a chat with tough machine gun-toting junior officers who suggested that we go to places that have received no aid rather than in their camp. Good advice.

(Image courtesy: Khuban Omer Khan)

On Why the US Foreign Policy Will Fail in Pakistan

Thu, 07 May 2009 16:20:56 -0500

By Ali Farid Khwaja

Pakistan seems to have occupied a central space in the policy debate and foreign policy agenda of President Obama. Besides getting a lot of attention from the administration, lawmakers and think tanks, the country has also been committed substantial foreign aid package by the US Government. President Obama announced a total aid package of US $10bn to support development work and military operation by the Pakistan army. The aim of this multi-faceted aid and support package is to garner Pakistan's military support in dealing with the situation in Afghanistan, fighting the insurgent radical groups inside Pakistan and to control the threat of religious radicalization inside Pakistan. However I think that cooperation and collaboration between US and Pakistan will remain at a bottleneck until the conspiracy theories and perceptions of the US Af-Pak agenda which exist inside Pakistan are alleviated. I believe the biggest threat to US Pakistan relationship is the trust deficit which exists between the two countries, along with irresponsible media frenzy and aggressive posturing from US administration on the risks, threats and state institutions in Pakistan.

Varsity Heroes: Time for Major Ownage

Fri, 24 Apr 2009 09:42:20 -0500

Some LUMS and GIKI alumni have launched a new social gaming network - Varsity Heroes. The idea seems quite interesting and within a few days of launch they have attracted hundreds of users. In their own words, "Varsity Heroes is a more fun way of social networking where you get to diss other networks, take up guns against them and remind them of their grannies. All that in 2 minutes a day". Check out Varsity Heroes here.

Continue reading this post to read a comic about their story. They have a facebook page as well.

Misquoting a Book in the Name of Fiction

Sat, 18 Apr 2009 18:21:26 -0500

by Khuban Omer Khan

Nadeem Aslam's latest book The Wasted Vigil is set in Afghanistan where people of different ideologies and religion cross paths, while searching for something or someone .When I read Aslam's book I was taken aback by numerous misquotes attributed to the Quran. To find out more about Aslam, his book and why he chose to defame the Quran, especially in the current climate, I attended a reading of his novel at LUMS. I asked him, "Mr. Aslam, your fictional book is based in reality, it's not make believe right? And in it you have described the mindset of a jihadi. Now, an American journalist who has written a review of your book in the New York Times has said that 'those unfamiliar with Islam may misconstrue your characters' thoughts as being consistent with the faith'. How would you respond to this statement? Also, do you have any obligation to your reader to present an informed fictional account or can you write anything at all without any obligation to the audience of the message's veracity?"

Discomfort was writ large on the faces of much of the uber-liberal audience. It was as if I had attacked the man simply by asking him why he chose to misquote the Holy Book. While Aslam struggled to answer, he was politely interrupted by the moderator, who did not want a discussion on religion (even though she had earlier commented on how the book revolves around religion) and an audience member who said, "well this is how jihadis think, it's time we accepted that." After that I was silenced.

The Taliban Cancer

Fri, 17 Apr 2009 18:34:23 -0500

by Muneeb Ali

The recent girl flogging video, public beheadings in Swat, regular suicide attacks, and scary NY Times articles have one thing in common. They all scream out one clear message; the Taliban movement is alive again. This time in Pakistan. The war against the Taliban will not, and cannot, be won on the battlefield alone.

If the Taliban gain strength and mobilize millions instead of thousands of followers, this clash can turn into a genocide. The Taliban will use any such genocide to further shake the status quo. The 1971 Bangladesh atrocities teach us that you cannot use bullets and bombs to stop the will of a people. It only fuels their anger and strengthens their cause.

Towards Theocracy?

Thu, 09 Apr 2009 16:19:40 -0500

by Pervez Hoodbhoy

For 20 years or more, a few of us in Pakistan have been desperately sending out SOS messages, warning of terrible times to come. Nevertheless, none anticipated how quickly and accurately our dire predictions would come true. It is a small matter that the flames of terrorism set Mumbai on fire and, more recently, destroyed Pakistan's cricketing future. A much more important and brutal fight lies ahead as Pakistan, a nation of 175 million, struggles for its very survival. The implications for the future of South Asia are enormous.

Today a full-scale war is being fought in FATA (Federally Administered Tribal Areas), Swat and other "wild" areas of Pakistan, with thousands dying and hundreds of thousands of IDPs (internally displaced people) streaming into cities and towns. In February 2009, with the writ of the Pakistani state in tatters, the government gave in to the demand of the TTP (Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, the Pakistani Taliban Movement) to implement the Islamic Sharia in Malakand, a region of FATA. It also announced the suspension of a military offensive in Swat, which has been almost totally taken over by the TTP. But the respite that it brought was short-lived and started breaking down only hours later.

Inching Closer to a Failed State

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 02:34:37 -0500

by Muneeb Ali

The cricket team of Sri Lanka was attacked in Lahore, Pakistan today. They received a Taliban-style welcome with AK-47 bullets, rockets, and grenades. While terrorists are carrying out attacks in broad daylight in the heart of Pakistan - literally, those responsible for running this country are fighting over scraps of political power.

The threats to Pakistan are many. The newly elected democratic government is engaged in an internal power struggle and is perceived as doing an awful job at running the country. Al-Qaida and Taliban are strengthening their roots in the north and northwest. They recently forced the Pakistani government into accepting fundamental Islamic law in the once-beautiful-tourist-attraction of Swat. After the Mumbai attacks, there is a looming threat of yet-another-war with India. US drones bomb Pakistani soil on a regular basis, fueling anti-US and pro-Taliban sentiments. To top this all off, Pakistan's strongest institution, the army, is at record unpopularity levels - thanks both to Musharraf and to the US-lead war on terror that the Pakistani army is carrying out.

World Bank Help For Pakistan's Education - A Poisoned Chalice?

Sun, 01 Mar 2009 22:14:03 -0500

by Pervez Hoodbhoy

Rumor has it that the World Bank is on its way back to Pakistan with a bagful of loans, together with plans for how we must spend the money. A major focus of the Bank's efforts will be higher education reform. No one doubts the desperate need for reform of Pakistan's education sector, or the need for assistance, especially since we have shown little capacity to fund or plan our education ourselves. But recent experience suggests the Bank's help may be a poisoned chalice. If it is to be otherwise, the Bank will have to avoid local snake charmers and be more skeptical of what bureaucrats and ministers claim.

DreamFly: Crawl Before You Can Walk

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 21:57:28 -0500

DreamFly is giving poor kids in Pakistan, living on less than 50 cents a day, a chance of going to school. These children have no access to education and yet they dare to dream of becoming doctors, engineers, and entrepreneurs.

Recently, DreamFly organized a successful fund raiser at the Harvard Business School. And also met their goal of raising $100,000 for the first DreamFly school. Help this venture in any way you can. More information about DreamFly is here. This initiative has LUMS roots.

How Greed Ruins Academia

Fri, 20 Feb 2009 00:47:46 -0500

by Pervez Hoodbhoy

Image via Wikipedia

Pakistan's university system is breaking down, perhaps irreparably so. Thanks to the Higher Education Commission's grand plans for a massive change, a tidal wave of money hit our public universities during the Musharraf years. Although difficult financial times finally stemmed the flood, this enormous cash infusion served to amplify problems rather than improve teaching and research quality.

Naked greed is now destroying the moral fibre of academia. Professors across the country are clamoring to lift even minimal requirements that could assure quality education. This is happening in two critical ways. First, to benefit from 3-fold increases in salaries for tenure-track positions, professors are speedily removing all barriers for their promotions. Second, they want to be able to take on more PhD students, whether these students have the requisite academic capacity or not. Having more students translates into proportionately more money in each professor's pocket.

Alumni Magazine 2008

Fri, 13 Feb 2009 01:34:38 -0500

LUMS published their Alumni Magazine for 2008 in December. This year the central theme was the alumni perspective of the workplace. The magazine is embedded at the end of this post. Alternatively, a PDF version is also available:

LUMS Alumni Magazine 2008

With the growing size of the alumni body, the class notes are fast becoming a big dead tree on paper. Maybe they need to re-invent that section.

LUMS Gradute Studies Talk

Tue, 27 Jan 2009 23:17:13 -0500

Last January, LUMS Career Development Office hosted a session on graduate studies. They invited a few alumni to share their experience with current students. The session covered topics like admissions, funding, and PhD vs. Masters debate. Below are the slides used at the LUMS graduate session:

Graduate Studies Talk

There is also a similar talk given at UC Berkeley by Jacob Scott. A copy of Jacob's slides are here.

Students may find these two talks useful.