Raja M A Saleem

Increasing evidence of temperature variations from different regions of the world has made climate change a scientific fact. It is also clear that developing countries will be disproportionally affected by this change and, therefore, it is necessary for them to adopt policies and devise rules and regulations to make implications of climate change less painful for their people. This study looks at the major policies, rules and regulations relating to the project planning and approval process in Pakistan and accesses whether climate change considerations have been incorporated in these guidelines. A survey has also been used to ascertain the importance of climate change considerations in the work of public sector officials dealing with project planning and approval process.

Recent democratization in the Muslim-majority countries (MMCs) has led to a surge in interest in the Islamist (or Islamic)
parties. Research on these parties has, however, been plagued by the lack of agreement on identifying these parties. Analysis
of various ways used to identify/define Islamist parties shows shortcomings. This article tries to resolve the conundrum by
identifying these parties within a comparative framework, that is, Gunther and Diamond party typology. Two major types of
Islamist parties are identified and placed within the Gunther and Diamond typology. This solution has two advantages. First,
discussions on Islamist parties can now become more grounded, restricting analysts from labeling any conservative party in
the MMCs as Islamist. Second, Islamist parties can be part of the general discussion on political parties in the literature, and
inclination to regard them as singular or exceptional, because of their link with Islam, is discouraged.

Abstract: Foreign divestments have become a regular feature of global investment patterns. These divestments have mainly been explained by changes in the economic and institutional factors of the host countries. Recently, as institutional quality has improved in ...

Why are governments Islamizing in many Muslim-majority countries? Scholars have linked this phenomenon to the authoritarian regimes’ lack of legitimacy or the presence of powerful disruptive Islamist movements. These explanations, however, fail to fully explain the phenomenon. This dissertation, using comparative historical analysis of Turkey and Pakistan, argues that Islam's role in state nationalism is the primary reason for the Islamization of government. The indicators used to measure Islam’s role in state nationalism are constitutional provisions privileging religion, religious-themed national symbols, and religious motifs in the imagery on the national currency. The indicators for estimating Islamization of government are government's support for religious education, religious basis of family law, and the ministry of religious affairs’ presence and functions.

(In lieu of abstract) The literature on Islamist parties is growing exponentially since the 2011 Arab Spring and the subsequent victories of Islamist parties in Tunisia and Egypt. This volume represents
another attempt to ‘unpack the inclusion-moderation thesis’. As the editors argue, there is a dearth of comparative representation of Islamist parties from the Middle East and the South/South-East Asian regions. Many authors focus on one region and come up with conclusions that become questionable if one studies Islamist parties in the other regions.
This volume, therefore, makes a notable and critical contribution by focusing on two regions that are home to the vast majority of world’s Muslim population. Eight Islamist parties from six different countries have been analysed in detail by scholars who have distinguished
records of undertaking exceptional research. This volume has several features that make it recommended reading for those interested in Islamist parties. The introductory chapter gives an effective exposition of the inclusion-moderation thesis with respect to Islamist parties
and sets the tone for the six country chapters. Despite the volume’s small size, the country chapters are detailed and give a comprehensive overview of the selected Islamist parties’ interaction with other political parties and with the political regimes in power. Most chapters give a substantive historical analysis which serves as background for the later scrutiny of the contemporary issues faced by these ​parties within their national contexts.

This book argues that Islam’s role in state nationalism is the best predictor of the Islamization of government using two most different cases: Turkey, which was an aggressively secular country until recently, and Pakistan, a country that is synonymous with Islamization. It establishes a causal link between Islam’s role in state nationalism and Islamization of government during various periods of the history of both countries. The indicators used to establish the causal link between Islam’s role in state nationalism and Islamization are the presence of Islamic provisions in the constitution, Islam-inspired national symbols, Islamic images on the national currency, Islamic basis of family law, a Department of Religious Affairs, and governmental support for religious education. The book concludes by identifying three causal mechanisms―legitimacy, mobilization, and authenticity―that link Islam’s role in state nationalism and the Islamization of government.

Religious nationalism is on the rise in India, Poland and Turkey. Many scholars argue that it is also growing in the US. Therefore, its merits and demerits are being hotly debated in the international media. However, research on religious nationalist states is still embryonic. How are these states different from other states? What are the defining characteristics of a religious nationalist state besides the idea that its nationalism is deeply intertwined with a specific religion or a particular sect? Using family resemblance approach, this article intends to analyze four countries (Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Israel) that are usually identified as religious nationalist states to come up with features that are common to most of them. Some of the questions that will be asked to reveal such shared characteristics are as follows. Do the national flags and anthems of these states demonstrate a preference for the favored religion? Do these countries search for religious purity and promote or accept gender segregation and discrimination? Do clerics sere as judges and as civil servants in these states? Do these states fund religious schools regularly? What type of provisions in their constitutions privilege the preferred religion? Answers to these and related questions will offer a better conceptual understanding of the religious nationalist states. Choice of three Muslim-majority states and one Jewish-majority state will help in avoiding any bias for or against a specific religion.