Soch: Columbia Pakistan Symposium

We are proud to introduce our second panelist for the economy panel, Bilal Lakhani.

Bilal is an award-winning journalist & columnist for Express Tribune, one of Pakistan’s premier English language newspapers. He’s reported extensively on the PTI government’s economic & foreign policy performance. In the last 12 months, he’s delivered blockbuster interviews with the Finance Minister, Foreign Minister & President of Pakistan. In April 2019, he had the unfortunate distinction of being Finance Minister Asad Umar’s final media interview, before he resigned from office.

After completing his undergraduate degree in Economics from LUMS, Bilal went on to Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism as a Fulbright Scholar. He received the James A Weschler award for international reporting in 2011.

In addition to journalism, Bilal has a decade long corporate career, spanning Karachi, Geneva & Cincinnati. He’s also a social media influencer with over 300,000 followers.

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Introducing our first speaker for our panel "A Closer Look at the Economy Under Imran Khan's Naya Pakistan", S Akbar Zaidi!

S Akbar Zaidi is a Professor at Columbia University at MESAAS, the Department of Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies. Professor Zaidi conducts research focusing on development, governance, political economy in South Asia, as well as in South Asian History. He has published numerous books on Pakistan's economy, politics, and history. His recent books include Issues in Pakistan’s Economy: A Political Economy Perspective published by Oxford University Press in 2015, and a co-edited volume entitled New Perspectives on Pakistan's Political Economy: State, Class and Social Change, published by Cambridge University Press in April 2019. He has a forthcoming book entitled Making Muslims: Reading Publics and Contesting Identities in 19th Century North India, to be published by Cambridge University Press in Fall 2020.

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Check out our panelist, Ayesha Tanzeem: VOA’s Pakistan and Afghanistan and Pakistan bureau based in Islamabad, Pakistan. She is one of a few foreign correspondents who have traveled to areas under the control and influence of the Islamic State militant group while it was at the peak of its power in eastern Afghanistan in 2015. Be sure to buy tickets to hear Ayesha speak NOW at: https://web.ovationtix.com/trs/pe.c/10510027?fbclid=IwAR0ljG_5xcR_HX6_jMdaXkXfpXcH-Bz4aXrnvNG3kw2vNZ-YpNoNpLfTXSw

Read more here: https://www.voanews.com/author/ayesha-tanzeem

Ayesha Tanzeem Ayesha Tanzeem heads VOA’s Pakistan and Afghanistan and Pakistan bureau based in Islamabad, Pakistan. She is one of a few foreign correspondents who have traveled to areas under the control and influence of the Islamic State militant group while it was at the peak of its power in eastern Afghanist...

Hamid Mir, Soch Keynote Speaker for 2020, has interviewed various individuals throughout the course of his career. Perhaps one of his most famous interviews is the interview between him and Osama bin Laden. "Days before Kabul fell to anti-Taliban forces in November 2001, Osama bin Laden met Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir in a secret location before going into hiding." Don't miss out on the chance to hear Mr. Mir live share his experiences. Buy tickets here:

20CU1: OPS, Soch: Columbia Pakistan Symposium 2020 Soch returns on March 7th, 2020 to Columbia University to highlight voices from Pakistan that otherwise are not present in the mainstream media: voices of the Baloch and Pashtuns. In Balochistan, a separatist movement has been gaining currency, whereas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a social movement for Pa...

Our Keynote Speaker Hamid Mir was awarded the "Most Resilient Journalist Award" by the International Free Press in 2016. Be sure to buy tickets to Soch 2020: Naya Pakistan, Magar Kiska Pakistan? to hear him share his experiences and stories!

Buy tickets now: https://web.ovationtix.com/trs/pe.c/10510027?fbclid=IwAR0ljG_5xcR_HX6_jMdaXkXfpXcH-Bz4aXrnvNG3kw2vNZ-YpNoNpLfTXSw

Hamid Mir wins 'most resilient journalist award' “I dedicate this award to people of Pakistan whose bravery, support and resilience became a source for my resilience,” said Mir

Panelist Sahar Khan is an adjunct scholar in the Cato Institute’s Defense and Foreign Policy Department. Her research interests include militancy, counterterrorism policies, anti‐​terrorism legal regimes, South Asia, Middle East, and U.S. national security. She will be sharing her thoughts and scholarship on a panel about Balochistan, critically reflecting on the insurgency that has plagued the region. Sahar also publishes commentary, blog posts, and articles often, so be sure to check out her work.

Buy tickets to hear her speak before they sell out: https://web.ovationtix.com/trs/pe.c/10510027?fbclid=IwAR0ljG_5xcR_HX6_jMdaXkXfpXcH-Bz4aXrnvNG3kw2vNZ-YpNoNpLfTXSw

Read more of her work here: https://www.cato.org/people/sahar-khan

Sahar Khan Sahar Khan is an adjunct scholar in the Cato Institute’s Defense and Foreign Policy Department. Her research interests include militancy, counterterrorism policies, anti‐​terrorism legal regimes, South Asia, Middle East, and U.S. national security. Her dissertation explored state motivations f...

Our panelist, Malik Siraj Akbar spoke at the World Sindhi Congress at the University Club in Washington D.C. His presentation focused on Sindhi, Balochi and Pashtun nationalism in Pakistan's Sindh province and how the Pakistani government has repressed the demands and grievances of the indigenous peoples. Learn more about his presentation here:

Washington: Activists, politicians voice concern over human rights violations in Pak's Sindh Washington [US], May 5 (ANI): Human Rights activists and politicians have shown concern over the growing state-run violations of human rights in Sindh and other provinces of Pakistan at a seminar here on Saturday.