Taj Hashmi

STRANGER THAN FICTION

Professor of Security Studies at Austin Peay State University. His recent publications include Global Jihad and America: The Hundred-Year War Beyond Iraq and Afghanistan.

Removal of Nawaz Sharif and the future of Pakistan

We know, since the assassination of the first Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan in 1951, no Pakistani Prime Minister has been able to complete his or her full term in office. However, someone's stating this becomes clichéd or worn-out unless one discerns the different circumstances leading to each removal and dismissal.

7y ago

Two disasters, two countries, two peoples

Surprisingly, “baby boomers” (born between 1946 and 1960)—the generation that took part in the Liberation War—and “millennials” (born between mid-1980s and early 2000s) of Bangladesh (both supposed to be articulated, brave, and liberal), to put it mildly, also seem to be apathetic and opportunistic, even during times of national emergencies.

7y ago

Trump's Riyadh rendezvous

Although there's no reason to take Donald Trump's erratic behaviour, and his ambivalent and unsavoury assertions seriously, we can't ignore what he staged in Riyadh in the name of defeating Islamist terrorism on May 21.

7y ago

What's so “interesting” in Bangladesh today?

Interest-ingly, “interesting” is an English expression, which may hide one's actual opinion about something one considers “interesting”.

7y ago

A gambit and a war crime

There are contrad-ictory opinions about who on April 4 used chemical weapons, which killed more than 80 civilians, including children in the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhun in Syria.

7y ago

ISIS threats in Bangladesh - Denials and Delusions

It has happened again! In the wake of the latest round of terror attacks in Bangladesh, with ISIS claiming credit for it, authorities in the...

7y ago

Another regression therapy for Bangladesh?

A recent move by the Government to allow child marriage under special circumstances is tantamount to excluding many Bangladeshis from the benefits of growth and development.

7y ago

Corruption in Bangladesh: Perceptions vs. reality

The country has already become a lower middle-income country. So far so good! However, these indexes don't always tell us the whole truth about the states of governance, corruption, poverty, inequality, and most importantly, frequent violations of human rights across the country.

7y ago
July 30, 2017
July 30, 2017

Removal of Nawaz Sharif and the future of Pakistan

We know, since the assassination of the first Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan in 1951, no Pakistani Prime Minister has been able to complete his or her full term in office. However, someone's stating this becomes clichéd or worn-out unless one discerns the different circumstances leading to each removal and dismissal.

July 3, 2017
July 3, 2017

Two disasters, two countries, two peoples

Surprisingly, “baby boomers” (born between 1946 and 1960)—the generation that took part in the Liberation War—and “millennials” (born between mid-1980s and early 2000s) of Bangladesh (both supposed to be articulated, brave, and liberal), to put it mildly, also seem to be apathetic and opportunistic, even during times of national emergencies.

May 26, 2017
May 26, 2017

Trump's Riyadh rendezvous

Although there's no reason to take Donald Trump's erratic behaviour, and his ambivalent and unsavoury assertions seriously, we can't ignore what he staged in Riyadh in the name of defeating Islamist terrorism on May 21.

May 8, 2017
May 8, 2017

What's so “interesting” in Bangladesh today?

Interest-ingly, “interesting” is an English expression, which may hide one's actual opinion about something one considers “interesting”.

April 10, 2017
April 10, 2017

A gambit and a war crime

There are contrad-ictory opinions about who on April 4 used chemical weapons, which killed more than 80 civilians, including children in the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhun in Syria.

March 28, 2017
March 28, 2017

ISIS threats in Bangladesh - Denials and Delusions

It has happened again! In the wake of the latest round of terror attacks in Bangladesh, with ISIS claiming credit for it, authorities in the...

March 10, 2017
March 10, 2017

Another regression therapy for Bangladesh?

A recent move by the Government to allow child marriage under special circumstances is tantamount to excluding many Bangladeshis from the benefits of growth and development.

February 4, 2017
February 4, 2017

Corruption in Bangladesh: Perceptions vs. reality

The country has already become a lower middle-income country. So far so good! However, these indexes don't always tell us the whole truth about the states of governance, corruption, poverty, inequality, and most importantly, frequent violations of human rights across the country.

January 25, 2017
January 25, 2017

Obama's legacy, racism, and Trump's victory in America

As there are multiple causes and factors behind most events, so is Donald Trump's election victory not attributable to any single factor.

November 22, 2016
November 22, 2016

Attacks on minorities in Bangladesh: No longer a “communal issue”

Recently, Muslim mob attacks on Hindu houses and temples in Nasirnagar (Brahmanbaria) and elsewhere in Gopalganj, Chittagong, and Sunamganj districts in Bangladesh have drawn wide media attention, within and outside the country.