LAHORE: “We choose rule of law, freedom and democracy to end terrorism as there is no choice between terrorism and dictatorship... Every dictator is a terrorist and every terrorist is a dictator...they block means of peaceful change and create misunderstandings about our great religion,” said Mrs Tawakkol Karman Yemini, the second women Nobel Peace Prize Laureate of 2011, during her keynote address at the Afkar-e-Taza ThinkFest on Saturday.

The second edition of the Afkar-e-Taza ThinkFest, organised by the Centre for Governance and Policy at the Information Technology University, opened to an audience of around 500 people, including academics, writers, journalists, thinkers and students from various universities. The event was organised in collaboration with the Federal Higher Education Commission, the Punjab Higher Education Commission and other private-sector organisations.

Mrs Karman stressed the need to demonstrate the true spirit of Islam, a nonviolent and peaceful religion through tolerance, rule of law and love. She argued that religion became a tool in the hands of monarchs. Terrorist groups like Daesh were a threat to humanity during a defining moment in history when the world is facing racism, hatred and extremism, she said, adding that they were counter revolutionary and meant to crush people striving for democracy.

Second edition of Afkar-e-Taza ThinkFest opens to a receptive audience

In his opening remarks, Dr Umar Saif, vice chancellor of the ITU, stressed the need to question where we were headed as a society and what we could do to put our country back on the path of democracy in order to establish enlightened and progressive society. Thinkers and intellectuals should determine and articulate the discourse to set goals for the country, he added.

The crowd at the Thinkfest, while varied, comprised mostly students who were seen engaging actively in the sessions held on the first day. There was no entry fee for the conference and many people milled around the food stalls set up in the grounds throughout the day.

Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, the current chairperson of the Conservative Party in the UK and former foreign office minister, will be the keynote speaker on second and the concluding day of the Thinkfest. Some of the sessions to look out for today are Inquilab Zindabad, Rohingyas: Inside the Burmese Genocide, Upholding the Rule of Law: The History of the Lahore High Court, Whither the White in the Flag, The Red Maulana: Bhashani and the National Awami Party of Pakistan, and many others featuring academics and experts from 35 universities across the country, as well as foreign universities.

Published in Dawn, January 14th, 2018