Terrorism, Islamization, and Human Rights: How Post 9/11 Pakistani English Literature Speaks to the World

The start of the twenty-first century has witnessed a simultaneous rise of three areas of scholarly interest: 9/11 literature, human rights discourse, and War on Terror studies. The resulting intersections between literature and human rights, foregrounded by an overarching narrative of terror, have led to a new area of interdisciplinary enquiry broadly classed under human rights literature, at the point of the convergence of which lies the idea of human empathy. Concurrently with the development of human rights literature as a distinct field of study, two new strains of Pakistani literature have emerged on the Anglophone literary scene. Firstly, there are biographical works by women, co-authored with Western journalists, that have become controversial because there are contesting claims about human rights that emerge from their authorship, circulation and reception. Secondly, there are works of fiction, with the potential to be read as rights narratives, that problematize the current universal view of human rights based in the Western tradition of liberalism. The role of these writings is both valuable and disputable, as is reflected in its widely divergent reception by local and global audiences, and in its ambivalent position vis-a-vis universal human rights debates. Therefore, an examination of how Pakistani English literature speaks to the global reader is not only timely, but gainful in its insights. My dissertation has a two-pronged focus. I examine memoirs by Malala Yousafzai and Mukhtaran Mai to highlight how conflicting reader reactions in Pakistan and in the Western world shape such memoirs’ conversation with human rights in the current climate of geopolitical tension. I also analyze recent fiction by Mohsin Hamid, Muhammed Hanif, Kamila Shamsie, Daniyal Mueenuddin, Nadeem Aslam and Jamil Ahmad who face a double challenge: writing about human rights violations in Pakistan without being accused of subscribing to Western agendas that promote the same instances of violence to justify military intervention in the region, and shifting the focus of 9/11 trauma writing to include the equally calamitous human rights issues that have resulted in its global aftermath. I propose that close readings of contemporary Pakistani literature can aid in promoting the pluralities of vision that support the “new universalism” movement in human rights as a viable option for global solidarity

Lessons learnt: pilot of mid rotation feedback.

The Aga Khan University went through an external review of its undergraduate medical education in December 2006 based on the accreditation guidelines by the Liaison Committee for Medical Education (LCME). The external review panel comprised of international and local experts which developed a comprehensive report on its findings with regards to LCME standards of accreditation. In the final report of the external review one of the areas highlighted as not meeting the standards of LCME was documentation of formal mid-rotation feedback of the students by the faculty in AKU clerkships through years 3 to 5. A four hour faculty development workshop was organized by the Department of Medicine in collaboration with the Department for Educational Development to emphasize the role of feedback in improving student\u27s performance, improve faculty\u27s skill in giving effective feedback, and to come up with recommendations for documenting the formative feedback process. A mid-rotation feedback form was designed to facilitate the documentation process. Faculty members who participated in the workshop took a lead in piloting this form and reported the areas that could be further improved upon to facilitate the process of timely and effective feedback

Colour Play in Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things

The God of Small Things emerges as a perfectly harmonious work because of an underlying threadwork of connecting ideas. One such connecting mesh is the use of colour-codes within the novel, which gives it direction and coherence. This article traces colour and its importance in the novel

Daniyal Mueenuddin’s Dying Men

Daniyal Mueenuddin’s In Other Rooms, Other Wonders is reflection of Pakistani masculinity in a metamorphosed state. A disturbingly masculine vocabulary frames the appearance and actions of the female characters. In contrast, the speech and thought of the male characters is minified in words of loss and regret. Their material ambitions and the resulting show of power, is put into sharp contrast against an increasing impotency within their personal lives. They are unfulfilled, aging or dying men. This collection of short stories has been commended for its candid illumination of a contemporary Pakistan. However, this paper aims to highlight the alternative theme that these stories contain by showing Pakistani masculinity caught in a paraxial state between colonial delineations of power, the subsequent rise of corruption in a postcolonial aftermath, and the resulting confusion about issues of identity. There has been a loss of masculinity during this process which is reflected through the metaphor of death. Rather than dejection about this state of demise, this metaphoric interpretation leads the reader towards hope of a positive rebirth

STUDY OF GULZAR'S LEGENDARY STYLE

The short story is an important part of Urdu literature and dealt with a wide range of life dimensions, but most short stories of Gulzar concern the trauma of the partition of the subcontinent in 1947. He critically observed these incidents by himself so the violence generated as a result of this partition leaves a deep impact on him. No doubt he is a live legend and a great writer, his writings gained momentum with the phenomenal narration which is full of expressions, feelings, emotions and questions about the politics and political leaders of that time. Gulzar is a perfect story writer by his charismatic and unique style. This article reveals and examines the artistic aspects of his literary craftsmanship with a special reference to his contribution not only in the field of literature but to history and politics as well

Attributes of an effective clinical teacher: a survey on students\u27 and teachers\u27 perceptions

OBJECTIVE: To identify the attributes of effective clinical teacher, using a self-filled survey questionnaire, that students and faculty value most, and to compare the opinion of student and faculty regarding the same. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional study.PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: The Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH), Karachi from October 2006 to January 2007. Subject and Methods: Clinical faculty at AKUH and students in clinical years were included in this survey after taking their written informed consent. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire administered to all participants. Responses were compared.RESULTS: A total of 119 students in clinical years (3, 4 and 5) and 89 faculties involved in clinical teaching responded to the questionnaire. The most important attributes in faculty\u27s and students\u27 perspective were knowledge, interest in teaching and clinical competency. In students and faculty perspective, the fourth and fifth attributes were good communication skills and being non-judgmental. CONCLUSION: Students in clinical years and clinical teachers valued knowledge, interest in teaching and clinical competency as the most important attributes for an effective clinical teacher. There were various areas of agreement and disagreement between faculty and students about attributes of effective clinical teacher

Efficacy of Uterovaginal Packing Versus Uterine Balloon Tamponade to Control Postpartum Hemorrhage Due to Uterine Atony

OBJECTIVES To determine and compare the efficacy of Uterovaginal packing versus uterine balloon tamponade to control postpartum haemorrhage due to uterine atony unresponsive to medical treatment. METHODOLOGY This comparative prospective cross-sectional study was conducted in Hayatabad Medical Complex, OBG department. A total of 140 patients were categorised into two groups, group A underwent Uterovaginal packing and group B underwent uterine balloon tamponade. All women of 18 to 40 years with a history of delivery after 28 weeks of gestation, who developed primary postpartum haemorrhage due to uterine atony, unresponsive to medical treatment were included in the study. Women with a history of delivery before 28 weeks of gestation, secondary postpartum haemorrhage, genital tract trauma, retained placental tissue and membranes, placenta previa, morbidly adherent placenta, febrile illness and uterine structural lesion were excluded from the study. Efficacy was labelled if there was no ongoing blood loss after the procedure with concomitant hemodynamic stability. All information was recorded in a predesigned proforma, and data were analysed using SPSS version 22.RESULTS Our study included 140 women; 113 had a normal vaginal delivery, and 27 underwent cesarean section. Among cases with normal vaginal delivery, 45 women had Uterovaginal packing, and 68 had uterine balloon tamponade, while among cases of cesarean sections, 25 women had uterovaginal packing and 2 had uterine balloon tamponade. The efficacy of Uterovaginal packing was 90%, and that of uterine balloon tamponade was 87.1%, with no significant difference statistically (p- 0.51). Overall efficacy of both procedures was 88.6%.CONCLUSION All orthodontic and non-orthodontic treatment group participants required oral hygiene instructions and had periodontal treatment needs (TN1). The patients requiring scaling and prophylaxis and Oral hygiene instructions (TN 2) were more in the orthodontic treatment group than the non-orthodontic treatment group. A higher percentage of patients requiring complex treatment (deep scaling, root planning and complex surgical procedures), scaling and prophylaxis and Oral hygiene instructions (TN3) belonged to the non-orthodontic treatment group

Study of Postdatism with Respect to Fetomaternal Outcome at A Tertiary Care Hospital

OBJECTIVES This study aims to know our setup’s fetomaternal pregnancy complications that extend beyond 40 weeks of gestation. METHODOLOGY This is a prospective cross-sectional study of 390 patients with uncomplicated postdated pregnancies fulfilling the inclusion and exclusion criteria admitted to the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology (both in spontaneous labour and induced patient) at Hayatabad Medical Complex, a tertiary care hospital in Peshawar, KPK from July 2020 to June 2021.RESULTS Out of 390 patients, a majority (72.30 %) were in the age group of 20 – 35 years. Most of them (50.51%) presented at gestation 40+1 – 40+6 weeks. The majority (57.69%) were multigravida, and most (93.07%) were un-booked. Most delivered vaginally (80.51%), and 19.48% had C/section (including both emergency and elective). The most common indication for C/section was fetal distress (44.73%), followed by C/section on demand (18.42%). The majority>90% had Apgar score greater than seven at 5 minutes which was gestation dependent. Overall perinatal mortality was 4.07% which was also gestation dependent ranging from 0.5% at 40+1 – 40+6 weeks to 2.30% at and beyond 42 weeks of gestation. Neonatal morbidity in the form of Birth asphyxia, Meconium Aspiration Syndrome (MAS), Shoulder Dystocia and NICU admission also showed an increasing tendency with increasing gestation beyond 40 weeks. Maternal morbidity in the form of PPH, perineal tears 3°/4° and endometritis also showed a similar increasing trend with increasing gestation beyond 40 weeks. CONCLUSION Pregnancy continuing beyond 40 weeks has a definite risk to the fetus.

Abdominal Hysterectomy for Benign Gynecological Diseases

OBJECTIVES This study aims to assess the Pap smear screening method’s accuracy in detecting precancerous lesions. METHODOLOGY After fulfilling the inclusion criteria patients were selected, the patient’s bladder was emptied and put in a dorsal position, and Cusco’s speculum was introduced after lubrication followed by insertion of Ayer’s spatula, applied on the transformational zone, and rotated in 360 degrees. Specimen smeared on glass slides and sent to the laboratory with fulfilled lab pre-requisite form. Patients were requested to follow up with a histopathology report. RESULTS Mean age of the patient was 38.111+9.461 years. Among the 77 patients whose samples were taken 15.4% were asymptomatic, 32.1% with vaginal discharge, 17.9% vaginal discharge,17.0% with intermenstrual bleeding and 16.7% were having lower abdominal pain with p value=0.087. Histopathology reports were interpreted upon follow-up visit among those 1.3% came out to be positive for malignancy, 76.6% negative for malignancy while 22.1% had an inadequate sample. CONCLUSION The most common method for screening for cervical cancer is the Pap smear, but its efficacy in detecting early precancerous lesions is very low, possibly due to laboratory error or false technique to a gynecologist of sample technique in our tertiary care hospital. Other screening methods should be used instead of conventional Pap smear

Epidemiology and Risk Factor Analysis of Fasciolosis in Buffaloes in District Bagh, Azad Kashmir, Pakistan

Fasciolosis is a cosmopolitan parasitic disorder cause great economic decline in cattle and buffaloes in terms of poor carcasses quality decrease in meat and milk production, malfunctioning of livers and weight loss. This research work was carried out in district Bagh, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan, extending from December 2016 to May 2017. During this study 200 fecal sample from Buffaloes (Bablus bubalis) of the study area were collected, it was found that 40 percent fecal samples contain eggs of Fasciola hepatica and 60 percent fecal samples were negative. Liver samples of slaughtered buffaloes were also examined during study period and it was found that 74 samples have faciola, out of 200 samples, so 37 per cent samples contain F. hepatica and 63 per cent buffaloes liver samples were negative. It was observed that 19.25% animals of the area have parasites in their body, which are causing economic losses to the owners, in the form of less production of milk and meat and more mortality among the livestock and damages to farmers