Overview
This week on Acton Unwind, special guest panelist Farah Adeed along with Dan and Dylan discuss two major stories in the majority-Muslim world: the arrest and subsequent release of Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan and Sunday’s election in Turkey.
Farah is an incoming Ph.D. student in the Department of Political Science at Boston University and studies the role of religion in the nation-building process and democratization in Muslim-majority countries. He is also a former Emerging Leader at Acton.
The panel begins with an examination of Imran Khan’s place in Pakistani public life, then move on to the larger political landscape of Pakistan, the place of the military establishment, and the role of Islam in public life.
Next the panel turns to Sunday’s election in Turkey: What is the state of Turkish politics today in the wake of the election? Why was it both so close and so contentious? And what does the election suggest about the state of Turkey’s democratic institutions?
Lastly, the panel examines how Islam can play a constructive role in the development of free and democratic institutions in the Muslim-majority world and what historical resources can inspire such reform and renewal.
Arrest of Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan was illegal, top court rules | CNN
Former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan released on bail | CNN
Turkey’s Election Scenarios: The Good, the Bad, and the Scary | National Review
Turkey’s Erdogan faces second round in fevered race for presidency | BBC
Is Indonesia’s “Civil Islam” a model for the Muslim world? | Religion & Liberty Online
Abolishing blasphemy laws in Pakistan will lead to more violence | Religion & Liberty Online
Photo Credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS
