Attitudes toward suicide bombing in Pakistan

Although suicide bombing is a historical phenomenon, there has been a recent upsurge in such incidents. In Pakistan, over the last year, more than 1,000 people have been killed in suicide bombing incidents. Assessing the attitudes and perceptions of people toward suicide bombing can help understand some of the root causes of this phenomenon. In this pilot study, we conducted a cross-sectional survey of people (N = 215) in Karachi, Pakistan, to assess their attitudes and perceptions toward suicide bombing. The majority of the respondents condemned suicide bombing and disagreed with the notion that Islam or any other religion supports it. Belonging to the Sunni Muslim sect and strong adherence to religion predicted support for suicide bombing. The majority believed suicide bombing to be a result of religious fundamentalism. Opinion was divided as to whether suicide bombers have an underlying psychiatric illness. Further studies with larger sample sizes are needed to determine the attitudes and perceptions of the Pakistani population regarding this important issue.     

Goods and services tax,cascading, and revenue performance: Analyzing Indian commodity taxation market

Indian economy has finally introduced an improvised value‐added tax commonly known as goods and services tax (GST) with an explicit focus to target cascading. Cascading is by far the most serious issue of a tax structure as it leads to many other challenges like opaqueness, complexity, evasion besides deadweight losses. GST is a fiscal policy reform aimed at integrating and harmonizing the Indian tax structure and hence reduce the incidence of cascading. This study is an attempt to empirically analyze the possible impacts of GST on the cascading and hence revenue collection in the Indian economy. The study has employed a simple but representative simultaneous equation model representing the commodity taxation using time series data from 1990 to 2017. This study finds that reduced cascading under GST will enhance the revenue efficiency of the Indian commodity tax structure. The findings are corroborated by the post‐GST revenue performance of Indian states and the central government.     

Absence of Vertical Linkages and the Quest for Decentralized Service Delivery in Pakistan: An Innovation under Constraints

Local Government Ordinance, 2001 aimed to create a service-orientated local government by devolving many public services from the provincial to local levels. However, in many cases, local governments either did not have the capacity to manage them or the services extended across different geographic jurisdictions. The new system also restructured the three sub-national levels but without any vertical hierarchical linkages between them, and asked them to coordinate public service provision between them. This article suggests different remedies, including developing vertical administrative linkages and the reconstitution of Zila Mushawarat Committee to undertake coordination functions at intra-district level.     

Reckoning Electronic Government Progress in Bangladesh

In the context of the recent interest and enthusiasm regarding e-government, this article proffers an overview of e-government by focusing on its conceptual development and experimental practices with a particular focus on Bangladesh. The study primarily draws on an extensive review of the secondary literature together with personal insights of the authors gained in the course of engagements with selected e-government related projects in Bangladesh. It explores, inter alia, the conceptual setting by examining the key definitional issues and models of e-government; reviews e-government as a practice at the global and developing country contexts; and examines the policy frame and infrastructural status of e-government in Bangladesh. Major challenges and constraints on wider application of e-government in Bangladesh are identified and some clues on possible improvement of the situation are also explored. Despite many constraints, a degree of positive change is already noticeable in reducing the digital divide in the country.     

An Empirical Study of E-Government Service Adoption: Culture and Behavioral Intention

This study seeks to identify and understand the important factors that influence citizens’ behavioral intention to take up e-government services. We adopted a research model empirically tested in the United States. The model integrates three established constructs—the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), trust, and computer self-efficacy. We conducted the research in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a leader in e-government development in the Arab world. Our findings are mostly different from the U.S. study and suggest that behavioral intention may be influenced by citizens’ cultural context. This study contributes to a better understanding of citizens’ behavioral intention and adoption factors in e-government, in particular from a cultural perspective. The findings may help governments formulate effective strategies to improve the level of citizens’ uptake of e-government services. This study paves the way for further research on an e-government adoption model that is robust across cultures.     

Devolution Plan 2000: dictatorship,democracy, and the politics of institutional change in Pakistan

Contemporary development theory and policy research puts an overarching emphasis on institution building as a key driver of change in developing countries. Over the past few decades, decentralisation reforms have played out as the linchpin of such institution building efforts, advocated by international development agencies and favoured by national governments. This article examines decentralisation reforms implemented in Pakistan under the Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers initiative through a case study of the implementation and outcomes of Devolution Plan (DP) in Khyber Pukhtunkhwa province. Promulgated by General Musharaf in 2000, the DP aimed to restructure and rebuild political and administrative structures, to redress key issues of governance, resource distribution, and service delivery. The Local Government System (LGS) was a key reform element within the DP, but it lost traction and was abolished in 2008/09. This article demonstrates two important factors, regime legitimisation and the preservation of clientelistic politics, that have profoundly shaped implementation of the DP. The findings demonstrate how the implementation of this large-scale internationally supported attempt at institution building ultimately succumbed to a range of particularistic interests.     

The politics of misogyny: General Zia-ul-Haq’s Islamization of Pakistan’s legal system

General Zia-ul-Haq’s ambitious Islamization program vis-à-vis gender status in an Islamic Republic remains embedded in the legal system to the detriment of Pakistan’s females. Passage of the Hudood Ordinances of 1979 was a harbinger of things to come as the military junta moved to implement laws perceived to be congruent with Shariah (Islamic) law. This article examines specific discriminatory legal measures, which ensured the reversal of the slow but significant gains made by females since Pakistan’s creation in 1947; and explores how certain draconian measures enacted by Zia’s regime served to mobilize some Pakistani women to political activism.     

Indigenous languages and Africa's development dilemma

Most African states like The Gambia use European languages for state activities and formal education. Africa has been a global pilot site for “transplanted” development initiatives with apparently consistent outcomes: failure, medium triumph, or unsustainable “success stories”. Its natural resources have been fully exploited, perhaps at the expense of resources like mother-tongue languages. Sidelining mother-tongue languages as the medium for the translation of the voice of the state, explains the gap in cultural relevance of many borrowed development initiatives, but also the neglect of workable endogenous practices. Africa must look inwards and exploit its indigenous language assets to benefit sustained development.