News Release
MEDIA ADVISORY: SF State experts available to comment on emergency rule in Pakistan
Faculty expertise includes the relationship between state, military, and civil society; history of Pakistan; and Islamic civilization
SAN FRANCISCO, November 7, 2007 -- Faculty from SF State are available to comment on the unfolding political crisis in Pakistan and the state of emergency rule declared by President Musharraf.
For additional assistance locating an expert, contact the SF State Office of University Communications at (415) 405-3606 or pubcom@sfsu.edu, or visit: www.sfsu.edu/~news/expert.htm
Professor of International Relations Sanjoy Banerjee is the University's primary expert on Pakistan, and has followed the country's development for several decades. His expertise includes international political economies with a particular focus on South and Southeast Asia. He is available to comment on such issues as the relationship between state and society; the relationship between state and the military; and the civil society response to emergency rule. Banerjee holds a Ph.D. in political science from Yale University.
Banerjee can be reached at (415) 338-1105 (office) or banerjee@sfsu.edu
Assistant Professor of History Chris Chekuri is an expert on the development of Pakistan since partition. He can offer in-depth historical knowledge of Pakistan from the 1970s through the present day. Chekuri holds a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
"I am confident that General Musharraf will turn around and restore the constitutional process," said Professor Chekuri. "We have seen lawyers taking to the streets in protest -- a level of activism that Pakistan hasn't seen for the last 15 to 20 years.
"While the current crisis could, in the long-run, deepen democratic institutions along the lines of a 'velvet revolution,' it will not take hold until the economic problems -- employment, land reform, and education -- are addressed. We in the U.S. need to broaden our understanding of Pakistan's problems beyond its role in the U.S. led 'War on Terror'."
Chekuri can be reached at (415) 338-7541 (office) or cchekuri@sfsu.edu
Maziar Behrooz, associate professor of history, is an expert on the near east, with a particular focus on Iran and Afghanistan. He teaches courses on the history of the Islamic world, modernity and the Islamic World, and Islamic movements. Behrooz earned a Ph.D. in the history of the near east from University of California, Los Angeles.
Behrooz can be reached at (415) 338-1776 (office) or mroozbeh@sfsu.edu
Mahmood Monshipouri, assistant professor of international relations, is an expert on identity, cultural politics, and social change in the Muslim world; state-society relations in the Muslim world; politics and religion in the Muslim world; and human rights and democratization. He holds a Ph.D. in political science from University of Georgia.
"General Pervez Musharraf has become a liability not only for his own country's military but also for U.S. foreign policy," said Professor Monshipouri. "His call for a state of emergency is going to backfire.
"Musharraf's claim that the suspension of the constitution is linked to the war against terrorism is baseless. In fact, people who sit in jails across the country are not terrorists but human rights activists and lawyers.
"Power-sharing with Benazir Bhutto, which could have paved the way for his third consecutive term, has been turned upside down because of the declaration of the Marshal Law. The U.S. foreign policy faces a dilemma: is Musharraf a strategic asset or liability? Democracy promotion in the face of surging terrorism in the Middle East keeps posing further dilemmas for the Bush administration."
Monshipouri can be reached at (415) 338-2239 (office) or mmonship@sfsu.edu
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