Afghanistan in 2021: The End of the Republic and the Return of the Islamic Emirate
At the beginning of 2021, Afghans faced another year of conflict and economic challenge, retaining some semblance of hope that their leadership and the Taliban would be able to reach a political resettlement through the intra-Afghan Peace Talks. In August,…
Disinformation and Democratic Backsliding: India’s Facebook Problem
“We can keep making messages go viral, whether they are real or fake, sweet or sour.” – Amit Shah, Home Minister of India, 2018 In late December, Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati, a Hindu temple priest, organized a conference of Hindu extremist…
Myanmar’s Divided State Leaves Thousands of its People in the Lurch
More than ten months after the coup and a protracted conflict that has produced a political and military stalemate, the struggle in Myanmar now extends to a battle for diplomatic recognition from multilateral global institutions, including the United Nations and…
Looking Back at 2021: SAV’s Top Reads
2021 marked significant developments for South Asia. Governments contended with challenges on both domestic and geopolitical fronts: from mass COVID-19 outbreaks created by new variants to heightened great-power competition between the U.S. and China to the sudden takeover of the…
India and the United States: Friends Elsewhere, Foes at the UN
Can India be a meaningful partner of the United States in global governance? Many in the United States have regularly raised this question as both a practical and a strategic problem since 2000. At the practical level, the incongruence between…
Looking Back at 2021: SAV Editors’ Picks
At South Asian Voices, we pride ourselves on publishing diverse perspectives from across the subcontinent on important and often contentious issues related to the politics, security, and economics of South Asia. Below are the SAV editorial team’s top picks of 2021: Sunaina Danziger…
India 2021 Year In Review: Another Year of Silencing Dissent
India’s political scene in 2021 appears to have come full circle. The year began with the farmers’ protest commanding the center stage and is now drawing to a close with the government finally backtracking on the three farm laws that…
Nepal in 2021: Uncertainty Follows a Turbulent Year
In 2021, Nepal dealt with the economic and domestic uncertainties of the ongoing pandemic. Like the rest of the world, the Himalayan nation struggled to overcome the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. The domestic politics of Nepal saw a huge…
The Politics of Development Rhetoric: The Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently visited his constituency Varanasi in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh (UP) where he stated that the development of Varanasi would form the bedrock of the development of India. In his speech, he re-emphasized the “development agenda”…
Bangladesh’s 2021 Year in Review: Celebrating 50 Years of Development Through Pandemic Resilience
2021 was supposed to be a year of festivities for Bangladesh, as the country celebrates its 50 years of independence. Instead, it had to contend with the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, Bangladesh has exemplified 50 years of admirable…
Social Terrorism: The Makings of Mob Violence in Pakistan and the Jim Crow-Era United States
The mob-lynching of a Sri Lankan national, 49-year-old Priyantha Kumara, in Pakistan’s eastern city of Sialkot challenges Pakistan’s government and, more broadly, the state. The ghastly lynching and desecration of the body caused a diplomatic crisis between Pakistan and Sri…
The 21st India-Russia Annual Summit: Moving Beyond Feel Good Rhetoric
On December 6, 2021, India and Russia participated in their 21st annual bilateral summit. The decision from President Vladimir Putin to travel to India for the occasion speaks to the volumes of importance that Putin attaches to India-Russia strategic partnership.…
A Case for a Feminist Foreign Policy in Bangladesh
“Around the world, there is a pushback on women’s rights. […] We will push back against the pushback. And we will keep pushing. For wholesale change. For rapid change. And for the meaningful change our world needs, starting by addressing…
India’s Changed Reality in Afghanistan
Since the Taliban took over Afghanistan, India has been contemplating its approach towards the new government. As an old ally of Kabul, New Delhi faces the dilemma of balancing its strategic interests in Afghanistan while debating the morality of engaging…
Assessing the Need for a Feminist Foreign Policy in Sri Lanka
Several countries, including Sweden, Canada, France, and Spain, have embraced the implementation of a Feminist Foreign Policy (FFP), bringing to fruition the conversation around its power to transform realities for women and girls. As the Center for Feminist Foreign Policy…
Modi’s Farm Laws Repeal: A Rare Retreat
On November 19, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced his government’s decision to repeal three controversial farm laws passed last year, yielding to the central demand of thousands of farmers who have been protesting on the borders of New Delhi…
The Evolution of Homegrown Militancy in Kashmir Since August 5, 2019
Militant groups in Kashmir appeared to be in tactical retreat due to an unprecedented communication lockdown and the heavy deployment of troops in every nook and corner of the valley following the revocation of Kashmir’s special status on August 5,…
What Would it Mean for Pakistan to Lose Major Non-NATO Ally Status?
As Pakistan and the United States gingerly engage after the fall of Kabul, distrust continues to inform the relationship. At the same time, both sides appear to want relations to improve beyond the single-point issue of Afghanistan, although Pakistan more…
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Defense & Security Is China Undermining Nepal’s Border Along its Himalayan Frontier?
There were few democratic countries as close geographically or as…
Domestic Politics Afghanistan in 2021: The End of the Republic and the Return of the Islamic Emirate
At the beginning of 2021, Afghans faced another year of…
Hindi & Urdu جنوبی ایشیا میں سائبر سیکیورٹی کے لیے دوطرفہ لائحہ عمل کی تشکیل
۲۰۱۹ میں کونڈکلم میں واقع بھارت کے سب سے بڑے…
Domestic Politics Disinformation and Democratic Backsliding: India’s Facebook Problem
“We can keep making messages go viral, whether they are…
Geopolitics & Diplomacy Myanmar’s Divided State Leaves Thousands of its People in the Lurch
More than ten months after the coup and a protracted…
Geopolitics & Diplomacy India and the United States: Friends Elsewhere, Foes at the UN
Can India be a meaningful partner of the United States…
Defense & Security Looking Back at 2021: SAV’s Top Reads
2021 marked significant developments for South Asia. Governments contended with…
Hindi & Urdu کیا بھارت جوہری میدان میں بڑھتے سائبر سیکیورٹی چیلنجز سے نمٹ سکتا ہے؟
دنیا بھر میں سائبر سیکیورٹی ڈھانچہ زیادہ پیچیدہ ہوتا جا…