Masuma Hasan

Last updated

Masuma Hasan is a Pakistani civil servant, diplomat, and scholar who serves as Chairman of The Pakistan Institute of International Affairs and President of the Board of Governors of Aurat (Women's) Foundation. In her public service career, she rose to the position of Cabinet Secretary, the highest post in the civil service. She was Pakistan's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office in Vienna (UNOV), where she chaired the Group 77 nations, and was the first woman faculty member to head a management and consultancy organization in the public sector. Her struggle to make a place for herself in the patriarchal administrative and political system in her country has become a landmark in the larger movement for gender equality and women's rights.

Contents

Family

Masuma Hasan, born 30 April 1941 in Delhi, British India, is the eldest child and only daughter of Sarwar Hasan and Sughra Begum. Their family was one of the oldest settled families of northern India and claim descent from Abdullah Ansari [1] Pir of Herat. [2] Her ancestor, Khwaja Malik Ali, migrated to India from Herat in Khorasan on the invitation of Emperor Balban in 1286. In recognition of his learning, Balban bestowed upon him vast estates and judicial office in Panipat. [3] They were a family of scholars and jurists and practiced hikmat, and scholarship has remained their hallmark throughout.

The members of the family journeyed to other parts of India in search of education and livelihood but retained their link with Panipat for 700 years. However, during Partition, they were uprooted and forced to migrate to Pakistan, abandoning their homes and vast estates. [4]

Masuma Hasan's parents settled in Karachi in August 1947. Her father was a barrister and the founder of the independent Pakistan Institute of International Affairs, the oldest think tank in Pakistan. [5] His seminal work was Pakistan and the United Nations [6] She was brought up in a cultural fusion of family traditions and modern learning. In her education and upbringing, she was greatly influenced by her father's liberalism, his belief in democratic values and the rule of law, and his love and admiration for Muslim civilization in the Indian subcontinent.

Education

As her parents sank their roots in their new land, Masuma Hasan enrolled to study at St. Joseph's Convent High School, founded in 1862 and run by nuns belonging to the Belgian Order of the Daughters of the Cross, and St. Joseph's College for Girls. She earned her Master's degree in political science from the University of Karachi in 1962, obtaining first position. The same year, she went on a government scholarship to the University of Cambridge, UK, where she completed her PhD in Politics under the supervision of the eminent historian, Nicholas Mansergh. Nicholas Mansergh was the Editor-in-Chief of the monumental 12 volumes of the The Transfer of Power in India 1942-47 (London, HMSO, 1979-1983). The subject of her doctoral thesis was 'The Transfer of Power to Pakistan and its Consequences [7] .'

Public service career

She joined the public service in Pakistan in 1967 as a faculty member of the National Institute of Public Administration (NIPA) Karachi, rising to the post of director, the first woman and faculty member to occupy that position in any official management and consultancy institution. [8] Later, she held senior positions in the Management Services Division.

In 1995, she was appointed Pakistan's multilateral and bilateral ambassador to Vienna. She was Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office in Vienna (UNOV), the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and other international organizations in Vienna, including those dealing with drugs and outer space. She also served as Ambassador to Austria, Slovenia, and Slovakia. She chaired the Group of 77 at the United Nations in Vienna in 1996, the first woman diplomat to chair any Group of 77 chapter.

In 2000, she was appointed Cabinet Secretary to the Pakistan government, the highest post in the civil service. At that time, she was the senior-most civil servant in Pakistan. [9]

As Cabinet Secretary, she facilitated and piloted two important national decisions:

In 1969, she married Fatehyab Ali Khan, a political activist who led the movement of the youth against the dictatorship of General Ayub Khan in 1960-62. [12] He later became president of the Pakistan Mazdoor Kissan Party and was a prominent leader of the Movement for Restoration of Democracy (MRD) , 1980-88, against the dictatorship of General Ziaul Haq. Her husband's political commitments and numerous prison terms cast a long shadow on her career. During the MRD, she was sent on compulsory leave and transferred to Islamabad while her husband was in prison. The decade of the 1980s was particularly harsh for her family as she was constantly under surveillance, frequently transferred, and had to leave her two young children behind in Karachi.

Contribution to Academia and Reforms

Masuma Hasan was a member of the Aga Khan University's International Task Force on the Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilizations (ISMC) (1999-2001) and a member of Aga Khan University's Thinking Group on the Graduate School of Public Policy (GSC) (2016-18). She has been closely associated with her alma mater, the University of Karachi, as a member of its Syndicate (1998-2000) and currently serves on its Senate, Syndicate, and Selection Board. She was also a member of the Senate of the Federal Urdu University of Arts Science and Technology (FUUAST) (2011-18) and served on the boards of Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) Islamabad (2003-10) and the Institute of Business Administration, Karachi. The Government of Pakistan appointed her as a member of its Services Reforms Commission (1991-1994).

Public interest commitments

Publications

She is Editor-in-Chief of Pakistan Horizon , the quarterly journal of The Pakistan Institute of International Affairs, and editor of Pakistan in a Changing World, which was favorably reviewed by International Affairs [15] . She is also the author of articles on international relations and management issues, and she edited The Pakistan Journal of Public Administration for many years. Her book, Pakistan in an Age of Turbulence, was published by Pen and Sword History, UK, in 2022.

Awards

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Altaf Hussain Hali</span> Urdu poet

Altaf Hussain Hali, also known as Maulana Khawaja Hali, was an Urdu poet and writer.

Agha Hasan Abedi, was a Pakistani banker and convicted felon who founded Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) and saw its collapse after one of the biggest banking fraud scandals in history was unearthed. Before his death, he was convicted by the United Arab Emirates court of fraud and sentenced to eight years in prison. Abedi also founded United Bank Limited. Abedi underwent a heart transplant operation in 1988, and died of a heart attack on 5 August 1995 in Karachi.

The Pakistan Institute of International Affairs is a non-profit, non-governmental organization based in Karachi whose mission is to analyse and promote the understanding of major international issues and current affairs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mazar-e-Quaid</span> Mausoleum of Muhammad Ali Jinnah in Karachi, Pakistan

Mazar-e-Quaid, also known as Jinnah Mausoleum or the National Mausoleum, is the final resting place of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan. Designed in a 1960s modernist style, it was completed in 1971, and is an iconic symbol of Karachi as well as one of the most popular tourist sites in the city. The mausoleum complex also contains the tomb of Jinnah's sister, Māder-e Millat Fatima Jinnah, as well as those of Liaquat Ali Khan and Nurul Amin, the first and eighth Prime Ministers of Pakistan respectively. The tomb of Sardar Abdur Rab Nishtar, a stalwart of the Muslim League from Peshawar, is also located there.

Nawabzada Mirza Jamiluddin Ahmed Khan PP, HI, also known as Jamiluddin Aali or Aaliji, was a Pakistani poet, critic, playwright, essayist, columnist, and scholar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bushra Ansari</span> Pakistani actress (born 1956)

Bushra Ansari is a Pakistani actress, comedian, singer, and playwright in Punjabi and Urdu cinema, who started her career as a child performer in the 1960s. Ansari won numerous awards during her career, including the Presidential Pride of Performance Award in 1989 for her contributions to Pakistani television.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abdul Majeed Khwaja</span> Indian lawyer and activist (1885–1962)

Abdul Majeed Khwaja was an Indian lawyer, educationist, social reformer and freedom fighter from Aligarh. In 1920, he along with others founded Jamia Millia Islamia and later served its vice chancellor and chancellor.

Uzma Alkarim is a female Pakistani news anchor, program host, and senior producer. She was an early news anchor on Geo News when Geo TV was launched. As a senior anchor and senior producer, she interviews numerous persons.

Women's Action Forum (WAF) is a women's rights organization in Pakistan.

The Aligarh Movement was the push to establish a modern system of Western-style scientific education for the Muslim population of British India, during the later decades of the 19th century. The movement's name derives from the fact that its core and origins lay in the city of Aligarh in Central India and, in particular, with the foundation of the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College in 1875. The founder of the oriental college, and the other educational institutions that developed from it, was Sir Syed Ahmed Khan. He became the leading light of the wider Aligarh Movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tahira Abdullah</span> Pakistani activist

Tahira Abdullah is a Pakistani human rights activist, women's rights activist, social scientist and supporter of gender equality. She is based in Islamabad.

Khalida Hussain was a Pakistani fiction writer and novelist of Urdu. She introduced a new trend in Urdu fiction writing, she mostly wrote stories on real life and was regarded as the best fiction writer in Pakistan after Intizar Hussain. Khalida's novel Kaghazi Ghat was her last novel in Urdu Literature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aurat March</span> Annual Pakistani womens rights marches

The Aurat March is an annual socio-political demonstration in Pakistani cities such as Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Multan, Peshawar and Islamabad to observe International Women's Day.

Ismat Raza Shahjahan is a socialist-feminist political leader from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. She is the president of Women Democratic Front (WDF), the deputy general-secretary of the Awami Workers Party (AWP), and a leading member of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM).

Girls at Dhabas is a multi-city feminist initiative in Pakistan that raises a conversation on women’s access to public space. Dhabas is a local term for roadside tea-shops that are traditionally male-dominated domains in South Asia. The efforts went viral in 2015 and gained significant traction from women across South Asia who were encouraged to photograph themselves at dhabas and upload the pictures on social media using the hashtag #girlsatdhabas, sharing their personal narratives, reflections and stories re-examining their relationship with public space. The viral campaign led to organized gatherings and offline events, from cricket playing in the streets, bike rallies in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad, and various community-building dialogues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jalila Haider</span> Pakistani human rights lawyer

Jalila Haider is a Pakistani human rights attorney and political activist from Quetta in Balochistan, Pakistan. She is known to be the first woman lawyer from Quetta's Hazara minority, and an advocate for the rights of her persecuted community. She is a member of the Awami Workers Party (AWP), leader of the Balochistan chapter of Women Democratic Front (WDF), and also an activist in the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM). She founded a non-profit organisation, "We the Humans – Pakistan," which aims to empower local communities in Balochistan by strengthening opportunities for vulnerable women and children.

The Aurat Azadi March was started in 2018 in Pakistan by members of Women Democratic Front, other organizations like Women's Action Forum, Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls alliance, Young Teachers Association, Home-Based Women Workers Union, Awami Workers Party, Awami Jamhoori Party also joined the march on International Women's Day in Islamabad. Aurat Azadi March and Aurat March are organized by different groups of women since 2018. Aurat Azadi March is organized by group of socialist feminists whereas Aurat March is organized by group of liberal feminists. Aurat March was also started the same year by the group of individual women known as "Hum Aurtein" collective in Karachi and Lahore.

Amna Mawaz Khan is a Pakistani dancer, theatre artist, feminist and political worker. She is founding member of Women Democratic Front.

The Ansaris of Panipat are descended from Khwaja Abdullah Pir of Herat, one of whose descendants settled in Panipat, which was a centre of learning and was already famous for its Mashaikh and Auliya.

References

  1. ↑ Serge de Laugier, Beaurecueil (1976). Abdullah Ansari: A Profile, Abdullah Ansari and Other Sufis of Afghanistan. Kabul.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  2. ↑ Farhandi, A.G. Ravan (1996). Abdullah Ansari of Herat: An Earlter y Sufi Mas. London: Curzon Press.
  3. ↑ Ali Khan, Khwaja Fazli. Tarikh-o-Nasb Khwajgan-e-Panipat. Gazetteer of the Karnal District 1883-1884 (Reprint, Lahore: Sang-e- Meel, 2001); Nasbnama-e-Ansar-e-Panipat, also known as Nasbnama-e-Haideriya.
  4. ↑ Hasan, Khwaja Azhar (1991). Tazkira-e-Shehr-Marhum. Lahore.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  5. ↑ Hasan, K. Sarwar (2008). "The Pakistan Institute of International Affairs: How it was Established". Pakistan Horizon. 61: 1–2.
  6. ↑ Hasan, Khwaja Sarwar (1960). Pakistan and the United Nations. New York: Manhattan Publishing Company.
  7. ↑ "Ground breaking chapter on the Punjab Boundary Commission published in Pakistan in a Changing World". Karachi: The Pakistan Institute of International Affairs. 1978.
  8. ↑ "Masooma appointed Ambassador". Dawn. 9 August 1994.
  9. ↑ "Islamabad notification". Establishment Division. 10 October 1993.
  10. ↑ "The Report of the Commission of Inquiry-1971 War". Main Report, and Commission of Inquiry 1971, Supplementary Report.
  11. ↑ "Cabinet Division's press release on declassification". Dawn. 20 December 2000.
  12. ↑ "For coverage of this movement, see Dawn for March 1961; September 1962; and October 1962. Also Husain Naqi, 'Students' struggle in historical perspective', 10 November 2011, in pakistanhorizon.wordpress.com and S. Akhtar Ehtisham, Across Three Continents: A South Asian View, n.d.".
  13. ↑ "(a) Dr. Masuma Hasan, 'Mainstreaming Rights of Widows and Single Women in Public Policy', 2012, pakistanhorizon.wordpress.com (b) The Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Act, 2013 passed by the Sindh Assembly on 8 March 2013. Laws (c) Naeem Mirza, 'Seven pro-women's in seven years', Legislative Watch (Aurat Foundation), Issue No. 38, December 2011".
  14. ↑ "Supreme Court declares dissolution of PIIA as violative of fundamental rights, Star (Karachi), 6 December 1993. PIIA Ord violates fundamental rights', Dawn, 6 December 1993".
  15. ↑ Kiernan, V.G. "Pakistan in a Changing World/Bangladesh Today, Book Review". International Affairs. 55 (4): 636–637. doi:10.2307/2617110. JSTOR   2617110.
  16. ↑ "Woman of the year Award". Daily Jang. 18 January 1995.
  17. ↑ "Masuma named goodwill ambassador". Islamabad. Dawn. 14 July 2014.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.