‘Karachi fertile ground for sociology to take root’

KARACHI: Dr Faiza Mushtaq is a sociologist currently serving as the Dean and Executive Director of the Indus Valley School (IVS) of Art and Architecture. With a strong academic background in sociology, she spearheaded the growth of the Department of Social Sciences and Liberal Arts at the Institute of Business Administration (IBA) Karachi as its chairperson from May 2016 to August 2020.

Prior to her chairpersonship at the IBA, she served as a professional lecturer at the George Washington University’s Department of Sociology in 2014 and as a research associate at the Collective for Social Science Research, Karachi from 2008 to 2011.

Her research interests include cultural sociology, religious and social movements, gender, social theory and qualitative methods in social sciences. As IVS dean, Dr Mushtaq focuses on strengthening the liberal arts component of the educational institution and the continued development of a rigorous academic environment for students.

The renowned sociologist spoke to Bol News about the patterns of social relationships in arguably one of the world’s most diverse and rapidly changing cities.

There are many areas in sociology that affect developed countries and, likewise, developing countries. Which areas are of keen interest for sociologists in Karachi?

Karachi is a large, diverse and rapidly changing city; and it is a sociologist’s dream setting in many ways. Urbanisation, migration, ethnic conflict and community-building as well as evolving gender roles, the informal economy, housing and urban services are some of the areas social scientists are keen on studying. There is much to study and understand here that the list is never-ending. The sociologists also take interest in learning about collective action and mobilisation, youth subcultures and new cultural forms as well as formal and informal social organisations.

This is not simply a testing ground for sociological theories and concepts that are coming to us from cities of the developed world. Karachi offers fertile ground for new and innovative theorising as well.

What is the urban welfare system of Karachi? How is it unique (or similar) to other major cities in the country?

The failures of planning and governance have been quite stark in Karachi over the past many decades, and as a result, the civic infrastructure and public welfare services in the city are severely lacking. It is certainly not a problem that is unique to Karachi, but it is important to realise that this is a political issue and can only be resolved if the political will is there to bring structural changes. The residents of this city deserve a lot better in terms of adequate affordable housing, public transport, water, health and education, roads and sewerage, and security.

We often hear from Sindh government officials about the ‘improved service delivery’ in departments such as police, health and education. How different or similar are these claims from the reality of Karachi’s average citizen?

What is the baseline that we are comparing these improvements to? And when can we declare that we have reached levels that are adequate for the majority of the population? There is still a long way to go before there is equitable access to most of these services.

Owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, people have learnt about the need for localised interventions and not just national response. How has Karachi fared in this regard? What efforts helped and what made life difficult for Karachi’s citizens? What do the people do to finally end all their virus-related constraints in preparation for a post-pandemic 2022 or 2023?

I am part of a research project where we have been studying the impact of the coronavirus disease on families and communities in Karachi. Our team is trying to understand how they have responded to the crisis. The messaging from the state was confused and gave mixed information about the virus and the risks of transmission. And, frankly speaking, the tussle between the Sindh and federal governments did not help. Many people ended up not taking preventive measures seriously and, where they did, local kinship networks and communities played a bigger role in providing trusted information.

We find that women, the youth, and the elderly suffered more during the periods of isolation and lockdown, and women especially ended up shouldering more of the burden of providing additional care for family members. Recognising these disparities is important so that state and non-state interventions and resources can be targeted appropriately.

Apart from bureaucratisation, what other processes affect Karachi/Sindh’s youth?

Young people today live in a more mobile and connected world than previous generations, and that affects how they form friendships, their expectations from education and careers, and their aspirations in life. There are many new practices and norms they are exposed to, but ultimately it also matters whether the institutions around them are evolving or are resistant to change. This can lead to frustrations and conflicts, but also to creative negotiations.

Which old and new (or emerging) urban issues in Karachi/Sindh have come to the fore as gender-based issues?

Pretty much every practice and issue have a gendered dimension to it. Which ones get recognised as being problematic and inspire demands for collective change is something that keeps changing. If you look at the current wave of gender-based and women’s rights activism in Pakistan, you’ll see that the issues they are highlighting are broad-based, including flawed legal protections against violence, workplace discrimination and harassment, the right to access public space, the right to housing and dignity of labour, the impact of the climate crisis, and so on.

Crime is a serious issue affecting the country, but most reports indicate rising cases in Sindh. How does crime in Karachi’s urban environment affect different social groups?

This goes back to the issue of political fragmentation and inadequate governance in Karachi. This means that the state is not doing an adequate job of providing security and protection to all citizens. Ethnic, community-based, neighbourhood-level, and other informal organisations step in to fill the vacuum, but different ones have different capacities. Generally, elite social groups are better positioned to buy protection and live in gated communities while more vulnerable groups — including gender and sexual minorities — suffer more from crime and insecurity.

The climate crisis as the latest global problem has affected urban societies everywhere. The depletion, disappearance and even collapse has caused all kinds of losses for different stakeholders. How have the people in Karachi/Sindh engaged with their loss(es)?

The urban as well as the rural communities across Karachi and Sindh are going to feel the impact of the climate crisis and environmental damage. The heatwaves and floods are one example. The coastal communities have been hit hard by the devastation of ecosystems and the loss of livelihoods. Water and energy shortages are very real threats for all of us. Individual and community level adaptations are important, but cannot achieve much without large-scale crisis-mitigation measures at the state level.

Are there any positive/negative transformations in society that go undiscussed? Any new solidarities/bonding/social connections that have emerged?

I see signs of hope when I see students and young people becoming active in movements for student rights, gender rights, standing up for injustice against marginalised groups, and becoming politically informed. Collective action is an important mechanism for any kind of positive social change to emerge, and it has been deliberately suppressed in our country in the recent past.

Of course, there are many more young people who still don’t have access to opportunities, to education — especially of the kind that will teach them critical thinking and will empower them, and who face systematic marginalisation in this society. And that is something that needs to be immediately addressed.