Women of Authority in Central Asian Islam
OSI-New York
October 20, 2004
Guest Speaker(s): Habiba Fathi

Author Habiba Fathi discusses her book, Femmes d’autorite dans l’Asia centrale contemporaine (Women of Authority in Contemporary Central Asia),on the role of Central Asian women in Islam.

Blood From Stones
September 17, 2004
Guest Speaker(s): Douglas Farah

Author and journalist Douglas Farah discusses "The Secret Financial Network of Terror", the financial diversification strategy that has rendered almost useless the crackdown by the U.S. government and other governments.

Shiite Islamic Politics and the Future of Iraq
July 7, 2004
Guest Speaker(s): Juan R.I. Cole

Juan Cole, an expert on modern Islamic movements, discussed the inability of the now-defunct Coalitional Provisional Authority (CPA) to deal effectively with post-war violence in Iraq, as well as the continuing impact the CPA's policies will have in coming months.

Pushing the U.S. Military to Help Harmed Civilians
OSI-New York
June 2, 2004
Guest Speaker(s): Marla Ruzicka

Marla Ruzicka, the founder of Campaign for Innocent Victims In Conflict, discussed her efforts to survey civilian casualties in Iraq and compel the U.S. government to provide compensation.

Who Lost Uzbekistan?
OSI-New York
May 19, 2004
Guest Speaker(s): David Lewis

David Lewis, the Central Asia project director of the International Crisis Group, discussed the current political, economic, and social situation in Uzbekistan, where the government has been intransigent in the face of growing popular discontent.

Islamic Terrorism, the Middle East, and Central Asia: the Elusive Connection
OSI-Washington, D.C.
May 10, 2004
Guest Speaker(s): Olivier Roy

Olivier Roy, research director in the humanities and social sciences sector of the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique in Paris, discussed links between Islamic terrorism, the Middle East, and Central Asia.

The Political Future and War Against Terrorism in Afghanistan and Pakistan
OSI-New York
February 20, 2004
Guest Speaker(s): Ahmed Rashid

Journalist Ahmed Rashid discussed issues surrounding the Afghanistan elections, still scheduled for June 2004, and U.S. policies vis a vis the current Pakistani and Central Asian regimes.

Iraq's Reconstruction and the Road to Sovereignty
OSI - New York
February 13, 2004
Guest Speaker(s): Isam al Khafaji, Ph.D.

Isam al Khafaji, a former member of the Iraq Reconstruction and Development Council and currently the Baghdad director of OSI's Iraq Revenue Watch, discussed the challenges to economic accountability in the Iraq reconstruction effort.

Press Freedom in Afghanistan
OSI-New York
November 24, 2003

Two leaders of Afghanistan’s budding independent press discussed the significant barriers to free speech that remain in place in the country more than two years after the Taliban's removal.

Petroleum and Poverty
OSI-New York
June 26, 2003
Guest Speaker(s): Ian Gary, Oliver Mokom, Svetlana Tsalik

This panel discussion focused on the "resource curse"—a pattern in which poor countries become poorer when they start selling lucrative oil exploration rights.

Business Interests and the Corruption of Law Enforcement in Uzbekistan
June 13, 2003
Guest Speaker(s): Nikolai Mitrokhin

Nikolai Mitrokhin, a human rights activist working in Uzbekistan, discussed the deep-rooted corruption of Uzbekistan's Interior Ministry.

The Battle for Civil Society in Egypt
OSI-New York
May 5, 2003
Guest Speaker(s): Saad Eddin Ibrahim

An Egyptian activist who spent nearly three years as a political prisoner discussed his strong hopes for a "democratic transformation" in the Middle East.

Building the Afghan State
OSI-New York
April 11, 2003
Guest Speaker(s): Barnett Rubin

An Afghanistan expert warned that failing to curtail the power of the country's warlords could jeopardize the successful implementation of a new constitution.

Radical Islam and Arab Nationalism
OSI-New York
April 2, 2003
Guest Speaker(s): Olivier Roy, Ph.D.

Olivier Roy, a senior researcher at the French National Center for Scientific Research, discussed terrorist groups' appeal to pan-Islamic nationalism and the failure of U.S. policy makers to fully comprehend this trend.

Oppression and Strife in Central Asia
OSI-New York
February 11, 2003
Guest Speaker(s): Yevgeny Zhovtis, Filip Noubel

The conviction of a Kazahstani journalist and domestic turmoil in Turkmenistan were the subjects of two separate forums sponsored by OSI's Central Eurasia Project.