Thaap Conference concludes with papers on migration, transphobia and cities.

LAHORE -- The 10th Thaap Conference, held in collaboration with the Institute for Art and Culture, in Gulberg, concluded on Sunday after providing a platform to scholars and researchers to present their papers on the theme of 'Citizen and the City' for an in-depth dialogue between them and the audience.

The conference was divided into eight sessions, said a press release. The last day commenced with the seventh session, chaired by Mushtaq Soofi of the School of Culture and Language, Institute for Art and Culture.

Dr Kashif Khan presented the paper, on 'Military Offensive and Forced Migration: Analysing the Plight of the North Waziristan IDPs'.

He said the war and operation Zarb-i-Azab in North Waziristan had destroyed the social and economic life of the tribal people.

'As internally displaced persons have faced financial crises and are not able to build their destructed structures again, hence the government should reconstruct their schools, markets and hospitals on an emergency basis,' he said.

Ghiasuddin Pir and Sahar Saqlain's paper, 'Confinement and Refinement: The Origins and Evolution of Confinement Spaces for the Treatment of Mentally Challenged Citizens in Lahore, Punjab,' went through an evolutionary account of prevalent mental health disorders and associated treatments. The paper provided an overview of evolving rights and responsibilities of mentally challenged citizens through a study of the social and built environment, laws dictating the rights of the insane, historical case studies and firsthand accounts of the current members of Punjab Institute of Mental Health.

Prof Jakelin Troy's paper, titled 'Nalawangun We Remain: Aboriginal Citizens Shaping the Urban Dynamics of Sydney, Australia,' presented a case for the important continuing presence of the aboriginal traditional owners of Sydney, helping to maintain and renew their language and cultural life. The eighth session was chaired by Syed Faisal Sajjad, head of Department, of Architecture, National College of Arts, Lahore. Asad Ahmed presented his paper, titled 'Urban Transphobia in Cityscapes...