Pakistan

Pakistan A country that came under British control in the first half of the nineteenth century, as part of British India. Its name is derived from the Urdu word pak (‘ritually pure’), and means ‘Land of the Pure’. It is also an acronym for its most important component peoples: Punjabis, Afghans, Kashmirs, Sind, and the peoples of Balukhistan. At the beginning of the twentieth century there were few moves towards independence, partly because those living in the north (Punjab and Kashmir) were great beneficiaries of the British Raj, and occupied important posts in the administration and army of British India. It was among the more disadvantaged Muslim minority in north central India that a Muslim cultural and political identity began to form, largely through reformers such as Sir Sayyid Ahmad Khan and Muhammad Iqbal, organizations such as the University of Aligarh (founded by Khan), and the Muslim League.

Under its leader, Jinnah, the Muslim League formulated demands for greater Muslim rights in a vast country in which Muslims accounted for around 25 per cent of the total population. This demand became all the more urgent with the increasing momentum of the Indian National Congress (INC) under Gandhi, which made self-government or even independence under a Hindu-dominated government all but inevitable during the 1930s. The weakness of the scattered Muslim community was demonstrated in the 1937 provincial elections, in which the Muslim League gained but 21 per cent of the seats reserved for Muslims. It had particular difficulties with its message of Muslim rights in areas with a Muslim majority, such as the Punjab or East Bengal. However, Jinnah's campaign soon gathered mass support. Agitated by the INC's failure to include members of the Muslim League in provincial governments, an isolated Jinnah developed a more radical rhetoric. The Pakistan Resolution of 23 March 1940 (also known as the Lahore Resolution) warned that if conditions for Muslims, especially in areas with a Muslim minority, did not improve, Muslims would lay claim to separate states as their homelands. The idea of separate states caught on in those areas with a Muslim majority, i.e. in the western provinces, and in East Bengal. After Nehru's awkward handling of the Cabinet Mission Plan, independence for Pakistan as a separate state was hastily pursued by Mountbatten, and was granted on 15 August 1947.

With Jinnah as first President, the new state consisted of the western Provinces of Baluchistan, Sind, Punjab, and North-West Frontier (subsequently known as West Pakistan). Separated by 1,000 miles of Indian territory was the eastern half of Bengal, which also belonged to the new state and became known as East Pakistan. The new state was confronted by a host of problems. The most immediate of these was extensive migration, as the division of British India into a Muslim and a Hindu state led to an exodus of around five million Hindus and Sikhs out of Pakistan, and the immigration of around eight million Muslims into Pakistan. Moreover, Pakistan contested its borders, as it competed with India over control of Kashmir. This has led to strained relations with India throughout its existence, and the conduct of three Indo-Pakistan Wars.

In addition to these strains, the new state also suffered from the tension between the majority of the population living in East Pakistan and the important posts in government, administration, and the military being dominated by officials from the wealthier and better-educated parts of the west. These problems were compounded by the complete lack of any tradition or history as a single, unitary state. While East Bengal was relatively homogeneous, the west consisted of regions with widely different economies and ethnicities, with different degrees of religious observance. Some of the tribes of the North-West Frontier, with their devout observance of Islam and their history of autonomy in British colonial times, contrasted with the more secular elite of the Punjab, which had been well integrated into the British administration.

The problem of finding a compromise that would create a viable, integrated, constitutional entity bedevilled the country throughout its existence. The task became more difficult after the early death of Jinnnah and then Liaquat Ali Khan, so that Pakistan continued to be ruled by the Government of India Act (1935) until 1956, when the first Constitution was passed. However, the new political settlement failed to stabilize the country sufficiently to prevent the 1958 army coup, led by Ayub Khan. Ayub Khan abolished the recently established democracy without much resistance, and devised a second constitution in 1962. His precipitation of a costly and unsuccessful war with India over Kashmir in 1965, and increasing economic difficulties, led to his resignation in 1969. Democratic elections were held in 1970, but when these were won by the Awami League in East Pakistan, the West Pakistan political establishment led by Yahya Khan refused to hand over power, and sent troops to secure control in East Pakistan instead. It caused a short but extremely violent civil war, and led, after Indian military intervention, to the independence of East Pakistan as Bangladesh in 1971.

Zulfikar Bhutto became the new President in late 1971, and created a populist, socialist regime. His programme of nationalization, public works, and independence from US financial assistance failed to overcome the effects of the oil price shock of 1973, leading Pakistan into an economic crisis instead. He was deposed in an army coup led by Zia-ul-Haq in 1977. Zia-ul-Haq improved the country's relations with the USA after the Soviet invasion of neighbouring Afghanistan in 1979, when Pakistan came to host up to three million Afghan refugees, as well as bases for Afghan guerrillas. US military and civilian aid led to high economic growth throughout the 1980s. In 1988, Zia died in a plane crash. His successor, Ishaq Khan, supervised the transition back to a democracy, with the elections won by the regal Benazir Bhutto. She failed to establish control over the country, however, and was dismissed by Khan in 1990 on charges of corruption. She was re-elected in 1993, but once again struggled to maintain control in a country plagued by crime, the international drugs trade, and the growing assertiveness of some of its provinces (Sind and Baluchistan) and tribes (North-West Frontier).

Bhutto was dismissed by President Leghari on charges on corruption and mismanagement in 1996, and was ultimately succeeded by Muhammad Nawaz Sharif in 1997. Sharif proceeded to strengthen his position by changing the constitution which limited the power of the Prime Minister. He also confronted the judiciary, which he sought to conciliate towards his policies. Finally, in 1999 he sought to introduce Islamic law throughout the country. This led to widespread demonstrations, while the deteriorating economic situation had already eroded Sharif's popular support. His order to the army to withdraw forces from Kashmir and his dismissal of Musharraf led to a successful army coup, headed by Musharraf himself. Musharraf suspended the Constitution, moved to put Pakistan's political and judicial institutions under military control, and tried to stabilize the economy to placate international creditors. After establishing control, his regime became more liberal, but it was only after the September 11 attacks that Musharraf 's regime was welcomed in the international arena. His decisive support of the US War on Terrorism brought great foreign policy benefits, and enabled him to gain badly needed international loans. His pro-US stance was criticized by many Islamic factions within Pakistan, so that it needed to be tempered by a moderate stance towards radical Islamist groups in Kashmir.

Indian Army