political instability in pakistan essay 200 words

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Analyzing Political Instability in Pakistan

By Muhammad Younus 

Pakistan, a country no stranger to political instability and terrorism, finds itself once again grappling with a deepening crisis of political uncertainty, economic volatility, and resurging terrorism. 

The late tensions between former Prime Government PTI and the army chief Gen. Asim Munir have only exacerbated an already precarious situation. Pakistan’s political landscape has long been characterized by a tumultuous nature, with periods of instability interspersed throughout its history. However, the previous year has been particularly turbulent, as the ousting of Prime Minister Imran Khan through a vote of no confidence and the subsequent formation of a new government have plunged the country into a severe economic and political crisis. The power struggle between different political factions has caused widespread political uncertainty and public unrest, exacerbating the already fragile state of affairs. As the country navigates through these tumultuous times, it becomes imperative to analyze the underlying causes and consequences of political instability in Pakistan.

The influence of the military on political affairs has been a recurring theme in Pakistan’s history. Pakistan was formed as a democratic country in 1947, but its first decade was marked by political instability, weak governments, and a power struggle between different political forces, including the military and bureaucracy. In 1958, the military staged a successful coup, overthrowing the elected government and establishing military rule, which continued for several decades. 

The military has played a prominent role in shaping the country’s political landscape, often exerting its influence behind the scenes. This military intervention has resulted in power imbalances, weakened democratic institutions, and hindered the country’s path towards stable governance. The constant power struggle between civilian governments and the military has created a cycle of instability, where political parties, once in power, are reluctant to challenge military interference, fearing retaliation or a loss of support. This dynamic not only undermines the democratic principles but also perpetuates a culture of political uncertainty and mistrust among the general public

During the 1980s and 1990s, there were sporadic attempts to restore democracy, but these were often hampered by political unrest, corruption, and the continuing influence of the military. It was not until the late 1990s that a more sustained effort was made to establish a stable and functioning democratic system in Pakistan.

Since then, Pakistan has had several periods of democratic rule, with alternations of power between different political parties.

The impact of political instability extends far beyond the realm of politics. It directly affects the country’s internal security, with dire consequences for the safety and well-being of its citizens. Pakistan already grapples with a volatile security situation, exacerbated by the recent Taliban takeover of neighboring Afghanistan. The power vacuum created by the Taliban’s resurgence has emboldened extremist groups within Pakistan, posing a significant threat to national security. The rise in terrorism activities has not only claimed innocent lives but has also undermined the efforts to establish peace and stability within the region. Abdul Basit, a prominent security analyst, warns, “The ongoing political instability in Pakistan has further strained the country’s internal security apparatus, making it more vulnerable to terrorist activities.” The heavy presence of troops on the streets of major cities indicates the gravity of the security situation, as they are prime targets for terrorist attacks.

Years of propaganda and distorted narratives have shaped the understanding of the country’s challenges among its citizens, leading to a skewed narrative that focuses primarily on political corruption while overshadowing other pressing concerns such as low literacy rates, inadequate healthcare, and poverty. This narrative problem has created an environment ripe for conspiracy theories and misinformation, resulting in a misalignment of priorities and hindering efforts to address the root causes of political instability. Overcoming this narrative problem requires a collective effort from all stakeholders, including the media, civil society, and educational institutions, to promote a more accurate and comprehensive understanding of the challenges faced by Pakistan.

A robust and inclusive democratic system is crucial in mitigating political instability. Creating a level playing field for all political parties, allowing fair competition and representation, is an essential aspect of strengthening democratic institutions. The International Crisis Group highlights the importance of enhancing democratic institutions and promoting electoral reforms, as it can help reduce political tensions and enhance the credibility of the electoral process. By ensuring transparency, inclusivity, and fairness in elections, Pakistan can lay the foundation for a more stable and democratic political system.

Corruption, another significant contributing factor to political instability, needs to be addressed effectively. Implementing measures to promote transparency and accountability is vital in combating corruption and restoring public trust in the political system. Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index underscores the correlation between corruption levels and political stability. By enacting and enforcing strong anti-corruption laws, establishing independent anti-corruption bodies, and ensuring their effective implementation, Pakistan can tackle this critical issue and create a more transparent and accountable governance framework.

Political instability often arises from a lack of communication and cooperation among state institutions and political actors. Encouraging dialogue and consensus-building is instrumental in fostering a unified approach towards governance and policy making. The successful implementation of the National Action Plan (NAP) in Pakistan, aimed at countering terrorism, serves as an example of the positive outcomes achieved through collaborative efforts among political parties, the military, and civil society. Such consensus-building measures can strengthen governance, improve decision-making processes, and contribute to long-term political stability.

Extremist ideologies and sectarian tensions pose significant threats to political stability in Pakistan. To address this challenge, comprehensive efforts must be made to counter radicalization and promote tolerance and inclusivity. Drawing from the example of the National Counter Extremism Policy in the United Kingdom, targeted interventions, community engagement, and de-radicalization programs can play a vital role in countering extremism. Customizing such programs to the Pakistani context and fostering a more tolerant and inclusive society can help mitigate the risks of political instability associated with extremist ideologies.

Addressing the underlying causes of political instability in Pakistan necessitates comprehensive reforms to improve governance, economic stability, and social welfare. Strong governance structures, equitable economic policies, and investments in education and healthcare are crucial in tackling the socio-economic disparities that contribute to instability. Research conducted by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) emphasizes the positive correlation between good governance, socio-economic development, and political stability. By implementing structural reforms, promoting equitable economic growth, and prioritizing investments in key sectors, Pakistan can create a more stable and prosperous society.

To conclude, addressing political instability in Pakistan requires concerted efforts to overcome the narrative problem, strengthen democratic institutions, combat corruption, foster dialogue and consensus-building, counter extremist ideologies, and implement comprehensive reforms. These collective actions, guided by the principles of transparency, inclusivity, and democratic values, can pave the way for a stable and prosperous Pakistan. As Nelson Mandela once said, “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” Let us remain hopeful and resolute in our pursuit of a brighter future, where political stability, economic prosperity, and social harmony prevail. Together, we can overcome the challenges and forge a new narrative of hope, resilience, and progress for Pakistan and its people.

Author: Muhammad Younus –  Student of International Relations at university of Balochistan. His areas of interest are foreign policy analysis, Diplomacy, Strategic studies, international political Economy, National security policy and cyber warfare. 

(The views expressed in this article belong  only to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy or views of World Geostrategic Insights ). 

Image Credit: AFP 

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Pakistan: Political Instability and Economic Growth

• Mehwish Hakeem Shahzad
• December 24, 2022
• CSS , CSS Essays , CSS Solved Essays , Current Affairs , PMS , PMS Essays , Socio-economic problems
• 41680 Views

Can Political Instability and Economic Growth Not Move Together in Pakistan? | CSS Essays | PMS Essays | Essays by Sir Syed Kazim Ali | CSS Essays | PMS Essays | Essays by Sir Syed Kazim Ali

Mehwish Shahzad has attempted this essay on the given pattern, which Sir  Syed Kazim Ali  teaches his students, who have consistently been qualifying their CSS and PMS essays. The essay is uploaded to help other competitive aspirants learn and practice how to write a comprehensive outline; how to write bullets in an outline; how to write the introductory paragraph; how to connect sentences and paragraphs; how to write a topic sentence; how to put evidence within the paragraphs.

1- Introduction 2- Understanding the relationship between political instability and economic growth 3- Current situation of political instability in Pakistan and its impact on the economy 4- How are political instability and economic growth can never move together?

• ✓ Inconsistent Economic policies, every new government abandoning the previous government’s economic projects due to their narrow mindedness GDP rate of 6.8% in the era of Ayub’s regime due to consistency in the policies
• ✓ Increasing unemployment owing to a decline in developmental and economic projects, a significant setback to the human capital due to political turmoil Political instability, the third most significant obstacle in the way of development, Word bank report
• ✓ Skyrocketing inflation due to the mismanagement and short-term policies of the government, declining rupee value Double-digit inflation increased to 24.9%, PBS report
• ✓ The gradual decay of economic institutions in the hand of politicians impeding economic progress Tarbela Hydropower project investigation in the NAB for corruption of Rs. 753 Mn by WAPDA
• ✓ Interrupting GDP growth, business, and trade activities due to riots and strikes by the frustrating people, a result of the political fiasco Unrest events leading to a 1% reduction in GDP, Survey report

5- How to ensure political stability for economic progress?

Political level

• ✓ Proper charter of economy, a national document for the country’s salvation by the consensus of all the political parties
• ✓ Long-term vision by the top leadership to foster political and economic stability and to avoid frequent ousters 
• ✓ Encouraging public participation to hold politicians accountable for immature and self-interest policies

Economic level

• ✓ Broadening of the tax base with the help of political commitment, leading to political and economic prosperity
• ✓ Shifting from a geostrategic to the geo-economic hub, a welcome initiative for the country’s political and economic progress
• ✓ Implementing CPEC projects effectively to engender economic growth

6- Critical Analysis 7- Conclusion

The economy is a country’s backbone, helping it march towards unsurpassable social and political development. However, political instability serves as a bottleneck to a state’s socioeconomic and political lifelines. Unfortunately, Pakistan also stands among those states where political upheaval has led the economy towards shambles. The current political scenario is the nadir of the country’s economic history. Since it is a fact that both cannot go hand in hand; the existence of one is the death of the other. It is saddening that frequent ouster of government leads to inconsistent economic policies affecting the smooth functioning of the economy since its inception. Moreover, increasing unemployment, skyrocketing inflation, and declining FDI result from political chaos since investors never invest in an uncertain political environment. Riots and strikes further interrupt business activities affecting the GDP of the country. Political turmoil has paved its way in the roots of the economy, damaging the economic institutions of Pakistan. It shows that political stability and economic prosperity have a symbiotic relationship. Both can work only in the shadow of each other, benefitting from each other at every turn. Therefore, pragmatic measures at the political and economic levels can help the country cope with political instability. At the political level, introducing an ethical charter of the economy as a national document, coupled with long-term vision by the top leaders and public participation, is imperative. At the economic level, widening the tax base, shifting to a geo-economic pivot, and implementing CPEC can engender economic growth. In the contemporary world, Pakistan can only progress if the country pulls itself out of these political clinches. Thus, the essay comprehensively analyses how political instability and economic growth can never move together. Also, it highlights the way forward to ensure political stability for economic progress. 

Political instability is the propensity of a government to collapse either because of poor economic performance or rampant competition between various political parties. On the other hand, economic growth implies improvements in a country’s national income, leading to good economic conditions for the people. However, a country with a strong and stable political structure can experience steady economic growth. Indeed, a robust, safe environment where a political authority knows its duties and responsibilities eliminates the uncertainty of the economic future. In the same way, the economy in support of such a strong political environment will ensure steady growth. However, unstable structures in politics, of course, is the most critical factor affecting the economic stability of a state since political stability is the precondition to economic stability. Ray Jovanovich aptly said,  “Without political stability, there can be no economic prosperity; that’s the bottom line.”

At present, political instability has become a matter of grave sickness for Pakistan. Since the recent ouster of the prime minister through the vote of no confidence has led a country towards instability and chaos. It has pushed the country to the brink of an implosion. Political instability manifests itself in Pakistan, including blame games, institutional decay, rising inflation, economic woes, and a tussle between the judiciary and executive. It casts dire consequences on the people’s political and economic development and social life. As a result, Markets expected Pakistan to be another Sri Lanka in the making. Since Pakistan has faced an acute foreign currency shortage after political instability, things may lead to a similar crisis in Sri Lanka. It is high time Pakistan swallowed the bitter pill of hard political reforms before it is too late.

Here, it is important to discuss that political instability and economic growth can never move together. Nevertheless, its effects are too severe to be ignored. Some of them will be brought under discussion in this section. To begin with, political instability leads to the switching of economic policies. When it came to power, every new government introduced its own economic model, which created volatility and inconsistency in the smooth functioning of the economic policies. As a result, investors feel reluctant to invest in such a volatile economy, which ultimately affects a country’s economic progress.  It is evident that economic growth in military regimes was better than that of democratic regimes due to their long tenure. The GDP rate was 6.8% during Ayub’s regime since dictators had long terms leading to consistency in the economic policies.  Hence, political unrest can never let the economy function smoothly. 

Moreover, political instability reduces a country’s foreign direct investment (FDI). Since investors does not feel comfortable to invest in a country with political uncertainty.  According to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), due to the recent ouster of the national government, investors withdrew their investment of $30 Million in the account of FDI . Moreover, it has multiplier effects, such as low investment in a country leading to low development, increased unemployment, increased poverty, and reduced foreign exchange reserves. Hence, it is proven that political chaos in a country is a severe blow to an already fragile economy. 

Both of the above arguments lead to another significant discussion, which befalls Pakistan’s economy in the shape of unemployment. In a developing country like Pakistan, no new projects can be installed in a deteriorating political condition. Similarly, it does not create new jobs in a country since it halts the expansion of existing projects.  According to World Bank, political uncertainty is the third most significant obstacle to Pakistan’s economy . It can impact not only the productivity and expenditure of a country but also the national income of a country. Thus, it depicts clearly that political instability and economic growth cannot go hand in hand. 

With this puzzle, the issue of rising inflation during political chaos hits below the belt of Pakistan’s economy. When there is a high probability of being replaced, it becomes difficult to manage inflation. As a result, it depreciates the value of the domestic currency and, eventually, impacts the import and exports of a country.  According to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), the annual inflation rate increased to 24.9% in July 2022, soon after the regime change. It was even expected to grow, which has dire consequences for the economy.  Hence, frequent cabinet changes and political turmoil are directly correlated to a country’s economic woes. 

Along with the mismanagement of inflation, the economic institutions of a country are also decaying in the hands of corrupt politicians. The economic institutions, including WAPDA, finance, commerce, textile, and industry, are all decaying due to incompetence, corruption, and ineptness.  Recently, the WAPDA chairman appeared before the National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) office where he was interrogated about corruption worth Rs753 million in the Tarbela Fourth Hydropower project.  They invest only half on the ongoing projects, and the remaining half is pocketed for their use. Hence, this poor management, corruption, and inability caused stagnation of the economic process to a devastating end.

Last but most certainly not least, the riots and strikes due to political fiasco led to the closure of business and trade activities, interrupting the GDP growth.  According to a survey title ‘The Economics of Social Unrest’, “on average, unrest events caused a 1% decline in the GDP.” For Pakistan, the long political unrest could cause a major dent in GDP growth.  Political instability is common, followed by riots and strikes by the people. As a result, it halted business and trade activities. And it generated a negative signal to the investors, who consequently stopped investing in such a risky environment and shifted their business to other countries, affecting the economic progress.  

Pakistan’s current federal and provincial governments need to go beyond firefighting and push forward essential reforms at the political and economic levels that are key to ensuring the country’s political and economic stability and long-term growth prospects.  First,  there must be a charter of the economy for economic stability. All stakeholders should be a part making of the alliance. In this regard, government and the opposition should collaborate to steer the country out of unprecedented political and economic uncertainties. The basic goals should be set in the charter of the economy. Those goals shall remain unchanged in the case of the new government.  Recently, trade unions and business leaders had a meeting with the government and political parties to insist the government for the making of the charter.  Hence, it depicts that they already realized this step’s importance.

Second, political parties should sit together and carve out a long-term vision to foster political and economic development. The leadership formulates and executes the strategy through which a leader’s vision translates into a reality.  For instance, Deng Xiaoping changed China through his visionary leadership. He changed all the policies of the previous communist leader Mao Zedong; he introduced many reforms and engagements with the international community. Within a decade, he uplifted China out of the socioeconomic crisis. As a result, the per capita income of the Chinese was 25-fold, and 700 million people lifted themselves out of poverty.  Hence, fine-tuning the policies is necessary for political and economic growth.

Third, public participation should be encouraged since it can pull the country out of the political darkness. The active role of the public in politics would hold politicians accountable. As a result, they never skip from the pro-state attitude; and they never make immature and self-interest policies.  As Abraham Lincoln aptly says, “we the people are the rightful masters of congress and the courts.”  Therefore, public participation is significant for a country’s lasting political and economic system. 

At the economic level, the government needs to broaden the tax base bringing every sector and every individual above the threshold level under the tax net. It will help the government to reduce the budget deficit by up to 3% of the GDP in the next three years. This step would relieve the government from the budget deficit issue, and they can fully focus on the other issues of the economy. R ecently, amid the global crisis, Jordon pushed the tax ratio to six per cent, Egypt by three per cent and the Philippines by two per cent.  Pakistan can also do the same with the help of strong political commitment and stringent reforms. 

Next, the strategic shift from geo-strategic to geo-economic is a welcome and sound initiative by the government to realize Pakistan’s real potential. However, the government should need to formulate a proper strategy to implement it. Since the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) will connect Asia with Africa and Europe, Pakistan has a crucial role to play in it due to its strategic location.  As Chinese president Xi Jinping aptly says, “the BRI may be China’s idea, but its opportunities are going to benefit the entire world.”  Therefore, this project should be of prime importance to Pakistan’s government. Currently, it is the only way in the hand of Pakistan to realize its investment potential and achieve economic growth.

Last but certainly not least, China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is the harbinger of robust economic growth, and it is only possible through its proper implementation. Therefore, the government is required to fully focus on it and make sure that political upheaval would have no impact on it.  So far, it is estimated that USD 64 billion worth of foreign investment will arrive through China’s megaproject.  Therefore, it is high time for Pakistan to avail of this opportunity for investment to achieve economic progress. For this, Pakistan should build the trust of the industrialists and investors of this project and showcase itself as a safe haven for these investors. 

In a critical diagnosis, various elements in the country have remained responsible for the worsened political scenario of the country. First and foremost is the role of military leadership in interfering in the country’s political affairs. Initially, it was directly involved in politics through martial law, and recently, it stayed backstage but still manoeuvred with the system. The successive military coups have not led a genuinely representative political culture to develop in Pakistan, thus, impacting the political stability. Moreover, the power play between the opposition party and the government has primarily affected the country’s political system. the main objective to gain power has blinded them to the country’s national interest. Therefore, their strategies to weaken each other have negatively impacted the political stability in Pakistan, hindering economic growth.

In conclusion, it is no exaggeration to say that political instability and economic growth can never move together. However, Pakistan can move towards economic development by overcoming the challenge of political instability in valid letters and spirit. For that matter, the government needs to make a plan to overcome the issue of political unrest in a country, not only at the political and economic levels. A proper charter of the economy by the consensus of all the political parties is the need of an hour. Also, special attention needs to be given to public participation in political matters, and long-term vision by the political leadership can surely bring political and economic stability. However, some more needs to be done; Pakistan has great prowess to transform itself from a crisis-ridden state to a flourished economy if the CPEC and the new narrative of geo-economics are implemented in true essence since it has trickle-down effects. Similarly, other measures like widening the tax base and other political and economic measures are vital efforts to engender political and economic progress. Indeed, by taking suggested measures, political stability can be achieved, which eventually helps the country reach the economic progress milestone. 

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The Impact of Political Instability on Pakistan’s Internal Security

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Troops have been deployed in cities to quell violent protests. Militant groups could target them.

Pakistani security officials close a road outside the former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s residence in Lahore, Pakistan, Thursday, May 18, 2023.

Terrorist groups are byproducts of conflicts and instability. They thrive in such conditions and exploit them to further their narratives, and draw recruits and funding. Terrorist groups also use anarchy as a cover to undermine the adversarial state’s writ and use it to carry out attacks, particularly in high-security zones. The greater the chaos, the more the chances for terrorist groups to flourish in a society.

Pakistan is no stranger to political instability and terrorism, but the current spate of political tensions pitting former Prime Minister Imran Khan, the country’s most popular political leader, against the army chief Gen. Asim Munir, the country’s most powerful man, is unprecedented. Presently, Pakistan is confronted with a three-fold reinforcing crisis of political instability, economic volatility, and resurging terrorism.

Khan’s dramatic arrest by the paramilitary Punjab Rangers on May 9 sparked protests and riots by his supporters. They targeted the Pakistan Army’s installations, symbols and check posts, pushing political tensions to a breaking point .

Against this backdrop, terrorist groups in Pakistan, particularly Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Baloch separatists, can be expected to exploit the current political tensions to motivate their fighters. The leadership of these groups will seek to signal to their rank-and-file that concerted militant campaigns can push them closer to their goals.

The Pakistani state’s highhandedness in dealing with the political opposition, and the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government’s inability to control skyrocketing prices of commodities and finalize a deal with the International Monetary Fund to stop the devaluation of the rupee, have eroded public confidence in the current dispensation. In a situation where the franchise and the right to peaceful protest, notwithstanding the violent riots after Khan’s arrest, are blocked, angry youth could resort to violence, particularly in peripheral conflict zones.

It is important to mention that despite the dissolution of the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assemblies in January , the PDM government has decided, despite the Supreme Court’s orders to the contrary, not to hold elections in the two provinces within the constitutionally mandated period of 90 days on account of security and lack of funds.

This atmosphere is tailor-made for terrorist groups to lure vulnerable youth to join their ranks and achieve forcefully what has been denied to them peacefully.

Following the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021, the security situation in Pakistan was already volatile, resulting in a 52 percent increase in terrorism. In this situation, the PDM government’s decision to call the Pakistan Army under Article 245 of the Constitution to restore and maintain order in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces will not only expose troops to potential attacks in the main cities but also divert their attention from ongoing counterterrorism and counterinsurgency operations.

It bears mention that the police have been the main target of TTP’s attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Furthermore, the current political polarization in Pakistan will also undermine the security forces’ efforts to forge a national consensus in fighting terrorist groups and get political ownership of counterterrorism campaigns.

Hence, the statement from TTP’s influential commander Mufti Sarbakaf Mohmad, the so-called governor of the group’s Balochistan wilayat , is unsurprising because he held the military responsible for Pakistan’s current political ordeal. He congratulated the angry protesters for vandalizing and torching military installations across the country, particularly the attack on a senior military official’s residence in Lahore. Furthermore, he threw his weight behind protesters and extended his support for similar incidents in the future. He also urged TTP militants in Pakistan’s main cities to target military installations under the cover of protests.

Evidently, TTP through its propaganda is trying to exploit the state-society divisions to draw recruits and legitimacy for its violent campaign, and use the chaos as a shield to expand its network to Pakistan’s main cities. The longer the volatile situation prevails, the better it will be for TTP.

Alarmingly, during the current protests, Karachi police foiled a suicide attack targeting a Chinese-owned boatyard in the port city. Police guards stationed at a checkpoint outside the boatyard killed one militant wearing a suicide vest, while the other one fled. At the time of the attack, 31 Chinese nationals were inside the boatyard, repairing ships. Had the attackers managed to get inside the boatyard premises and detonated the vest, its security implications for the China Pakistan Economic Corridor would have been far-reaching.

Likewise, a little-known militant group, Tehreek-e-Jihad Pakistan, targeted a camp of the paramilitary Frontier Corps in Balochistan’s Qilla Saifullah district on May 12, resulting in a 24-hour standoff. The attack left two Pakistani soldiers dead and all seven attackers were eliminated during the clean-up operation.

Though a dramatic rise in terrorist attacks has not been witnessed during the ongoing military-Khan tensions in Pakistan, the intent of terrorist groups to exploit this situation is visible. The more the military resorts to political repression and other high-handed tactics, the more openings it will create for terrorist groups to exploit the anger of youth by urging them to take up arms to achieve their goals.

Furthermore, the heavy presence of troops on the streets of major cities will make them easy targets for terrorists. So, the stakeholders in Pakistan will have to come down from their high horses and revisit their current approach of quelling the political protests and dissent. The country needs a consensus among different state institutions and political actors over an election date, keeping in view the political, economic, and security challenges.

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Pakistan’s political crisis, briefly explained

An end to Pakistan’s constitutional crisis. But a political crisis endures.

by Jonathan Guyer

Editor’s note, April 10: Sunday, Imran Khan received a vote of no confidence from the Pakistani parliament, losing his position as prime minister. A vote on a new prime minister is expected as soon as Monday.

One of Pakistan’s twin crises was resolved this week. The other one, not so much.

On Thursday, the country’s supreme court delivered a historic ruling that resolved a constitutional crisis that took shape last week. The court rebuked Prime Minister Imran Khan, a self-fashioned populist leader and former cricket star who is more celebrity than statesman. Khan, the court ruled, had acted unconstitutionally when he dissolved Pakistan’s Parliament last week in order to avoid losing power through a no-confidence vote.

It was a surprising and reassuring decision, experts in the country’s politics said, given the supreme court’s checkered record as a sometime political ally of Khan. On Thursday, the court sided with the rule of law.

But the underlying political crisis that led to the court’s landmark order endures.

Khan outlandishly blamed the opposition parties’ efforts to oust him on a US-driven foreign conspiracy. Now, the Parliament has been restored and will continue with its no-confidence vote against Khan’s premiership Saturday, likely leading to his ouster and extraordinary elections later this year. Khan, for his part, said that he would “ fight ” back.

The broader political crisis, however, can be traced to the 2018 election that brought Khan to power. Traditionally, the military is the most significant institution in Pakistan, and it has often intervened to overthrow elected leaders that got in its way. Khan’s rise is inextricable from military influence over politics , and the incumbent prime minister accused the military of a soft coup for manipulating the election in Khan’s favor.

It was a “very controversial election,” says Asfandyar Mir, a researcher at the United States Institute of Peace. “There was a major question over the legitimacy of that electoral exercise and the government that Khan formed could just never escape the shadow of the controversy surrounding that election,” Mir explained.

More recently, the relationship between the military and Khan has worsened, and that gave the political opposition an opening to act against him. Though it’s not known what role the military played in the supreme court’s ruling, experts note that the harshness of the court’s order suggests the military’s buy-in. “This is part of a larger history of instability in Pakistan in which prime ministers are ousted from power, because they lose the support of Pakistan’s military,” Madiha Afzal, foreign policy fellow at the Brookings Institution, told Vox.

But “even if the court was influenced by the military, it took the right decision,” she says.

Khan’s position weakened domestically

The political and economic situation set the stage for a challenge to Khan.

After running on a campaign that promised less corruption and more economic opportunity for the poor, Khan has failed to deliver. Inflation is climbing , unemployment is soaring , and a billion-dollar program from the International Monetary Fund has not helped stabilize matters. An international investigation into offshore money from last year, known as the Pandora Papers , showed that Khan’s inner circle had moved money abroad to avoid taxes, in contradiction with Khan’s populist rhetoric.

Khan presided over an anti-corruption witch hunt targeting opposition parties. Indeed, the opposition parties, many of them composed of dynastic leadership and families with old money, are corrupt , and their attempt to oust Khan can be seen as a move to evade further scrutiny, Mir said.

Still, that anti-corruption effort brought the government bureaucracy to a halt. And it’s part of Khan’s broader strongman-style approach to governing that has been ineffective .

Since his start in politics, Khan has depended on the courts. Yasser Kureshi, a researcher in constitutional law at the University of Oxford, says Khan has built his political standing on backing the judiciary. “Imran Khan’s political platform has been built around an anti-corruption populism, where he charges the political class for being corrupt, and in the last 15 years the supreme court has been on a spree of jurisprudence targeting the political corruption of Pakistan’s traditional parties,” he explains. “Khan has been the biggest supporter of this jurisprudence as it has validated and legitimized his politics.”

Now, the court appears to have turned against him at a time when the military has also lost faith in Khan. “With Imran Khan, I think that the problem for him is that right now, he has no institutional solutions that he can really turn to,” says Kureshi.

Khan’s relationship with the US has also cooled

Pakistan is a nuclear-armed country with a population of 220 million; it has built the sixth-largest military in the world, and has clout as a leader in the Islamic world. A longtime participant in the US war on terrorism, Pakistan has also been a conflicted partner, criticized for at times abetting the Taliban .

Khan was elected in 2018, and Mir says that, two years in, the military’s relationship to him began to cool. Khan feuded with the army chief over foreign policy issues, and the military saw Khan’s poor governance as a liability. Last year, Khan’s delays in signing off on a new intelligence chief prompted speculation of more divides between the two.

President Joe Biden did not phone Khan in his initial days in office, though he did call the leader of India , Pakistan’s chief rival. “The Biden administration’s cold shoulder to Imran Khan rubbed him the wrong way,” said Afzal. “Pakistan has just fallen off a little bit of the radar in terms of high-level engagement.”

Khan’s public messaging as a strongman has partially been responsible for agitating the relationship with the US — and by extension, his relationship with the Pakistani military, which wants to be closer to the US.

Most recently, that chill was expressed by Khan’s decision to stay neutral in Russia’s war on Ukraine; Khan visited Moscow just in advance of Russia’s invasion.

And, now, he’s turned to accusations of conspiracy: that the opposition’s stand against him is manufactured by the US. The origins of Khan’s incendiary claims appear to be a diplomatic cable that Pakistan’s ambassador to Washington sent home last month after a meeting with senior State Department official Donald Lu. Whatever criticisms Lu may have conveyed about Pakistan’s foreign policy, Khan’s interpretation of the memo has clearly been blown out of proportion. “When it comes to those allegations, there is no truth to them,” State Department spokesperson Ned Price said last week.

It’s an open question whether his argument will resonate among a Pakistani populace who is suspicious of the United States. One group it’s likely not resonating with: Pakistan’s powerful military.

Khan is “critical of the United States to a point that makes the military uncomfortable,” said Shamila Chaudhary, an expert at the New America think tank. “The way he’s talking about the United States is preventing the US relationship with Pakistan from being repaired, and it needs to be repaired.”

Meanwhile, the Biden administration’s focus in Asia has been on great-power competition with China and two national security crises (the Afghanistan withdrawal and Russia’s Ukraine invasion). The sloppy withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan furthered the disconnect between Washington and Islamabad, according to Chaudhary, and further upset Pakistan’s government.

Robin Raphel, a former ambassador who served as a senior South Asia official in the State Department from 1993 to 1997, described Biden’s outlook to Pakistan as a “non-approach approach.”

“I’m a diplomat, and, I believe you get more with honey than vinegar,” she said. “It would have been more than worth it for the president to take five minutes to call Imran Khan.”

The US did send its top State Department official for human rights, Uzra Zeya, to the Organization of Islamic Countries summit in Pakistan last month. Zeya also met with the country’s foreign minister and senior officials, as the two countries celebrated the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations.

But there hasn’t been more than that in terms of a positive message for the US-Pakistan relationship in light of the recent political and constitutional crises in the country. Price’s recent comments on the situation were brief: “We support Pakistan’s constitutional process and the rule of law.”

What happens next

Once the Parliament completes its no-confidence vote, which may happen as soon as today, it will dissolve the government. The country’s electoral commission will then oversee a caretaker government that will likely be headed by the leader of the opposition, Shehbaz Sharif . (Sharif is the brother of Nawaz Sharif , a former prime minister himself, who is currently living in exile in the UK as he faces accusations of corruption.) And, in that forthcoming vote, Khan will most probably lose .

But even the specifics of those elections are contentious. Khan had asked the electoral commission to set a date within the next 90 days; opposition politicians told NPR that reforms are needed before the next vote, otherwise they say the military will “rig” the next elections.

Long-term, things are even less clear. Among civil society leaders in Pakistan, there is agreement that the supreme court’s ruling is good for constitutionalism. But it may also be a vehicle for further expansion of the judiciary’s ability to intervene in politics.

Kureshi, an expert on the courts of Pakistan and how they have increasingly become the arbiter of politics in the country, says the bigger takeaways won’t be fully understood until the court releases the full text of its ruling in the next month or so. That detailed order may set other legal precedents and even cast the opposition in a bad light.

After the immediate euphoria of keeping Khan’s audacious unconstitutional maneuver in check, that judgment may say a lot about how the court sees itself, especially its supervisory role over the parliament and prime minister.

“The elected institutions are deeply constrained by the tutelage of overly empowered unelected institutions, whether it is the military, historically, or the judiciary more recently,” said Kureshi. “Judgments like this give them an opportunity to further affirm and expand that role.”

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Political Instability: A case study of Pakistan

Political instability has become a serious and threatening problem especially in developing and underdeveloped countries. It is creating massive problems and hindering the development of these countries. The theme of this article revolves around the problem of political stability in context of identity and legitimacy crisis in Pakistan. Political stability plays an important role in keeping society integrated and in maintaining legitimacy within the state. It is a prerequisite for the economic development, social integration, and supremacy of law in a state. The stability of political system has direct effects on the processes of nation and state building. These both require stable political systems for their growth and flourishing. The development of nation and state without firm and organized system of politics is not possible and government becomes only a tug of war amongst various interest groups. In sum, article endeavors to explore the possible causes and effects of political instability in Pakistan.

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The political instability is condition for the nation building and nation building is process compulsory for the development of a nation. In most of developing countries the governments are not stable. A new government comes into the power overnight; either through coup data or army takes over. The new government introduces a new system of rules for the operation of business which cause frustration and anger among the people. Political instability now becomes a serious problem especially in developing countries. It is creating enormous difficulties and delaying the development of these countries. Political stability plays an important role in keeping society united and in maintaining legitimacy within the state. It is an essential for the economic development, social integration, and supremacy of law in a state. The stability of political system has direct effects on the procedures of nation and state building. These both require stable political systems for their growth and successful. The development of nation and state without firm and organized system of politics is not possible. So Political instability can be defined at least three ways, first approach is as, the propensity for regime or government change, second is to focus on the incidence of political disorder or violence in a society, such as killings, third approach focuses on economic growth affect by instability. PAKISTAN has spent 34 out of its 68 years, or half its life, in internal political instability as regime instability, political emergencies and constitutional deadlocks. Long-term instability in Pakistan has been significantly higher than in East Asia and post-Partition India. Lack of mature leadership, confrontation between the main organs of the state, poor relations between the center and the provinces, extensive corruption, distrust among the politicians, strong bureaucracy and crisis of governance are the immediate threats to democracy in Pakistan The political instability is directly affected economic growth. How does it affect economic growth and why this is important in developing countries like Pakistan is discussed in brief below? When there is lack of political instability in the county, it directly effects the economic growth. It closes off sources of internal and external investments. The eternal investors does not invest in the countries where there is civil war coups, army take over etc. is either small or zero. The lack of interest by the foreign investors for foreign direct investment, and giving Pakistan access to the productive markets are making economy low and more likely to rely on foreign aid. The improper use of aid on the huge disasters like earth quake in 2005 and on the wake of flood in 2010 has lost the trust of donors to support Pakistan sufficiently even in most difficult times. So that investment remains shy the Growth will remain the dream which leads the high unemployment and poverty. Political instability also limits internal investment. The wealthy classes in under developed countries have enough income to replacement. They can invest their saving in profitable projects. Generally they avoid investing

Journal of Arts & Social Sciences (JASS)

Nazir A H M E D Siyal

This research article’s primary goal is to determine the triggers and implications of Pakistan’s political instability and its effects on the political situation of Sindh during the democratic decade from 1988 to 1999. Despite abundant natural resources, Pakistan is one of the only countries where political unrest has severely hampered the social and political development of the country. So, this paper aims to understand the leading factors of political instability that weakened the country’s political growth and led the nation in general and Sindh province, in particular, to suffer social and ethnic problems in society. To understand the issue deeply, the researcher used unstructured Interviews as a research tool with law-makers, academicians, and political scientists. However, many interviewees accepted that the lack of enthusiastic leadership, the Role of the weak judiciary, the passive role of civil bureaucracy, and political ethnicity had been the leading factors for political ...

Review of Economics and Development Studies

Muhammad Azhar

Political development refers to the significance of institutionalization and is a closely interrelated trend of modernization. Political development in a state depends on political participation while political participation depends on institutionalization. Political stability increases the prospects for civilian rule, and institutionalization strengthens the political system. Political history of Pakistan presents the infrequent institutionalization of political system for democratic stability and the political experiences of Pakistan are just a posed in order to understand the problems of political institutionalization. This paper explores the close relationship between institutionalization, political development and political stability, and also highlights the views provided by different social scientists in an explanation of these terms. The purpose of this study is to evaluates the democratic process and major political developments during 2008-2016 as a case study because this...

Contemporary South Asia

Christine Fair

Ishrat Hussain

GreaterKashmir: http://www.greaterkashmir.com/

Tauseef Ahmad Parray

In Pakistan democracy and democratic institutions, in their real spirit, will reach the level of stability and smooth success after holding three to five consecutive fair elections and of course with smooth functioning of governments-in-power. And as the second consecutive democratic regime in post-Musharraf era is already in progress (with Nawaz Sharif as PM and Mamnoon Hussian as President), Pakistan will be on the path of a successful and “stable” democracy in next 10 to 15 years. It is hoped that if it goes on with same smoothness and normality, then by the year(s) 2025-30 Pakistan will be, optimistically, a successful Democratic Muslim Republican Country.

mehwish talib

Political history of Pakistan reflects the least concern to institutionalize the political system for democratic stability. Centralized state structure with authoritarian tendencies, contesting political parties for power and imbalance civil-military relations have always threatened to thwart the cause of political stability. In this context, democratic dispensation to the elected representatives in 2008 which completed its five years tenure after the Government of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, establishes a need to revisiting the political process in Pakistan to understand and evaluate the political development in terms of continues crises and its resilience. For the paper ,analyzes Zardari era 2008-2013, as he is supposed to be a main functionary of that era.

Propel Journal of Academic Research

Altantuya Dashnyam

This research examines Impact of Political Instability on Political and Socio-economic Conditions of Sindh from 1988 to 2008. This study was undertaken to find out the relationship between political instability and four other dimensions (democracy, education, health, and economic development) in the province of Sindh. In this research, political instability is taken as an independent variable and democracy, education, health, and economic development as dependent variables. This study has covered a period of 20 years from 1988 to 2008. For the conduct of this study, a total of thirty colleges and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) were selected from all the six regions (Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Larkana, Shaheed Benazirabad, and Mirpurkhas) of Sindh province of Pakistan. Five colleges were selected from each region and ten respondents were selected from each college, the total sample size was 300 out of which 264 (88%) respondents responded and returned the questionnaire duly fi...

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Fayyaz Ahmad

The paper attempts to study constitutional development in Pakistan in relation to the political instability or stability of the country. Analysis of the secondary data qualitatively revealed that the country suffered much due to political instability which was a result of the non-development and non-availability of the constitution. As the constitution provides a set of rules for people of a state who agree to live together and it is the basic set of principles through which a state is governed, the newly established state of Pakistan initially adopted the 1935 India Act to run the affairs. The process to frame a fresh constitution started after the transitory of Objectives Resolution in 1949 while Islamic and democratic values were considered as foundations to formulate a constitution for Pakistan. Three constitutions in 1956, 1962, and 1973 were framed in order to maintain political stability and to govern the state. Pakistan in its 72 years of age was governed by 49 Heads of Stat...

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This paper studies the Pakistan's political stability in the context of the role of the political parties from 1999 to 2008. It also highlights that the culture of political parties went through a profound change during the Musharraf era in the result of the reforms introduced by the military regime. The questions how the political parties strengthened themselves in response to and due to the challenges posed by the army rule and how parties performed for the development of the stability in the country have been dealt. The role of ruling parties - Pakistan Muslim League (PML(Q)), Mutahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) - as well as the opposition parties - Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP), Pakistan Muslim League (PML(N)), and Mutahida Majlis-i- Aml (MMA)'s religious parties - as the safeguard to the instability has been defined through a qualitative research. It was assessed that the political parties matured themselves and did not sacrifice the stability of the country for their pol...

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Political Instability (Essay Sample)

Political instability.

Political instability has crippled the normal functioning of authorities in Pakistan for more than six decades. Since the beginning of political instability, the country has not been able to get rid of some of the main causes and propellers of the problems. Such factors include coexistence of communities who live in hostility, historical factors, tribal systems and partisan segregation. The country has not been able to regain political stability because of conflicts constitutionally, lack of democracy where people can freely express their will, economic turbulence, and absence of social growth. As a consequence, the public does not have an opportunity to be educated on how to hold their leaders accountable for anything they do.

Some factors have significantly contributed to the rise of lack of democracy. The policy makers politicized these issues with an aim of introducing democratic systems in Pakistan but only ended up promoting non-democratic elements such as the army. Such factors include territorial conflicts with India, the large existence of social-economic differences among the citizens, power struggle among the provinces and also the early death of Mohammad Ali Jinnah who was the founder of Pakistan.

The system in Pakistan dictates that the winner takes everything and the loser has nothing. Every political side fights so hard to take power for the benefits that come with it. All successive civilian and military leaders have practiced this form of governing hence not offering long-term solutions to the people of Pakistan. The Muslim League which fought hard to have independence in Pakistan lacked democracy within itself. The members of the Muslim League, therefore, brought independence but with ill intentions to benefit themselves. The ten-year history between 1947 and 1956 lacked a guiding constitution and was an insincere exercise by the political leaders. The consequence was an invocation of the military who interfered with political systems.

The judiciary system has done little to help the country stabilize. It has in fact promoted the instability by taking double stances in historical matters. It is, therefore, vulnerable to political interference and has bowed in to pressure. On most occasions, the judiciary has encouraged dictators to assume power in ways that are seen as legal when in actual sense they are not. Besides, the structure of Pakistan state is very dynamic hence it prevents any democratic achievements established in the country. Pakistan has provinces divided based on ethnic boundaries. Consequently, ethnic dimensions have a significant impact on political loyalties since the central governments have the urge to be in control and manage the ethnic diversity.

Closely related to ethnic diversity is violent politics in the struggle for power. There is no exercise of patience among the citizens and leaders as required in democracies. The fear of losing drives people to violence which has a direct consequence on the economy. There is a high rate of inflation, high-income inequality among the citizens since the elite own too much yet the common citizens live in extreme poverty, negative financing to the government and also extreme deficiency of expenditure on infrastructure systems and education.

There are various steps that can be taken in order to revive political stability in Pakistan. The main areas of target should be introducing major reforms in the judiciary, establishment of an independent commission to be in charge of elections, promoting internal party elections as a way of establishing internal democracy, promoting freedom of the Press, better division of the provinces to promote peaceful coexistence among different communities, strict adherence to the constitution and protection of civil societies and other minorities.

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Political Instability in Pakistan | Essay for CSS Exams

This research was performed to investigate the role of political parties in Pakistan over the last two decades. This paper also attempts to discuss how parties and their actions affect the democratic culture in the state. I have investigated the roles of the political parties in Pakistan by examining their different functions, which include the responsibility to represent the civil society, to integrate the diverse elements of the society into a political system, and to respond to the demands and needs of the public. The internal politics of political parties in Pakistan and their criteria for recruitment and training leadership are discussed, as well as their effects on the political system of Pakistan.

The data were collected by researching secondary sources that discussed and evaluated the functions of political parties in Pakistan. A content analysis method was used to analyze the data and characterize the contributions of political parties to the political culture of Pakistan and their effects on the democratic system of Pakistan.

In this thesis, I have investigated the roles and mechanism of political parties in Pakistan based on an exploration of the roles of several prominent political parties, including the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz group) (PML (N)), the Pakistan People Party (PPP), the Awami National Party (ANP), and the Mutahida Quami Movement (MQM). During the past two decades, the PPP and PML (N) parties have remained prominent through the formation of alliances with other parties. This research discusses the roles of these parties in representation, integration, aggregation, recruiting, and training leadership during times in which these parties have held both power in government and represented the opposition.

Introduction

The major purpose of this research is to shed light on the problems faced by political parties and their role in the political system of Pakistan. The parties considered in this work are the Pakistan People Party (PPP), the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz Group (PML (N)), the Awami (public) National Party (ANP), and the Mutahida (united) Quami (national) Movement (MQM). These political parties have held power in Pakistan at different times over the past two decades. This paper also attempts to discuss the functions of these parties, such as representation, integration, recruiting, and training leadership, and the conduct of political parties when they are in power or in opposition.

It has been argued that parties are ―endemic to democracy, an unavoidable part of democracy. In a democratic system, political parties provide the proper mode of functioning for the government so that the majority party or a combination of parties controls the government, while other parties serve as the opposition and attempt to check the abuses of power by the ruling party. Citizens extend their desires, needs, and problems to the government through the political parties. In fact, political parties represent an essential and important tool that acts as a bridge between a society and its government. The existence of a strong and viable opposition keeps the ruling party alert. It is also the duty of political parties to promote policies that will educate the people about how a democratic system functions and offer different policy packages to the electorates. To some extent, political parties allow people to defend their rights, and the support of the people strengthens political parties. Therefore, political parties promote the welfare of the society as a whole. One basic need is to develop the political ideology and democratic roots within a state, which is a fundamental method of political development. The goals and objectives of political development could not be achieved without political parties.

Since independence was achieved in Pakistan on 14 August, 1947, only a small number of civilian governments have completed their constitutional tenure, and most of those who did were under the rule of a dictator. The political system in Pakistan has never functioned efficiently in sixty-four years of independence. During this period, Pakistan’s political system has faced four military interventions, during which the army chiefs overtook political governments and imposed martial law. Pakistan still has not found a stable political equilibrium or clear directions to resolve its fundamental political conflicts. Because of these different types of government, the people of Pakistan are unsure of whether their government should be secular or Islamic and democratic or ruled by a military dictator. The main problems faced by political development are weaknesses among institutions, such as a lack of accountability and the presence of corruption; a lack of focus on people’s needs; and an emphasis on increasing the assets of the leaders of the political parties. As stated by Rasul Bakhsh Rais: ―The history of military dictators is characterized by deceit, institutional decay, political fragmentation, moral and social rot, (that produced polarization), insurgencies and alliances of the state with violent ethnic and religious groups. The occurrence of these incidents and events can only be explained by reviewing the circumstances under which the country was created. When an electoral political regime is in power, it will seek to prolong its control and satisfy key members by awarding them critical positions in important institutions. Furthermore, many internal problems in political parties lead to problems in the political system, such as an undemocratic structure and a lack of political values and practices. These problems decrease the popularity of political parties and reduce the trust of the leaders among the people.

Background of Pakistani Politics

The month of August 1947 brought a major change to the world map with the establishment of the two independent states of Pakistan and India on the 14 and 15 of August, 1947, respectively. Independence marked the end of a long British rule that lasted nearly one hundred and fifty years. It had been decided that the division between Pakistan and India would be made on the basis of the populations of Muslims and Hindus. Muslim-majority cities would be included in Pakistan, and Hindu-majority cities would be included in India. A large number of Muslims in the Indian part of the subcontinent migrated to Pakistan. Approximately two million people were killed due to communal violence and hatred between Sikhs, Hindus, and Muslims. The majority of the victims of these victims were Muslims.

Soon after independence, the founder of Pakistan Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah became the First Governor General of Pakistan; however, he died in 1948. Quaid-e-Azam was the most influential person in the party (Muslim League), having the total support of the people of Pakistan. He was the only person who could unite all the political leaders and ordinary people under a single national identity, and his death affected the politics of Pakistan badly. His successor, Liaqat Ali Khan, became prime minister and attempted to fill Quaid-e-Azam’s gap, but he was assassinated in October 1951.

The Muslim League is the founding party of Pakistan. ―But after his death Muslim League has never been able to transform itself from a nationalist movement a national party. After Quaid-e-Azam and Liaqat Ali Khan were lost, the Muslim League faced a deficiency of competent leadership in Pakistan. Power-hungry politicians remained representing groups of opportunists who had already opposed the formation of Pakistan8. On the other hand, a struggle began between the Mohajir (refugee) community, the aristocracy, and the religious leadership for gains in political power. All the weakness and incompetency led to a lack of political non-consensus, and bureaucrats resolutely became politicians who assumed power. A former bureaucrat, Ghulam Muhammad, was appointed as prime minster, and he succeeded another bureaucrat with an army background. The ruler never attempted to pay attention to the problems of the common people during the early years. Furthermore, these politicians were not able to finalize a constitution for Pakistan.

In 1958, Pakistani politics fell into an even worse state when Skandar Mirza took full advantage of the weaknesses of the political parties. At that time, there was only one way to avoid a general election i.e. imposition of martial law. Due to the failure of the political parties, martial law was declared on 7 October, 1958. President Mirza issued a proclamation to cancel the Constitution and declare martial law throughout Pakistan. He abrogated the central and provincial governments by dissolving the national and provincial assemblies. Two weeks later, Mirza was forced to retire, and General Muhammad Ayub Khan, the chief martial law administrator and supreme commander of the armed forces, took his place. During Ayub’s regime, the bureaucracy became empowered increasingly in Pakistan as Ayub Khan depended heavily on the bureaucracy to manage the political setup. General Yahiya Khan, the commander in chief of the army, succeeded Ayub Khan. Yahiya Khan ruled Pakistan for more than two years under the cover of martial law. From 1947–1958, not a single national election was held because most of the politicians knew that the electorate would reject them. Between 1958 and 1968, two indirect elections were held, but neither was conducted on a free and fair basis.

Ayub Khan introduced the first constitution of Pakistan. The presidential form of government was introduced, and all power was vested in the president. A basic democratic system was introduced, and only eighty thousand basic democrats elected the president. The military has ruled Pakistan for more than thirty-four of the sixty-four years of Pakistani independence. The feudal landlords and the capitalist class of people did not aid in the development of democracy in Pakistan. These ―power motivated groups failed in state building and were unable to articulate or aggregate the interests of the people, which is necessary to develop meaningful socio-economic policies for newly born nation. As a result, the poor and the middle class were trapped in a cycle of poverty, and these classes continue to decline today.

The first direct general election was held in 1970, almost twenty-three years after the birth of Pakistan; only two parties participated in these elections: the PPP from West Pakistan and the ANP from East Pakistan. These two parties achieved overwhelming success in these general elections.

The results of the elections indicated that the PPP had emerged as the majority party in Pakistan with a clear majority in Punjab and Sindh. In these elections, Sheikh Mujeeb Ur Rehman ‘s ANP in East Pakistan won an absolute majority of seats in the National Assembly, and this result was not acceptable to Z. A. Bhutto, whose PPP had won a majority of seats in the assembly from West Pakistan. Hence, President Yahiya Khan dismissed the legislature. This suspension led to a cry for independence in East Pakistan, which Yahiya Khan sought to suppress by military repression, and this resulted in a historical disaster: the separation of West Pakistan (presently Bangladesh) from East Pakistan (presently Pakistan).

Z. A. Bhutto was more successful in restoring parliamentary government in Pakistan. He helped to create a new constitution, the nation’s third in twenty-six years, which was adopted in 1973. He established a National Assembly of two hundred and seven members and four provincial assemblies of proportionate size. All representatives were to be elected directly for five-year terms. Under the constitution provision, Bhutto became prime minister of the government, elected by the majority of the National Assembly.

National elections were again held in 1977, and Z. A. Bhutto faced a strong alliance of political parties (Pakistan National Alliance, PNA). Bhutto won the election, and the PNA was able to obtain only thirty-six seats out of two hundred and seven in the Pakistan National Assembly. The opposition declared that the election had been rigged and began to agitate against the PPP’s government. Bhutto called in the army to restore law and order and to negotiate with the PNA.

The army chief of staff Zia ul Haq seized the reins of the government. Hence, a new and long-lasting era of martial law began, which ended in 1988 with the assassination of Zia ul Haq. Benazir Bhutto, the daughter of Z.A. Bhutto came into power with majority votes after the elections of November 1988. But in 1990, her government was dismissed for charges of corruptionby Ghulam Ishaq Khan the existing president of Pakistan at that time. Following the 1990 elections, Nawaz Sharif became prime minister of Pakistan with a majority of the votes, but his government was also dismissed by Ghulam Ishaq Khan. The democratic era (1988–1999) continued to alternate between B. Bhutto and Sharif until 1999, when the general public became fed up with the democratic era and the corruption of the politicians. In 1999, the dictator General Pervaz Musharaf imposed martial law and ruled until 2008 with so-called democracy. At first, the people of Pakistan welcomed this change of government in the hope that the unjust economic, social and political system would be reformed, but after two years, the economy of Pakistan fell into decline.

About the author

Shahzad F. Malik

Shahzad Faisal Malik is the administrator of CSSTimes.pk and is responsible for managing the content, design, and overall direction of the blog. He has a strong background in Competitive Exams and is passionate and sharing information with others. Shahzad Faisal Malik has worked as a Graphic Designer/Content Creator at CSSTimes in the past. In his free time, Shahzad Faisal Malik enjoys watching Cricket, writing blogs for different websites and is always on the lookout for new and interesting content to share with the readers of this website. As the website administrator, Shahzad Faisal Malik is dedicated to providing high-quality content and fostering a welcoming and engaging community for readers. He looks forward to connecting with readers and hearing their thoughts and feedback on the website.

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E-Paper | September 19, 2024

Infestation of political instability.

Pakistan descended into a fresh round of political instability in April 2022 after Imran Khan, the then Prime Minister of Pakistan, was removed from office through a vote of no confidence in the parliament.

The polycrisis that ensued in the aftermath of his ouster took twists and turns but largely remained under control until last week when Imran Khan was arrested from the veranda of the Islamabad High Court, where he had arrived to attend a court hearing.

Mr Khan was released through an order of the Supreme Court two days later, but the events that took place during those days threw Pakistan into a deeper abyss of political instability. While it is now established that political instability has adverse impacts on economic growth, the scale, intensity and transmission channels through which political instability casts its dampening effect on output/GDP growth are less known.

Settling the question of how political instability enters the world of economics are two seminal papers; the first by Harvard economist Alesina who has pioneered several empirical models and estimation tools to determine how political instability impacts economic growth.

The second are International Monetary Fund economists Aisen and Veiga, who draw extensively on Alesina’s works and have used similar techniques to arrive at conclusions which seem to be extensions of Alesina’s findings.

Frequent government collapses increase the probability of future collapses, creating a self-perpetuating mechanism

By defining “political instability” as the propensity of a change in the executive either by “constitutional” or “unconstitutional” means and using a sample of 113 countries for the period 1950-1982, Alesina finds out that in countries and time periods with a high propensity of government collapses, growth is significantly lower than otherwise.

He then classifies government changes to arrive at two types; all “government turnovers including those that do not involve a significant change in ideological direction or an irregular transfer of power or those government turnovers that involve only these two types of changes.”

He also found out that contemporaneous low economic growth does not increase the contemporaneous propensity of government changes. However, what’s interestingly relevant to many unstable democracies in the developing world is the fact that Alesina could not find any evidence that economic growth is significantly different when authoritarian regimes are compared to democracies.

Political instability tends to show an inherent self-perpetuating mechanism and persistence in that frequent government collapses increase the probability of future collapses.

Cabinet changes of the 1950s, military takeovers, and government changes in the 1990s may have had more dampening effects on output growth than the recent ousters

Alesina thinks that it would be interesting to analyse which politico-institutional characteristics of dictatorships make them more or less growth-enhancing. He refers to works by Poole and Londregan (1991), who find that the presence of unconstitutional leaders reduces growth. Their understanding of unconstitutional leaders captures some characteristics found in kleptocratic dictators.

Alesina also believes that a country’s existing level of development also determines the extent to which its economy will be affected by political instability. He suggests that the interaction between political stability, political change and growth may take different forms at different levels of development.

On the other hand, Aisen and Veiga define political instability as cabinet changes and use a sample comprising 169 countries and nine consecutive and non-overlapping five-year periods from 1960 to 2004.

They suggest that regime instability adversely affects economic growth and when there is an additional cabinet change per year, the annual growth rate decreases by 2.39 percentage points. A one-point increase in the index of economic freedom that counts for favourable economic institutions increases annual economic growth by one percentage point.

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Pakistan has experienced military takeovers and vacillated between quasi-democratic and civil and military authoritarian regimes. Government and cabinet changes have been sudden, unexpected and irregular. It has also experienced what Alesina refers to as the persistence of political instability.

While no studies have quantified the cumulative economic impacts of such instability, one can surely imagine that the cumulative output losses are very large. There are some studies that also measure the impacts of political instability on other macroeconomic indicators, including trade and inflation, etc.

Despite large variations in the statistical significance of these results, political instability seems to have an overall negative effect on all macroeconomic indicators.

As the literature suggests, the growth impacts of political instability are much larger for economies at the initial stages of development. This implies that frequent cabinet changes of the 1950s, military takeovers of the past and irregular government changes in the 90s may have had more dampening effects on output growth and other macroeconomic indicators than recent ousters and takeovers.

Clearly, this assumption builds on the premise that Pakistan has climbed up the ladder of development since the 1950s.

One distinction that also needs to be made is between the direct and overall costs of disruptive events that are the cause or manifestation of political instability. Quite often, the analysis seems to rely quite heavily on vandalism, damage to government property and temporary suspensions of business activity to account for economic losses due to a disruptive political event.

This misleads one to imagine direct losses at the cost of losing sight of the long-term and overall growth and macroeconomic effects of such instability.

Imran Khan was arrested, government property was vandalised and business activity was stalled across the country. Imran was released later and businesses returned to business as usual. However, the impacts that this instability would have on the overall economy will only begin to manifest later.

The writer is an economist trained in Canada. He tweets @asadaijaz

Published in Dawn, The Business and Finance Weekly, May 15th, 2023

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Pakistan and its Politics Essay

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• As a template for you assignment

Introduction

Reason for move towards islamic state, impact of islamic state on democracy, works cited.

Pakistan was established as a state in 1947 after a separation from the Indian British Empire. From its beginning, the country has had a turbulent life with political instability and ethnic disputes characterizing its existence. While Pakistan was established as a secular state with a Muslim majority, the country has exhibited over the decades showed signs of evolving into an Islamic State. Such an outcome would have dire consequences for democratization.

The prevailing economic conditions have increased the popularity of Islamic movements all over the country. Farhat notes that most Pakistanis blame bad government policies for the high unemployment, inflation, and lack of access to education and healthcare in the country (121).

Islamists express skepticism over the ability of the secular leadership, which is blamed for Pakistan’s problems. Saudi influence has also been a contributing factor to the evolution of Pakistan into an Islamic state.

Due to the lack of financial opportunities in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia has been a major destination for Pakistanis working abroad since the 1970s. When the Pakistani workers return home from this Islamic state, they are influenced by the religious teachings of Saudi clerics (Farhat 122).

Western dominance has also accelerated the move towards Islamic reform in Pakistan. After the events of 9/11, the cooperation between the Pakistani government and the United States has increased with Pakistan becoming a key strategic ally. Radical Islamists see this as a corruption of Islam by the West.

Farhat points out that this challenge of the West has become the single most important factor promoting the renewal of Islamic movements in Pakistan today (129). Western dominance has fueled nationalistic sentiments and many people are in support of an Islamic renewal.

Evolution to an Islamic State will hurt democracy in Pakistan. Politicians have been known to employ religious criteria to justify their actions in Islamic states. This will be to the disadvantage of Pakistanis of other religions and Islamic sub-sects.

Ishtiaq observes that While Pakistan has a Muslim majority with 96% of Pakistanis being Muslims, the Muslim community is not monolithic and it contains different sub-sects (195). An Islamic state would therefore threaten democracy since it would give rise to sectarianism in Pakistani territories.

By adopting an Islamic character, Pakistan has enacted many laws that are discriminatory to non-Muslims. For example, the third constitution of 1973 required the president and the prime minister to be Muslims (Ishtiaq 198). Such laws are not in line with the democratic principles that give each person equal opportunity in the state.

The Islamic state will ensure that only practicing Muslims can take up key leadership positions in the country. An Islamic state will also hurt democracy since the ruling elite may resort to Islamic rhetoric to undermine the opposition. Farhat demonstrates that Islamic symbolism may be used to legitimize leadership that would otherwise be voted out in a true democracy (127).

Pakistan is a country with a rich Islamic history spanning centuries and the country was created with these religious and cultural bearings in mind. However, Pakistan was created as a Muslim state and not an Islamic State. The trends articulated in this paper are moving Pakistan towards becoming an Islamic State. If this happens, the democratic values currently enjoyed by the country will suffer as Islamic laws becomes adapted all over the land.

Farhat, Haq. “A state for the Muslims or an Islamic state?” Religion and Politics in South Asia . Ed. Ali Riaz. NY. Routledge, 2010. 119-145. Print.

Ishtiaq, Ahmed. “The Pakistan Islamic State Project: A secular Critique.” Religion and Politics in South Asia . Ed. Ali Riaz. NY. Routledge, 2010. 185-211. Print.

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IvyPanda. (2019, April 16). Pakistan and its Politics. https://ivypanda.com/essays/pakistan-and-its-politics/

"Pakistan and its Politics." IvyPanda , 16 Apr. 2019, ivypanda.com/essays/pakistan-and-its-politics/.

IvyPanda . (2019) 'Pakistan and its Politics'. 16 April.

IvyPanda . 2019. "Pakistan and its Politics." April 16, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/pakistan-and-its-politics/.

1. IvyPanda . "Pakistan and its Politics." April 16, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/pakistan-and-its-politics/.

Bibliography

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What is happening in Pakistan’s continuing crisis?

Subscribe to the center for middle east policy newsletter, madiha afzal madiha afzal fellow - foreign policy , center for middle east policy , strobe talbott center for security, strategy, and technology , center for asia policy studies.

May 20, 2022

Even by the standards of Pakistan’s perpetually unstable politics, the last ten weeks in the country have been exceptionally turbulent. Pakistan has a new government as of April 11 after Imran Khan was forced out via a vote of no confidence. The weeks leading up to the vote, from the filing of the motion on March 8 to the vote on April 10, were dramatic and full of intrigue. Now, the country is in economic and political crisis. Shahbaz Sharif’s new government has been in a state of decision paralysis and is struggling to find its footing, while the ousted prime minister is leading rallies across the country attacking the government’s legitimacy and calling for fresh elections. At the same time, Pakistan is also in the grip of an acute climate emergency. It’s not only political temperatures that are spiking: an unprecedented heat wave has enveloped Pakistan for weeks.

The fall of Khan’s government

Crucial to the current crisis is understanding how Khan’s government fell. While Khan was Pakistan’s first prime minister to be ousted via a  no-confidence vote, he joined each of his predecessors as prime minister in not lasting five years — the length of parliament’s electoral term — in office. Pakistan’s major opposition parties had been clamoring for Khan’s exit since he came into office — calling him “selected” by the military as opposed to “elected” — and had formed an alliance, the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), in the fall of 2020 for that purpose. This spring, the opposition gained traction. On the surface, the opposition blamed governance and economic failures under Khan. But the underlying reason their maneuvers were successful was that Khan had lost the support of Pakistan’s military, which helped him rise to power.

Several factors were responsible for the fracture between Khan and the military, who previously had functioned on a much-touted “same page.” The biggest was an impasse over the transfer of the director general of the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) in October 2021. Khan refused to sign off on the director general’s transfer, already approved by the military, for weeks. The then-ISI chief was a Khan loyalist, and speculation was that Khan wanted him to be around for the next election (or perhaps even to appoint him the next army chief).

Once Khan lost the military’s support — though the military said it had become neutral — space was allowed to the opposition to make their moves. Two small parties allied with Khan in the ruling coalition switched to the opposition, enough to deprive him of his razor-thin majority in the National Assembly.

Khan hatched a conspiracy theory to blame for his government’s collapse — alleging , without evidence, U.S. “regime change” for following an “independent foreign policy,” and claiming “local abettors” were responsible — claims that Pakistan’s National Security Committee has rebuffed . But Khan and his allies have also alluded to the military being responsible for his exit — sometimes in veiled language and sometimes pointing fingers more directly at the “neutrals,” as they now refer to the military. In so doing, they are testing the limits of political confrontation with the military, receding only when it pushes back on their claims.

An intense polarization

Khan has used his ejection to galvanize his supporters. Day after day, in huge rallies across the country, he calls the new government an “imported government” and the new prime minister a “crime minister.” Khan has used his rallies and interviews to command media attention, and argues that his government’s fall returned to power the corrupt politicians that are responsible for Pakistan’s problems. His supporters, many of them middle class, young, and urban, and furious at what they see as Khan’s unceremonious, orchestrated ousting, repeat his words on social media. With this narrative of grievance, Khan aims to undermine the new government’s legitimacy; his party resigned from parliament and he is calling for fresh elections. He now plans to lead a “freedom march” to Islamabad, likely later this month , to further pressure the government for elections.

By contrast, supporters of the parties that constitute the government see Khan’s exit as having occurred democratically and see his politics as dangerous. Pakistan today has echoes of the post-January 6 moment in the United States, a polarization so deep that each faction sees no validity in the other’s arguments. Khan’s supporters in particular distrust anything the new government or the military says. In recent weeks, politicians from each side have also resorted to using religion to attack the other side, dangerous in a country where the weaponization of religion can spell a death sentence.

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The new government

The new government, led by the PML-N’s Shahbaz Sharif, faces formidable challenges — and not just from Khan. Shahbaz’s brother, three-time former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who was deposed in 2017 on corruption charges and now lives in London, still exercises outsized control over the party, and indeed the government. Shahbaz, a three-time former chief minister of Pakistan’s largest province of Punjab, has throughout his political career played second fiddle to the more charismatic Nawaz. Last week, the prime minister and key members of his cabinet made a sudden trip to London to consult with Nawaz on the direction of the new government. While they were overseas, Pakistan’s economy continued its downward spiral. The rupee continued its precipitous slide relative to the dollar; the stock market also lost value.

The government faces a key decision on whether to continue costly, unsustainable fuel subsidies that Khan’s government installed, and that the International Monetary Fund wants removed as a precondition for renewing Pakistan’s loan program. Removing subsidies would certainly be unpopular, which worries a government with limited time in office before the next election. So far the government has stalled, announcing earlier this week, against its own finance minister’s advice, that it would maintain subsidies (for now).

Shahbaz’s overall hesitancy likely reflects deference to Nawaz and his team, who may have different views, and the fact that he commands an unwieldy coalition of rival parties, who will be competing against each other in the next election. But part of the indecision has to do with the fact that the main goal of the PDM was to oust Khan; they did not actually devise an alternate governance plan or economic strategy before coming into power. That lack of a plan is now showing in the face of Pakistan’s economic crisis.

The next election

A major question contributing to the political uncertainty in Pakistan is the timing of the next election, which must be held by the summer of 2023. Khan has made clear that he wants to ride his present momentum to immediate elections. In the days preceding his downfall, he aimed to deprive the then-opposition of a runway in government by extra-constitutionally dissolving parliament, a decision Pakistan’s Supreme Court (correctly) reversed. The new government, for its part, can use its time in power to turn things in its favor, including resolving outstanding corruption cases.

There is the question of whether Nawaz can or will return to Pakistan before the next election. If he does, that could boost the PML-N’s base, but if he does not face prosecution on his return, that will bolster Khan’s argument that the Sharifs have politically manipulated the corruption cases against them. The PML-N also faces considerable hurdles, including an economic crisis that is partially shaped by exogenous factors, a tussle over power in Punjab, and a president who belongs to and is loyal to Khan’s party. The coalition government this week has said it will not go to early elections; former president Asif Ali Zardari has insisted that elections not be held before parliament can undertake electoral reform.

Whenever the next election is held, it’s far from clear what the outcome will be. What matters in Pakistan’s parliamentary system is which party can get the most “electables” — powerful politicians in local constituencies — on their side. Large urban rallies may attest to Khan’s personal popularity, but will not necessarily define how his party does in parliamentary elections. The other factor, one that has historically determined which party electable politicians align themselves with, is where the powerful military’s support is leaning.

The bottom line

That brings us to the bottom line. The fundamentals of the system in Pakistan, beneath the intense ongoing political tug of war, remain the same. What matters for political success is whether you have the support of Pakistan’s military. Political parties now directly point to the military’s interference in politics, but only when they are in opposition; when they are in government and enjoy that support, they do little to challenge it. This was true of Khan’s party when it was in power, and it is true of Sharif’s government now.

In the end, what Pakistan’s soaring political tension amounts to is an opportunistic struggle for power. It has left the country a political tinderbox. And in all of it, little regard is displayed on either side for the ongoing suffering of ordinary Pakistanis, who continue to pay the price for the country’s long history of political instability.

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Political Instability in Pakistan

• December 12, 2022

Political instability has become a rather threatening and serious problem among the developing and third world countries. It is the root of most of the issues and is causing massive problems by hindering the development of the countries.

For any country to prosper, political stability is required. It plays a key role in the integration of the society and maintains legitimacy within the state. It is the basic element needed for economic development, supremacy of the law in the country and social integration.

“The essence of democracy is its assurance that every human being should so respect himself and should be so respected in his own personality that he should have opportunity equal to that of every other human being to show what he was meant to become.” Anna Garlin Spencer.

Pakistan is a nation which has faced a lot of crisis. The dense territorial conflicts with India, the epic struggle for power between the provinces, the socio-economic differences among the people of this country and the early death of the father of this nation Mohammad Ali Jinnah are some of the many political problems Pakistan had to face. Such events not only gave power to the elite to make policies but also encouraged non-democratic elements to come into power such as the army.

The Muslim Rulers and the Hind Maharajas encouraged art, music and literature but were weak when it came to democracy. Controlled democracy was introduced by the British and that strengthened some chosen people belonging to the elite class. Hamza Amir stated in his book that “Pakistan-an overdeveloped state”. This refers to the fact that after independence, the class in control was highly educated on the pattern of the British mind set while the masses were miserably illiterate. This huge difference between the citizens gave rise to management crisis.

If the history of Pakistan is overseen it can be witnessed that many non-democratic individuals began exploiting their positions and tried to intervene in the governing power of the country. Many army Generals maneuvered the political instability crisis of the country in their own favour and implemented such policies that made their illegal hold stronger. The dictators got many cooperative judges and friendly politicians to prolong their rule.

The army has the highest power and remains in charge for all practical purposes. The army has slowly but steadily strengthened its footing since the military coup in 1958. They have veto over the most critical decisions which affect the security and foreign policies and during Zia’s regime the army extended its reach into some of the domestic issues as well.

The absence of a rigid and complete constitutional system has allowed people with power to exploit the situation and manipulate the constitutional and political institution as they please.

The political parties in Pakistan have no just system in their ways. The intra-party election is absent. The leaders are autocrats. The political parties are not famous for their own name rather they stand behind the name of an influencial leader.

Judiciary, the third pillar of the state is no different. The role of the judiciary is very vulnerable in Pakistan. The judiciary has always found one way or another to provide power legally to dictators. Apart from the judiciary and the army, intelligence agencies have become major influences on the governing body.

The whole political instability situation has adverse effects on the economy of Pakistan. Before the global recession occurred, there was a lot of investment in the country as it had a liberal investment policy. Now due to the rapid change in government policies and the unpredictable situation of the market, many investors have stopped investing in Pakistan.

The political situation in Pakistan can be improved by taking steps such as reformation of judiciary, division of provinces and continuity of fair elections etc.

Welcome to the official author account of words.pk! I am a passionate writer and researcher who loves exploring the rich and diverse culture of Pakistan. Through my writing, I aim to showcase the beauty and complexity of this vibrant nation, from its history and traditions to its art, music, cuisine, and more. With years of experience in blogging, and content creation, I have honed my skills in storytelling and crafting compelling narratives that captivate readers

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By Dr Muhammad Akram Zaheer

Imran Khan was the first prime minister of Pakistan who was ousted by a no-confidence vote. He had taken the office of Prime minister for five years but Pakistan’s major opposition parties established the Pakistan Democratic Movement in 2020 to gain power in the country. Superficially, the opposition blamed governance and economic failures under Khan’s leadership. But the main reason was that Khan had lost the support of the Pakistan Army, which helped him come to power.

There were several factors responsible for the rift between the Khan and the Army. The biggest deadlock was over the transfer of the Director General of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in October 2021. Khan refused to sign off on the transfer of the director general, which had already been approved by the Army. It was said that ISI chief is loyal to Khan, and there was also speculations that Khan wanted the next election (or perhaps even to appoint him as the next Army chief). Thus, when Khan lost the support of the Army and the Army said it had become neutral the two smaller parties in the ruling coalition abandoned their alliance with Khan and turned Khan into the opposition.

Political parties now directly refer to military intervention in politics, but only when they are in opposition. When they are in government and enjoy this support, they do not challenge it. This was true of Khan’s party when it was in power, and it is true of Sharif’s government now

Khan established a conspiracy theory to blame the fall of his government and alleged a US conspiracy against his “independent foreign policy” and claiming that “local auxiliaries” were facilitators for the process of Imran Khan’s ejection from the power. Although it is denied by the establishment, Khan and his allies have also hinted that the military is also responsible for his exit.  Sometimes indirect language and sometimes pointing the finger at the “neutral,” as they now refer to the military, the PTI has reached near the limits of political confrontation with the military.

Day after day, in huge meetings, seminars and rallies across the country they call the new government an “imported government” and the new prime minister a “crime minister”. Khan has used his rallies and interviews to gain media attention, arguing that the fall of his government returned to power the corrupt politicians who are responsible for Pakistan’s problems. His supporters, many of them middle-class, young and urban, and angry at Khan’s informal, systematic ouster, echoed his words on social media. With this narrative of grievance, Khan aims to undermine the legitimacy of the new regime. His party has resigned from Parliament and is calling for fresh elections. Now he is leading a “freedom march” to Islamabad.

In contrast, supporters of the ruling parties see Khan’s ouster as democratic and dangerous to his politics. Pakistan today is echoing the post-January moments (January 1, 1863 – The Emancipation Proclamation by President Abraham Lincoln freed the slaves in the states rebelling against the Union) in America, with a polarization so deep that each faction sees no validity in the other’s arguments. Khan’s supporters are especially distrustful of anything or any action of the new government or the military. In recent weeks, politicians on each side have also resorted to using religion to attack the other, which is so dangerous in the country where weaponizing religion can be punishable by death.

The new government under the leadership of  PML(N) President Shehbaz Sharif is facing huge challenges not only from Khan. Shahbaz’s brother, three-time former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who was ousted on corruption charges in 2017, still is controlling the party and indeed the government of Pakistan. A three-time former Chief Minister of Punjab, Pakistan’s largest province, Shehbaz has a more charismatic personality throughout his political career, but may now be unsuccessful. Last month, the prime minister and key members of his cabinet made a surprise visit to London to consult with Nawaz Sharif to get new instructions to mitigate the government’s challenges.

Nawaz is living abroad and Pakistan’s economy is continuing to decline. The rupee has continued to fluctuate sharply against the dollar. The stock market also lost value. What worries the government is the limited time before the next election and the fact that it commands a loose coalition of rival parties, which will compete against each other in the next election. But part of the indecision has to do with the fact that the PDM’s main objective was to oust Khan. The PDM did not formulate any alternative governance plan or economic strategy before coming to power. This lack of planning is now showing in the face of Pakistan’s economic crisis.

A major question causing political uncertainty in Pakistan is the timing of the next elections, which should be held by the late summer of 2023. Khan has made it clear that he wants to carry his current momentum to snap elections. In the days before his fall, his aim was to deprive the then-opposition of the runway of government by dissolving Parliament, but the decision was overturned by Pakistan’s Supreme Court. The current government, for its part, used its time in power to turn things in its favor, including resolving outstanding corruption cases.

The question is whether Nawaz Sharif can return to Pakistan before the next election or not. If he does, it could strengthen the PML(N), but if he doesn’t face legal action on their return, it will strengthen Khan’s arguments that the Sharif family nurtured the culture of corruption in Pakistan. And The PML(N) has politically manipulated in the cases of corruption and generated considerable obstacles to make decisions against them, including an economic crisis that is partly exogenous, a power struggle in Punjab province, and a president who belongs to and is loyal to Khan’s party. The coalition government has said that it would not go to early elections. Former President Asif Ali Zardari has insisted that elections should not be held before Parliament can make electoral reforms.

Whenever the next elections are held, it is not clear what the outcome will be. What matters in Pakistan’s parliamentary system is which party can attract the most “electables”; powerful politicians in local constituencies. Large civic rallies validate Khan’s personal popularity, but not necessarily how his party performs in parliamentary elections. The second factor, which has historically determined which party politicians align with and which side the military leans toward, and this system, is the hurdle in the way of growing democracy in Pakistan.

The foundations of this system in Pakistan remain the same since the creation of Pakistan. What matters for political success is whether you have the support of the Pakistan Army.

Political parties now directly refer to military intervention in politics, but only when they are in opposition. When they are in government and enjoy this support, they do not challenge it. This was true of Khan’s party when it was in power, and it is true of Sharif’s government now.

Pakistan’s growing political tensions and the race for power have turned the country into a political flashpoint. And it does not address the problems of common Pakistanis, who are continuously paying the price for the country’s political instability.

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Problems of Karachi Essay | 200 & 500 Words

by Pakiology | Aug 21, 2024 | Essay | 0 comments

Explore the multifaceted challenges faced by Karachi in this comprehensive essay. From overpopulation to traffic congestion, and water scarcity to political instability, discover the key issues affecting this bustling metropolis in our “Problems of Karachi Essay | 200 & 500 Words.”

Problems of Karachi Essay 200 Words

Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city, grapples with a myriad of complex issues that impact its diverse population, including students. Overpopulation, a pressing concern, strains resources, and infrastructure, leading to housing shortages and traffic congestion. The latter not only wastes valuable time but also contributes to air pollution and economic disruptions.

The city’s infrastructure is in decay, with potholed roads and inadequate public transport hindering students’ daily commute. Moreover, a severe water crisis, unequal water distribution, and contamination pose health risks, particularly for children. Energy shortages disrupt students’ study routines and hamper economic growth.

Political instability, ethnic tensions, and corruption further compound Karachi’s problems. Crime and security concerns, from street crimes to extortion threats, disrupt daily life and education. Environmental degradation, including air pollution and coastal erosion, jeopardizes the city’s future.

Educational challenges, such as limited access and varying educational quality, add to the city’s woes. The digital divide, highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic, has exacerbated educational disparities.

In conclusion, Karachi faces a complex web of problems that affect students and residents alike, ranging from overpopulation and traffic congestion to water scarcity, political instability, and educational challenges. Addressing these issues requires collective efforts to ensure a better and more livable future for all in this vibrant metropolis.

Problems of Karachi Essay 500 Words

Introduction.

Karachi, the largest city in Pakistan and its economic hub, is a bustling metropolis known for its vibrant culture, diverse population, and economic opportunities. However, beneath its surface lies a myriad of complex and pressing problems that impact the daily lives of its residents. This essay aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the problems faced by Karachi, catering to all types of students, ranging from school to college levels.

I. Overpopulation

One of the most glaring issues plaguing Karachi is overpopulation. With a population of over 14 million (as of my last knowledge update in September 2021), Karachi is Pakistan’s most populous city. This rapid population growth has resulted in various challenges:

A. Housing Shortage: The city lacks adequate housing facilities to accommodate its ever-growing population. This has led to the emergence of informal settlements, commonly known as katchi abadis, characterized by substandard living conditions and a lack of basic amenities.

B. Strain on Infrastructure: Overpopulation places immense stress on infrastructure, including roads, public transport, and utilities. Traffic congestion is a daily ordeal for residents, leading to time wastage and increased air pollution.

C. Resource Scarcity: Overpopulation exacerbates the scarcity of essential resources such as water and electricity, leading to frequent shortages and increased prices.

II. Traffic Congestion

Karachi’s traffic congestion is a problem that affects everyone, from schoolchildren to working professionals. The city’s road infrastructure is inadequate to support its population’s vehicular needs, resulting in numerous issues:

A. Time Wastage: Commuters in Karachi often spend hours stuck in traffic, leading to productivity losses and stressful daily routines.

B. Air Pollution: Prolonged traffic congestion contributes to air pollution, which poses serious health risks to residents, particularly children and the elderly.

C. Economic Impact: Traffic congestion has a negative impact on the city’s economy as it disrupts the movement of goods and services, increasing costs for businesses and consumers.

III. Infrastructure Decay

The deteriorating state of Karachi’s infrastructure is a critical issue that affects students and the general population alike:

A. Poor Road Conditions: Many of Karachi’s roads are in disrepair, riddled with potholes and cracks, which not only cause traffic congestion but also pose safety hazards for commuters.

B. Inadequate Public Transport: The city’s public transportation system is outdated and inefficient, making it challenging for students to commute to schools and colleges.

C. Sanitation Problems: Karachi faces sanitation issues due to inadequate waste management infrastructure. This leads to unhygienic conditions that can contribute to the spread of diseases.

IV. Water Crisis

Access to clean and safe drinking water is a fundamental right, but Karachi faces a severe water crisis:

A. Unequal Distribution: Water is distributed inequitably across the city, with some areas receiving a more consistent supply than others. This disparity affects students’ ability to study and maintain good hygiene.

B. Contamination: Contaminated water sources in some parts of Karachi pose health risks, especially for children, who are more susceptible to waterborne diseases.

C. Groundwater Depletion: The over-extraction of groundwater has led to a decline in the water table, further exacerbating the water crisis.

V. Energy Shortages

Karachi, like many parts of Pakistan, grapples with energy shortages:

A. Frequent Load Shedding: Unplanned load shedding disrupts students’ study routines, making it difficult to rely on consistent electricity for lighting and electronic devices.

B. Economic Impact: Energy shortages also have a significant economic impact, affecting businesses and industries in Karachi, which, in turn, affects job opportunities for college graduates.

VI. Political Instability

Political instability has a far-reaching impact on Karachi’s problems:

A. Governance Challenges: Frequent changes in local and provincial governments have hindered long-term planning and the implementation of sustainable solutions to the city’s problems.

B. Ethnic Tensions: Karachi is known for its ethnic diversity, but political instability has sometimes fueled ethnic tensions, leading to violence and disruptions in daily life.

C. Corruption: Corruption within the bureaucracy can hinder development projects and the equitable distribution of resources.

VII. Crime and Security

Crime and security issues in Karachi are a concern for students and residents alike:

A. Street Crimes: Incidents of street crimes, such as theft and muggings, can make students and their families anxious about their safety.

B. Extortion: Some businesses and individuals face extortion threats, impacting their ability to operate freely.

C. Impact on Education: Security concerns can disrupt education, making it difficult for students to attend school or college regularly.

VIII. Environmental Degradation

Karachi’s environment is deteriorating rapidly, which can have long-term consequences for students:

A. Air Pollution: High levels of air pollution can lead to respiratory problems, affecting students’ health and concentration in school.

B. Coastal Degradation: Karachi’s coastline is under threat due to industrial pollution and unplanned development, impacting its natural beauty and ecosystem.

C. Climate Change: Karachi is vulnerable to the effects of climate change, including extreme weather events and sea-level rise, which can have far-reaching consequences for students’ lives.

IX. Educational Challenges

Finally, Karachi faces unique educational challenges:

A. Limited Access: Many children in the city, particularly those from low-income backgrounds, struggle to access quality education due to a lack of schools and resources.

B. Quality of Education: Even when schools are available, the quality of education varies widely, affecting students’ academic development.

C. Digital Divide: The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the digital divide in Karachi, where many students lacked access to online learning resources.

In conclusion, Karachi, Pakistan’s largest and most populous city, faces a multitude of interconnected problems that affect students and residents of all ages. These problems include overpopulation, traffic congestion, infrastructure decay, water and energy shortages, political instability, crime and security issues, environmental degradation, and educational challenges. Solving these issues requires concerted efforts from government authorities, civil society, and citizens. It is crucial for students to be aware of these problems and actively engage in finding solutions, as they represent the city’s future. Karachi’s challenges are immense, but with the right approach and commitment, they can be overcome to create a better and more livable city for all its residents.

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