A Study of Muslim

Nationalism
Sublime Beauty
And Crushed Dreams
Basic Facts
 Pakistan and India gained independence from British
Raj in 1947
 when it gained independence, Pakistan comprised
East Pakistan (in 1971 becomes Bangladesh) and West
Pakistan
 as in other parts of Muslim world, colonialism
bequeathed arbitrary borders

 Map:
https://www.google.ca/maps/@20.4861349,50.6325176,
4z
Pakistan, liberal and conservative
 Shift from liberal-leaning, pro-Western to conservative
and disenchanted

 Pics of Pakistan through the decades:

 http://www.dawn.com/news/1109105/the-pakistan-
zeitgeists-a-nation-through-the-ages
Decolonization in Muslim World
 Dilemma of early 20th c: pursue pan-Islamic identity or
national identity?

 Pan-Islamic efforts harkened back to days of empire:

Ottoman, Mughal, Safavid

 Symbol of pan-Islamic community, the Ottoman

Empire, was reduced by British and French imperialism
and finally quashed by modern Turkish Republic after
WWI
Political Structure of Pakistan
Administrative and legal structure: carry over from British
colonialism
 4 provinces: Punjab, Sindh, Baluchistan, Khyber-
Pakhtunkhwa
 1 administrative region with limited autonomy: Gilgit-
Baltistan
 1 semi-independent administrative region: Azad Jammu
and Kashmir
 7 Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA)
 Largely self-ruling through elders and tribal jirgas
 Stronghold of Pakistani Taliban and refuge of Afghani
Taleban and current site of American drone attacks
Population, by ethnicity
Total population: 196 million (2014)
 Punjabi 44.68%
 Pashtun (Pathan) 15.42%
 Sindhi 14.1%
 Sariaki 8.38% (Punjabi/Sindhi)
 Muhajirs 7.57% (Urdu-speaking migrants from India)
 Balochi 3.57%
 Other 6.28%

(Source: CIA World Factbook, https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-

factbook/geos/pk.html)
Ethnic/Political Divisions
 Nationalist independence movement in Baluchistan
 Anti-Pakistan movements in FATA (e.g. Waziristans)
 Secessionist tendency in Karachi
 Aspirations for new province in southern Punjab

 Overly strong role for military and intelligence agency

 “and yet it walks…” – Anatol Lievan in Pakistan: A Hard

Country
Pakistan: A Secular or Religious State?
Is the name an anagram?
 P-Punjab
 A-parts of Afghanistan
 K-Kashmir
 S-Sindh
 isTan-Baluchistan

Or a reference to Muslim
homeland?
“Pak”-Pure; and “-istan” – land
of Official languages: Urdu & English
Religious and Sectarian Groups
 Muslims represent about 90-95% of the population
 Sunni (85-90%), Shia (10-15%)
 Ahmadis considered non-Muslim as of 1971-2, in order
to appease religious conservatives

 Other religious minorities: Christian, Hindu, Sikh,

Zoroastrians (Parsee)
 a sizeable population in interior Sindh
 Sizable Christian minority remains, esp. in Punjab
 Important Sikh sites in Punjab
Wahgah Border Crossing (India)
Pakistani Sikh Officer at Wahgah Border
Muslim Nationalism and Secularism
 “La ilaha illa llah”: There is no God but God
 But founding father, Jinnah, expected it to be a secular
country
 can modern nationalism, which is a secular ideology,
easily co-exist with a strong religious ideology?
 Pakistan and Israel are the only two countries that
have been created with exclusively religious
ideologies/identities in mind
Liberal Elites, Conservative Masses
 Secular, nationalist, liberal elites led the drive for a
Muslim nation-state

 But more overtly religiously-oriented, conservative

leaders are more in tune with the opinions and mood
of the general public

 Liberal secular elites don’t “speak the language” of the

masses
Feudal Lords and Class Hierarchy
 ~65% of country’s population lives in rural settings
(2011)

 Large landholding families dominate politics (e.g.

Bhutto)

 Feudal relations give rise to patron-client relationships

 Class hierarchy still very strong in Pakistan, even in

urban centres
Agriculture and Children’s Labour
Rohtas Fort, Punjab
Destabilization, 1970s-1980s
Cold War, proxy war between USA and USSR in late-
1970s and 1980s
 Incubation of Taliban and al-Qaeda
 Proliferation of secret militias, weapons
 Mass migration of refugees and displacing of
populations
 Mujahideen sent to fight in Kashmir
 Saudi Arabia and Iran vying for regional influence and
prestige, stoking sectarianism
 targeted killings of religious minorities
Winds of Change in Karachi

 Pics of Karachi through the decades:

 http://www.dawn.com/news/1134284/visual-karachi-
from-paris-of-asia-to-city-of-lights-to-hell-on-earth
 (see Obama in 1981)
Demographic Shifts
Young Seminarians in Lahore
Begum Shahi Mosque, Lahore
Young Population
Age Structure in Pakistan and
Canada
Very Young Populations
 Most Muslim-majority societies have a very young
population, with half population under 25
 Median age of Pakistani population: 22.6 years

 Potential for positive change, but also potential for

increased militancy
 Youth unemployment and lack of opportunities: easy
prey for radicalization
Social Welfare Expenditure
 2.5% of GDP spent on healthcare in 2011 (rank: 185)
 2.1% of GDP spent on education in 2012 (rank: 164)
 Literacy rate: 54.9% (68.6% males; 40.3% females)
Source: CIA WorldFact Book
Girls’ Education: Malala
Demographic Implications
 Values shifts: gap between generations but also
between urban and rural, educated and illiterate
populations

 Censorship laws vs. internet generation: Facebook,

Youtube, Twitter can be used to undermine
authoritarian regimes
Conclusions: Complex Societies
 Multiple layers of identity are super-imposed on one
another
 National identity does not have very deep roots and
has to compete with other forms of belonging and
solidarity
 Uses and abuses of religion
 Genuine sympathy for the suffering of Muslims around
the world
 Islamist or jihadist movements (e.g. al-Qaeda, ISIS)
regard nation-states as manifestation of colonial
divisions and lapsed belief
Postcolonial Blues
 Structural and cultural problems plague Muslim societies

 Internal and external challenges and threats

 Foreign support of dictators, monarchs and autocrats
 Slow economic growth
 Corruption: nepotism
 Uses and abuses of religion
 Rising tide of militancy and proliferation of weapons
 Fundamental questions about society have not been settled
and little common ground between varied population
Addendum
 Miscellaneous pictures
Pakistani Truck Art
Master Truck Artist: Habib Ejaz
Karimabad, Hunza Valley
Indus River, Hunza Valley
Fairy Meadows and Nanga Parbat
Himalayas
Mt. Rakaposhi
Sindhi Rug