Home

The question of Pakistan's survival


by Pukhtoon Khan

The basic questions which are posing a threat to the survival of the current Pakistan are two: 1) Lack of democracy as the basis of statecraft 2) Reluctance to grant provincial autonomy to the federating units. Let us analyse the consequences of these threats. The foreign powers especially US are the major hurdles on the road to establish democracy in Pakistan due to its political vested interests. Dictatorial and autocratic rulers of Pakistan suit the designs of US to keep Pakistan as their colony with the help of military establishment which has been serving as its loyal servant since long. The military establishment has in turn been using coercive force and religious theocracy to tighten its grip on the non-submissive and freedom loving nationalities in Pakistan like Afghans (Pashtuns) , Sindhis and Balochis while it has been buying the loyalties of the other nationalities by bribing them with material benefits. It is due to this reason that the forces of Pakistan has least representation from Pashtuns,Balochis and Sindhis and hence it does not represent bonds of national harmony among the nationalities of Pakistan. It also implies why Pakistan army uses brutal force against its so called fellow country men and muslim brothers in Pashtun land as well as in Balochistan. The second factor is the use of religious demagogues to disintegrate the national unity of the oppressed nationalities and confuse them about their national goals. The vote bank of the politico-religious parties in Pashtun belt and their role in supporting the Punjab dominated exploitative colonial legacy system prevalent in Pakistan is the proof of this strategy. It is a well established fact now that the religious extremists who have been working for the interests of Pakistan army since Afghan war have been facilitated,trained and even created by the agencies of Pakistan in order to serve their US masters. Even currently the so called religious clerics or groups like Mulla Sufi Mohamad,Mulla Fazlullah,Mangal Bagh (an ex-bus driver but currently the defacto king in some parts of Pashtun Tribal areas (FATA) who is allowed to hold and show any type of arms and weapons across Pakistan) and the so called Jamiat Ulema Islam, Jamiat Ulema Pakistan and Jumaat-e-Islami etc are all either the products or the facilitators of Intelligence agencies of Pakistan. The major nationalities of Pakistan aka Pashtuns,Sindhis, Baloch, Seriakis and Mahajirs are least interested in the so called National interest of Pakistan as it practically means the national interests of the Punjab. The state controlled media has been propagating the synonymy of Punjabi national interest with Pakistan's national interest to the poor and oppressed masses of Pakistan and specially those of Pakhtunkhwa,Balochistan,Sindh and South Punjab so that any voice against the injustices of Punjab should be cut in the bud by labeling it against the "national interest of Pakistan". The very structure of the Punjab province is questionable as it should at least be divided into three provinces to give proper representation to the Seriakis and Potoharis too who constitute two major nationalities of Pakistan having separate cultural and political identity. The Punjabi dominated civil and military establishment has been avoiding the question of provincial autonomy and all those steps which may bring progress and prosperity to more than 60 percent down trodden and poor masses of Pakistan in general and of Non-Punjabis in particular. It is prime time for the oppressed nationalities of Pakistan to raise up and demand their rights from the so called federation of Pakistan and put an end to all political and institutional dramas being run by Punjab dominated institutions for the last 60 years. The civil and military establishment has no more chances. If they continue their policy of racial discrimination and ethnic cleansing and socio-politico-economic exploitation of the oppressed nationalities of Pakistan then they will soon be ruling a Pakistan made up only of Punjab minus Seriaki belt and Potohar region.

Hosted by www.Geocities.ws

1