PAKISTAN
IN SEARCH OF ITS ESSENCE
The story of Pakistan
is one of fascinating contrasts and contradictions. The movement for Pakistan
started with the desire of then defeated people of the subcontinent, to gain
freedom from colonial rule. It was nurtured by the ideals of “Pan-Islamism”
and a yearning amongst the Muslims of the subcontinent to be a part of a rejuvenated
Ummah. This story can be likened to the story of the proverbial stream (Ref
1) that starts amongst lofty snow-covered peaks in the mountains and cuts
through or around the terrain that it encounters as it makes its way to the
mighty ocean. The Pakistan movement started with lofty ideals and cut through
or around the challenges and the opposition posed by one of the mightiest
empires, and some of the most charismatic and influential personalities of
the 20th century; ultimately carving out an independent homeland
for the Muslims of the subcontinent.
It was a unique country
indeed, divided into two parts, separated by over a thousand miles of hostile
territory. While the movement to create this homeland was fueled by a desire
to provide a place for peaceful existence to the large Muslim minority of
the subcontinent, the actual birth of the country was marred by a mass exodus
and the killing of hundreds of thousands of innocent people on both sides
of the new borders. The “truncated Pakistan" (Ref 2) that came into being
to unite and protect the Muslims of the subcontinent, itself ended up being
divided into two countries after a civil war just a quarter of a century later.
The Pakistan that is left
behind provides amazing contrasts in geography and climate, In a land mass
(796,000 square kilometers) smaller than the state of Alaska, the terrain
ranges from 8 mountain peaks over 20,000 feet above sea level, where surface
temperatures never get above the freezing point, to a vast coastal desert
where temperatures exceed 120° F in the shade.
The people of Pakistan
provide even more fascinating contrasts than its terrain and climate. On the
one hand, the genius of Pakistanis has produced:
- The Human Development
Index around which the UN created its development program, and many countries
of the world have rethought their economic development strategies.
- A Nobel Prize in Physics
for research on subatomic particles.
- Nuclear capability
for the nation.
- Leadership and influence
in multiple international forums, and institutions.
- A large group of expatriate
Pakistanis representing some of the finest talents available and millions
of dollars of investments (Ref 3) and assets.
- First ever elected
woman Prime Minister in a Muslim country.
Yet in contrast to all
these individual achievements, Pakistan’s social indicators are some of the
worst in the region, with millions living in poverty and deprived of the basic
necessities of life and of the basic civil and political rights in the society.
The social indicators have not kept pace even with the economic growth in
the country, and the social indicators for females are some of the worst in
the world.
The Pakistani nation has
often been described as one characterized by “individual excellence and collective
failure.” For the millions bearing the brunt of this collective failure, it
is as though the stream has finally reached the desert, where it can neither
cut through the sand nor go around the obstacles, but keeps turning into a
marsh. In order to cross this desert we need to develop a better understanding
of this terrain.
OVERVIEW OF SOCIAL
INDICATORS
Table 1
compares Pakistan’s social indicators with the averages of South Asia (SAARC)
and the developing countries of the world and of the industrial countries,
and shows glaring deficiencies. Pakistan lags behind the averages of it's
neighbors in South Asia and the developing countries of the world in each
one of the three components of the Human development Index. It's investment
in the social sector is also meager as compared to the other developing nations.
LIFE EXPECTANCY AND
HEALTH
Table 2
traces the improvements in social indicators, reflecting the state of the
health of the community over the years. While all indicators show progressive
improvement, they have not kept pace with the economic growth and the improvement
experienced by the communities with similar backgrounds.
INCOME
Table 3
traces the evolution of some of the key economic indicators in Pakistan’s
history. Unfortunately any improvements in the GDP and GNP have been more
than offset by the increasing amount of resources required for debt service.
The increases in the investments in the social sector have barely kept pace
with the needs of a growing population. Thus the proportion of people living
without essential social services is decreasing very slowly. At the current
rate it will take decades for the vast majority of the people of Pakistan
to stand on their own feet and be able to compete (for survival) in the world.
GENDER DISPARITIES
While mothers make the
most important decisions during our formative years, the mothers in Pakistan
have been the victims of one of the worst forms of deprivations – lack of
knowledge (education) to make the decisions, and lack of (economic) independence
to have an impact on the decision-making process in society. They are also
the last ones in the household to get the nutrition or the healthcare necessary.
Table 4 compares the current state of social indicators for
males and females in the country.
LITERACY AND EDUCATION
Table 5
shows that the literacy rate in Pakistan has shown progressive improvement.
(It should be noted here that the definitions of literacy have changed from
time to time). However the mean years of schooling continues to be deplorably
low and has actually shown a downward trend. The entire education sector is
in need of a major overhaul. If the people of Pakistan have to survive in
this age of information and knowledge, then we need an investment much larger
than the meager 2% of GNP that has been allocated to the education sector
so far.
HUMAN RIGHTS AND JUSTICE
– TBA
POLITICAL FREEDOMS
AND EMPOWERMENT
– TBA
INSTITUTIONS AND GOVERNANCE
– TBA
DISCOVERING OUR ESSENCE
The stream’s attempts
to continue its journey through the desert in a manner similar to its journey
through the hills and meadows only produced a marsh. So long as it insisted
on sticking to it's ways, it could not make any progress. However, once it
recalled that before it became a stream it existed in the form of vapor in
the clouds that rained on the mountains to create the stream, it realized
that it is the essence, and not the form, that matters. It then raised itself
into the arms of the wind and crossed the desert to reach its destiny.
We at HDF believe that
the essence of Pakistan was defined by the leader of the Pakistan movement,
Mohammed Ali Jinnah. In his address to the first Constituent Assembly of Pakistan
on August 11, 1947 he stated, “Now, if we want to make this great state
of Pakistan happy and prosperous we should wholly and solely concentrate on
the well being of the people and especially of the masses and the poor. If
you will work in cooperation, forgetting the past, burying the hatchet you
are bound to succeed.” He further stated, “You are free to go to your
temples, you are free to go to your mosques or to any other place of worship
in this state of Pakistan . . .” These proclamations are perfectly aligned
with the vision of the Muslims of the subcontinent who strove for a separate
homeland and with the teachings of Islam.
It
is in this context that HDF has
set itself on a mission “to facilitate
a movement for positive social change
and community empowerment through
mass literacy and enhanced quality
of education, universal primary
healthcare and grassroots economic
development.” We believe that
such a movement is essential for
the fulfillment of the dream of
Pakistan that the Muslims of the
subcontinent strove for, and invite
everyone to join
our HDF family on this journey.
REFERENCES
1. "The Tale of the
Sands" in "Tales of the Dervishes" by Idries Shah.
2.
3. Human Development in
South Asia 1997, Oxford University Press.
