National Identity

National Identity
• Nationalism denotes a shared identity, revolving around a sense of
patriotism associated primarily with a nation.
• It involves a sense of belonging to a communal identity and sharing a
common culture, ethnicity, or religion.
• The pattern of identity construction varies from state to state.
• Pakistan offers a unique case study of identity construction, using Islam as
an instrumental variable
• As British colonial rule neared its end, Muslim nationalism emerged as
justification for an independent homeland, with advocates of a Pakistani
state using Islam as the basis of a shared political identity.
• With this possible exception of Islam, a genuine sense of a singular
Pakistani national identity has never existed.
• The role of Islam as a motivator of national identity came to the fore
during the World War II era with the beginnings of regional
decolonization, and in turn political vacuums in which Hindus and
Muslims competed.
• There is growing confusion about national identity since the creation of Pakistan.
• While the TwoNation Theory had promoted the idea of a separate state for Muslims of the
Indian sub-continent, the proponents of the idea of Islamic state claim that the basic idea
was to create a homeland for Muslims where they could practice their religion as per sharia.
• As a result, Islam served as a political justification for the two-nation theory, creating a
separate country post-decolonization, which won the support of a diverse collection of
ethnicities.
• Before the partition of the Indian subcontinent, peripheral, often ethnicbased identities
dominated any sense of shared identity on the subcontinent.
• Rising ethnic nationalism has further hindered government efforts to consolidate a singular religious-
based national identity that could transcend local loyalties.
• Pakistan’s social demography is divided along linguistic and ethnic orientations, and Islam has not
proven sufficient to unite a group of people divided by diverse languages, castes, cultures, tribes, and
historical experiences.
• The separation of East Pakistan serves as a poignant example of the collapse of the two-nation theory
when a large part of the population prioritized ethnic identity over religious identity.
• This considerably undermined citizens’ belief in the viability of a single Pakistani nation united by
Islam.
• Since then, skepticism of Pakistan’s national Islamic identity has only grown.
• This trend generates important questions about why public resonance of a national Pakistani identity
has steadily diminished since the country’s independence.
Factors affecting the issue of
National Identity
• Three key factors have contributed to the erosion of a common Pakistani
identity:
• (1) inequitable allocation of financial resources;
• (2) the army’s dominance over political processes and its tendency to
adopt discriminatory policies; and
• (3) the political marginalization of the smaller federating units.
Inequitable Allocation of Financial Resources
• In particular, the relationship between Punjab and Pakistan’s other provinces evidences these
key factors.
• Punjab is Pakistan’s most populous province and holds disproportionate control over the
national economy, distribution of jobs, and institutional development.
• As a result, the other provinces exhibit underdevelopment—both structural and institutional—
relative to Punjab.
• Based on these discrepancies, constituents of many Pakistani provinces perceive Punjab as
exploiting their national financial resources. Punjab heavily influences the federal government,
and other provinces presume the center—identified in this piece as the Pakistani federal
government—to be subservient to Punjab.
• In Pakistan, allocation of federal financial resources to the provinces takes
place through awards determined by the National Finance Commission (NFC).
• Criticism of the NFC allocation system has long been a point of friction for
Pakistan’s provinces.
• Thus, even if allocation of the NFC award is “fair” for successfully achieving
allocation policies, Punjab’s receipt of a majority of funds has stirred
resentment against Punjab and weakened citizens’ sense of allegiance to the
national government.
 Army Dominance and Ethnic
Fractionalization
• Pakistan largely constitutes a “one institution state” due to the military’s
overwhelming influence on the country’s political system and processes.
• Since independence, the Pakistani military’s ability to override the state’s
decision making apparatus has demonstrated its vast power.
• The military is predominantly Punjabi.
• Thus, military operations in the other provinces influence the contours of
Pakistan’s ethnic politics.
• Protracted military rule in Pakistan has produced a fragile democracy.
• The military’s upper hand in the decision making processes has hindered development
of democratic institutions.
• Periods of military rule intensified the differences and grievances between the
provinces, while the military’s ad hoc policies resulted in the dismemberment of East
Pakistan.
• Economic policies set by Ayub Khan’s administration created discriminatory
economic opportunities between the East and West, further marginalizing East
Pakistan and fomenting a Bengali ethnic national identity.
• Yahya’s period of leadership became Pakistan’s most politically tumultuous era; the 1970 elections
triggered a civil war and the eventual division of the country.
• Yahya Khan’s reluctance to transfer political power to Bengalis, despite the Awami League’s
electoral majority, fomented a Bengali secessionist movement.
• General Zia ul Haq imposed Pakistan’s third period of martial law in 1977 by removing a
popularly-elected Sindhi prime minister, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
• Prime Minister Bhutto had provided a rare example of Sindhi leadership at the national level, and
his subsequent execution both incensed Sindhis and exacerbated the public’s perception of a
Punjabi-dominated military that prioritized Punjabi interests.
• In short, Sindhis interpreted Bhutto’s hanging as a Punjabi attack on Sindh.
• Over time, Sindhi resentment of other political and economic
developments at the national level evolved into a resonant political
narrative of Sindhi victimhood, leading to the development of what was
later referred to as the “Sindh Card.”
• The Bhutto episode reshaped Sindhis’ perceptions of the Punjabi influence
on the federation as an exploiter and established an indigenous Sindhi
identity as the victim of discrimination.
• Pakistan’s fourth and most recent military leader—General Pervez
Musharraf—imposed martial law in 1999.
• Musharraf failed to offer a new NFC award formula that addressed the
concerns of the smaller provinces.
• During Musharraf ’s tenure, Balochistan’s struggle for political and
financial autonomy fomented an insurgency and a secessionist movement
after former Balochistan Governor Nawab Akbar Bugti was assassinated
in a 2006 Pakistani military operation.
• Pakistan’s series of military rulers fostered the rise of ethnic politics by
ignoring concerns of the federating units in the policies they enacted,
specifically the use of force on numerous occasions in smaller provinces.
• This diminished the potential for a national Pakistani identity by fueling anti-
government sentiments within the smaller provinces that internally rallied
around sub-national identities as alternatives to national Pakistani allegiance.
• Military dictators’ efforts to solve interprovincial issues by force led to the
separation of East Pakistan and subsequently to exacerbated tensions in
Balochistan.
• Compared to Pakistan’s democratically-sanctioned leadership, military
dictators frequently promote regional and ethnic identity formation.
 The Political Marginalization of the Smaller
Federating Units
• Punjab’s influence on the federation and thus the perception of
exploitative policies towards the other provinces is often termed by
Pakistanis as “Punjabi elitism.”
• Ethnic and cultural differences distinguishing Punjab from the other three
provinces, combined with Punjab’s unequal structural development and
disproportionate share of financial resources, have advanced a narrative of
Punjab versus the rest of Pakistan.
• Compared to Pakistan’s other provinces, Punjab’s infrastructure; road and railway
networks; canal system; educational institutions; and hospitals are better funded and
deliver a higher quality of services.
• Punjab’s institutional advancement during the country’s colonial era—as well as its
dominant role in the Pakistani military—owes in part to the British Raj’s preference
for including Punjabis in the British army over Pakistanis (then Indians) from other
provinces, on their perception that the Punjabis were a “more martial race.”
• In turn, Punjab’s resulting military, bureaucratic, and economic roles in Pakistan
contributed to the perception by other provinces of Punjab as an oppressor
 Ethnic Fractionalization in Sindh
• Many Mohajirs settled in Karachi, the provincial capital of Sindh province, and the
seat of the government until 1959.
• Since the Mojahirs had linguistic advantage over the Sindhis, their presence in the
province resulted in Sindhis’ relative exclusion from major roles in early statecraft.
• Thus, there was a tendency for Mohajirs to enjoy privileges of participation in state
machinery, while Sindhis found themselves jobless.
• Even though Mohajir political dominance has subsided over time, they continue to
receive jobs by a quota system, a policy that further aggravates ethnic tensions in
Sindh.
 Ethnic Fractionalization in Sindh
• Due to their aforementioned waning political influence and the
concurrently increasing economic and political competition among
ethnicities, Mohajir students founded the Muttahida Quami Movement
(MQM) political party in 1984, which sought to preserve the group’s
identity and social position.
• Today MQM is the largest opposition party in the Sindh legislature. MQM
controlled the Karachi city government from 2005 to 2009, and continues
to be a dominant force in Karachi’s politics
 Pashtun Nationalism
• Conservative in social outlook and traditional in policy, Pashtuns have a
distinctive cultural identity.
• Although rules for self-identification as Pashtun vary widely, Pashtun
belonging tends to require commitment to Pashtunwali (an ethical code)
and adoption of a traditional lifestyle.
• The resulting broad linguistic and cultural conformity across Pashtun
territories offers a particularly cohesive sense of shared ethnic identity
 Pashtun Nationalism
• At the time of Pakistan’s independence, the country’s northwest region—
identified overwhelmingly as Pashtun—displayed furious opposition to
the idea of an independent Pakistani state.
• Additionally, the inequitable distribution of water resources and a
diminished share of provincial resources aggravated Pashtun grievances
against the center and encouraged regional identity politics.
• As in Sindh, consolidation of peripheral identity in KPK has directly
correlated with the tone of center-province relations.
 Pashtun Nationalism
• At the time of Pakistan’s independence, the country’s northwest region—identified
overwhelmingly as Pashtun—displayed furious opposition to the idea of an independent
Pakistani state.
• Additionally, the inequitable distribution of water resources and a diminished share of provincial
resources aggravated Pashtun grievances against the center and encouraged regional identity
politics.
• As in Sindh, consolidation of peripheral identity in KPK has directly correlated with the tone of
center-province relations.
• In a further effort to recognize political demands of Pashtun tribes, the Eighteenth Amendment
changed the province’s name from the North-West Frontier Province to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
 Baloch Secessionism
• Balochistan has played host to five insurgencies over the past seventy years, which
demonstrates the worsening state of affairs between the center and Pakistan’s
largest province.
• The Baloch conflict has emerged as a major internal security threat in Pakistan,
given that a strong local ethnic identity and a weak national identity in the province
drives a robust secessionist movement.
• The province’s abundant natural resources and its strategic access due to the vital
Gwadar seaport and Iranian-Afghan border render it central to Pakistan’s national
interests.
 Baloch Secessionism
• Balochistan’s military conflict against the central government repelled the Baloch people from
any sort of national Pakistani identity.
• In Balochistan, the Baloch ethnic identity became paramount.
• The Baloch separatist movement re-emerged in 2004 to demand greater provincial autonomy.
• Both the Baloch Liberation Front and Balochistan Liberation Army expanded their regional
political and military influence.
• Furthermore, after the 2006 murder of Baloch governor and tribal leader Bugti, the insurgency
adopted exclusively secessionist aims and increased the frequency of their anti-government
attacks.
 Baloch Secessionism
• The literacy rate in Balochistan remains devastatingly low compared to that of other provinces,
and its number of development projects is negligible due to political instability in the province.
• Although Balochistan has been able to attract modest amounts of foreign direct investment,
Balochs continue to accuse the central government of depriving the province of any economic
benefits.
• The center has failed to enact policies that can help the Balochs to develop and advance their
circumstances.
• In return, Balochs share minimal allegiance to the Pakistani state and broadly reject a national
identity.
 Conclusion
• Pakistan has never exhibited a monolithic national identity.
• Though national leaders invoke Pakistanis’ common religious beliefs to
inspire a sense of unity, over the years this the narrative has eroded and
cleavages between ethnic groups have grown.
• The catalytic factors in this changing landscape include the political
marginalization of Pakistan’s less populous provinces, perceptions of
unequal distribution in state resources, and policies by military regimes that
are disadvantageous to provinces’ political and economic opportunities. A
 Conclusion
• As a result, Pakistan has witnessed the rise of indigenous and peripheral identities. This is not a
recent phenomenon.
• Growing ethnic solidarity and the pattern of secondary identity construction have taken place over
decades, allowing preexisting seeds of ethnic nationalism to come to the fore.
• The government must adopt policies guaranteeing the provinces’ political autonomy and
strengthening their economies through altered distribution of state resources from the current method.
• Pakistan can only achieve a shared national identity if all provinces believe that they are equally
valued by the center.
• For that to happen, the center must prioritize an alternative and sustainable division of financial
resources and political autonomy.