Current Affairs of Pakistan: the Dominance of the Pakistani Army

Introduction

Through this research proposal, I am primarily going to explore if the Pakistani army is the sole institution that is responsible for the downfall of the Pakistani state. This exploration will help us grasp the fine nuances associated with the garrison state of Pakistan.
Many scholars around the world have described Pakistan as a failing/failed state. The claims of it being a rogue state are not new. Whether the state has truly failed or is still in the process of failing is something that we are definitely going to analyze through this paper.

We are going to try and understand the possible role of Islam in how things stand.

Body

Historical Context and Military Rule

We will also look into the possible signs of revival (if any) only after assessing the validity of the above-stated assertion. We will also try and unbridle the conundrum that surrounds the nature of the state of Pakistan. In this particular section, we are going to try and expand our horizons in order to get a better idea of the character of the state. By taking into consideration some relevant information regarding the factors involved in shaping the very nature of the Pakistani state. This will eventually lead us to arrive at a conclusion regarding the prevailing condition of the state. This will further be accompanied by a possible way out depending on the prevailing state of affairs. In due course, we will also try and get our hands on some vital insights that would help us understand where did Pakistan miss out in relation to India. In other words, what made India the world’s largest democracy and Pakistan a democratically frustrated state even though both started venturing out at the same point in time?

Half a century after its creation, it remains a nation still in the making. It is undoubtedly one of the most politically unstable countries in the world. The country has witnessed long spells of direct military rule throughout its existence. It has also faced intense strife in religious, economic as well as ethnic domains.

The law of the land has been crushed by the military more often than not. It is imperative to consider on our part that the politics of Pakistan is predominantly rather solely dictated by what Hamza Alavi calls ‘the bureaucratic-military oligarchy.’ The next in the line is the political elite and the landed elite.

Early Military Interventions

The army emerging as the most important institution in Pakistan since the post-colonial era, has managed to pierce through the state apparatus. Not only this, but the most sought-after institution has also made its presence felt in the economic sphere. Thus the army is everywhere. It is omnipotent in nature.

The country has had a lot of unsought developments in its political history. Pakistan has faced three military coups throughout its 73 years of existence after being carved out of British India. However, the floodgate did not open with the advent of military rule in Pakistan. It began when this poor nation witnessed eight different Prime Ministers in a short span of 7 years since independence.
One of the biggest challenges that a country like Pakistan faces is to undercut the military’s role in the public sphere. There is a severe need to subordinate the military to civil rule. There have been several attempts around the world by the military to overthrow the incumbent regimes. However, these episodes have been starkly in contrast with the nature of military coups that occurred in Pakistan. For instance, the military did rise up to the occasion the destabilize the government in countries like Ecuador and Venezuela but ended up diligently handing over the power to a responsible political authority within 24 hours and 48 hours of the operation carried out. (Kalia, 125)

Army's Role in Decision-Making

The first military coup took place right after Pakistan completed a decade of its establishment as a free nation in the year 1958. This was engineered by Ayub Khan. He effectively dislodged the democratic spell of governance, which lasted for 11 years before he took over.

The second military coup led by Zia ul Haq dismantled the existing government in 1977. Haq’s military rule until Benazir Bhutto struck back to power in the year 1988 played a decisive role in influencing modern-day Pakistan.

The third and most recent episode of a military coup occurred in 1999. This was when Pervez Musharraf took over the reins from the hands of the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif.

Army has always tried to play a decisive role. However, it has not always been direct in character. Over the years, the Pakistan army has learned the art of playing an instrumental role in the decision-making processes from the backdrop.

It is highly imperative on our part to understand how the army has been able to maintain its primacy in the country. Therefore, the following three determinants should surely help us comprehend the prominence of the army.

Popular support and mobilization

Solidarity within the armed forces

The inability of the foreign powers to prevent the army’s participation (Pg 129, Kalia)
It is essential to note that the army has remained an eminent institution in the process of state-building in Pakistan right from the start. There are a few relevant factors and reasons behind the same:

• Poor economy
• 6-8 million refugees
• Administrative issues faced while governing the split constituency of Pakistan
• Lack of agreement among the political elite regarding the nature of the Pakistani state
• Regional autonomy
• The economic and political model
• Role of Islam

This is essential to know that there exists a lot of ethnic diversity within the nation. Some of the major ethnic groups are Punjabis, Mohajirs, Balochs, Sindhis, and Pathans. Punjabis and Mohajirs are known to provide vital resources for the process of state-building. Although the same does not stand true for Baloch, Sindhi, and Pathan populations in Pakistan. There has been a rising and consistent sentiment of resentment that prevails within the hearts and minds of the latter ethnic groups.

These ethnic groups have been continuously demanding greater autonomy from the state. The feeling of resentment has certainly come from the fact that these ethnic groups do not really have a considerable share of the state’s resources. The army has repeatedly minimized the impact of autonomy-driven movements by suppressing them with force. This has been done to keep the unity of the state intact.

The Pakistani army’s greater role is also advocated by the country’s obsession with its neighboring country and an emerging Asian giant - India. This is one of the most significant factors that has helped the Army grow in stature as the only institution which can bail the country in question out of its looming existential crisis.

According to a very eminent scholar, Husain Haqqani, the strategy of nation-building of Pakistan rests on the idea of a ‘policy tripod.’ This policy tripod, as propagated by Haqqani, is put into execution by practicing the following exercises.

Foreign assistance from the West to procure weapons

Haqqani believes that the main operative mechanism for executing this policy tripod is what he calls the ‘mosque-military alliance.’
Fauji Foundation is another important determinant that needs to be talked about in order to understand why and how the army holds the edge over every other institution that has ever existed or is existing in the lackluster nation. It is a commercial conglomeration that has set its foot in the market in a variety of ways. It deals in financial services and various other essential commodities like food, fertilizers, gas, and power generation. This foundation is another way of providing great welfare schemes and employment opportunities to ex-army personnel. These benefits are sometimes also furthered to the near and dear ones of the army personnel.
This military-based organization has also been running numerous schools and colleges throughout the landscape of Pakistan.

Therefore, it would be inappropriate to call the Fauji Foundation one of the most important causal factors behind the Pakistani army’s strong grip over the nation. This further helps the army as an institution imbibe a sense of security and loyalty in its workforce.
Of all the neighboring countries of India, Pakistan remains one of the most debated ones. Moreover, Pakistan’s role in the current world scenario is more puzzling than anything else on this entire planet. The failing (or some might like to believe, failed) state has been constantly in touch with the almighty United States of America on the one hand. At the same time, it has continued to offer its support to the Taliban forces in its neighboring country, Afghanistan.

The country is at crossroads. A country whose relationship with democracy is insubstantial at best. Needless to say, it is an epicenter of terrorism. Its affiliation with radical Islam further adds to its woes. The country has been facing some serious existential threats from its own narrative.

Conclusion

A country where the politicians are indifferent to the very idea of spies running the nation. There is apathy at every level of the public sphere. Nobody seems to be affected by the poor status quo of the nation. This is simply because almost every official at the helm of some type of public office is a cynic. They are sheerly driven by personal interests making the scenario worse.

References

1. Kalia, Ravi. "Pakistan: From the Rhetoric of Democracy to the Rise of Military Oligarchy." Journal of Third World Studies, vol. 32, no. 1, 2015, pp. 125-139

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