Pakistan
The majority of Pakistan's population lives in the Indus River
valley and in an arc formed by the cities of Faisalabad, Lahore,
Rawalpindi/Islamabad, and Peshawar. Although Urdu is an official
language of Pakistan, it is spoken as a first language by only 8% of
the population; 48% speak Punjabi, 12% Sindhi, 10% Saraiki, 8%
Pushtu, 3% Baloch, and 3% other. Urdu, Punjabi, Pushtu, and Baloch
are Indo-European languages. English is the other official language,
and is widely used in government, commerce, the officer ranks of the
military, and in many institutions of higher learning. |
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Pakistan, along with parts of western India, contains the
archeological remains of an urban civilization dating back 4,500
years. Alexander the Great included the Indus Valley in his empire
in 326 B.C., and his successors founded the Indo-Greek kingdom of
Bactria based in what is today Afghanistan and extending to
Peshawar. Following the rise of the Central Asian Kushan Empire in
later centuries, the Buddhist culture of Afghanistan and Pakistan,
centered on the city of Taxila just west of Islamabad, experienced a
cultural renaissance known as the Gandhara period.
Pakistan's Islamic history began with the arrival of Muslim traders
in the 8th century in Sindh. The collapse of the Mughal Empire in
the 18th century provided an opportunity for the English East India
Company to extend its control over much of the subcontinent. The
Sikh adventurer, Ranjit Singh, carved out a dominion that extended
from Kabul to Srinagar and Lahore, encompassing much of the northern
area of modern Pakistan. British rule replaced the Sikhs in the
first half of the 19th century. In a decision that had far-reaching
consequences, the British permitted the Hindu Maharaja of Kashmir, a
Sikh appointee, to continue in power.
Pakistan emerged from an extended period of agitation by Muslims in
the subcontinent to express their national identity free from
British colonial domination as well as domination by what they
perceived as a Hindu-controlled Indian National Congress. Muslim
anti-colonial leaders formed the All-India Muslim League in 1906.
Initially, the League adopted the same objective as the
Congress--self-government for India within the British Empire--but
Congress and the League were unable to agree on a formula that would
ensure the protection of Muslim religious, economic, and political
rights.
Pakistan and Partition
The idea of a separate Muslim state in British India first emerged
in the 1930s. On March 23, 1940, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, leader of the
Muslim League, formally endorsed the "Lahore Resolution," calling
for the creation of an independent state in regions where Muslims
constituted a majority. At the end of World War II, the United
Kingdom moved with increasing urgency to grant India independence.
The Congress Party and the Muslim League, however, could not agree
on the terms for a Constitution or establishing an interim
government. In June 1947, the British Government declared that it
would bestow full dominion status upon two successor states--India
and Pakistan, formed from areas in the subcontinent in which Muslims
were the majority population. Under this arrangement, the various
princely states could freely join either India or Pakistan.
Accordingly, on August 14, 1947 Pakistan, comprising West Pakistan
with the provinces of Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, and the Northwest
Frontier Province (NWFP), and East Pakistan with the province of
Bengal, became independent. East Pakistan later became the
independent nation of Bangladesh in 1971.
The Maharaja of Kashmir was reluctant to make a decision on
accession to either Pakistan or India. However, armed incursions
into the state by tribesman from the NWFP led him to seek military
assistance from India. The Maharaja signed accession papers in
October 1947 and allowed Indian troops into the state. The
Government of Pakistan, however, refused to recognize the accession
and campaigned to reverse the decision. The status of Kashmir
remains in dispute to this day. |
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