Conservatism in Pakistan (Urdu:پاکستان میں قدامت پسندی) generally relates to thetraditional,social, andreligious identities in thepolitics ofPakistan. American historianStephen Cohen describes several political constants in Pakistan's conservatism: respect fortradition, therule of law and theIslamic religion which is integral in theidea of Pakistan.[1]
The conservativephilosophy, principles, ideas, and traditions were first adopted by thePrime MinisterLiaquat Ali Khan as part of his internal policies in 1950. The conservative tradition has played a major role inPakistani politics, culture, and organized conservative movement has played a key role in politics only since the 1950s. According to theCIA database, approximately 95–97% of thePakistani people are the followers ofIslam while the remaining believe inChristianity,Hinduism, andothers.[2][3][4]
The conservatism movement in Pakistan has been normally associated with thePakistan Muslim League (PML)– the successor party to the one which was responsible for the founding of Pakistan.[5][6] Dominant and influential section of thePML is led by its extendedPML(N), which is currently led by its leader and the formerPrime MinisterNawaz Sharif, elected ingeneral elections held in 2013.[6] Nonetheless, the conservative vote bank of the country partitioned equally between thePML(N) and thecentristPTI ofImran Khan on the topics mainly concerning theforeign policy,national, and social issues. In 2018, the conservative votebank eventually switched to PTI when Imran Khan was sworn as Prime Minister who defeated PML's candidateShahbaz Sharif in thenationwide general elections.
Since the 1930s, theMuslim League had been lobbying and pushing its politics for a separate homeland for the Muslims of India, known asPakistan.
The constitution and principles of the Muslim League were contained in theGreen Book, written by conservative thinker and cleric, MaulanaMuhammad Ali. Its goals at this stage did not include establishing an independent Muslim state, but rather concentrated on protecting Muslim liberties and rights, promoting understanding between the Muslim community and other Indians, educating the Muslim and Indian community at large on the actions of the government, and discouraging violence. However, several factors over the next thirty years, including sectarian violence, led to a re-evaluation of the Muslim League's aims.[7][8]
WithMuhammad Ali Jinnah becoming thePresident of theMuslim League, the party gradually became the leading representative body ofIndian Muslims. A fresh call for a separate state was then made by the famous writer, poet, and philosopher AllamaMuhammad Iqbal, who in his presidential address to the 1930 convention of the Muslim League said that he felt that a separate Muslim state was essential in an otherwise Hindu-dominated South Asia.[9][10] The name was coined byCambridge student and MuslimnationalistChoudhary Rahmat Ali,[11] and was published on 28 January 1933 in the pamphletNow or Never.[12] After a long political struggle and party meetings with the people of theNorth-West India, theBritish Empire granted the establishment ofPakistan and independence of India; both countries joined theBritish Commonwealth organization.
The Muslim League was not the only conservative movement in the erstwhile region of British India that became Pakistan. Others included theCongress Nationalist Party,[13] thePunjab Unionist Party[14][failed verification] theHindu Mahasabha and theAkali Dal.
In addition, a number of figures within theIndian National Congress, such asSardar Vallabhai Patel were conservative.[15]
AfterJinnah died in 1948,Prime MinisterLiaquat Ali Khan's constitutional policies were directed to work on constitution.[16] On 12 March 1949, Prime Minister Ali Khan had theState parliament passing and promulgating theObjectives Resolution, which ultimately declaredIslam asstate religion of the country.[16] The main objective of Resolution was the "declaration ofState's submitting to the democratic faith of Islam and to the sovereignty ofGod".[16] Such resolution was met with great resistance in the state parliament whenLaw ministerJ.N. Mandal resigned from his ministry and gave great criticism to Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan. Politicization of Islam in the country further tighten its support when ultra-conservativeClerics passed a "demand draft", called22 Points which called for the preparation of constitution according toObjectives Resolution, in 1950.
In 1977, the government ofZulfiqar Ali Bhutto outlawed alcohol and drugs and changed the weekend from Sunday to Friday, but no substantive Islamic reform program was implemented prior to GeneralZia-ul-Haq's Islamization program. Starting in February 1979, new penal measures based on Islamic principles of justice went into effect. These carried considerably greater implications for women than for men. A welfare and taxation system based onZakat and a profit-and-loss banking system were also established in accordance with Islamic prohibitions againstusury but were inadequate.
After the death ofJinnah,Prime MinisterLiaquat Ali Khan successfully authored and passed theObjectives Resolution from thestate parliament, roughly declaringIslam asstate religion. The idea of Conservatism in Pakistan identifies several constants including the "respect for tradition, the rule of law and the Islamic religion." Proponents ofright-wing conservatism andnationalist agenda was supported by Prime MinisterAli Khan as part of his internal policies. His conservative policies were met with resistance from theleft-wing which was accused of hatching theconspiracy againstAli Khan. In 1979, thereligious conservatism and the state-sponsoredIslamization became a primary policy ofmilitary government ofPresident GeneralZia-ul-Haq.
As an aftermath of1954 general elections, conservatism lost its edge inEast-Pakistan whencommunism deeply asserted itself following the victory ofCommunist Party. The military dictatorships ofAyub Khan andYahya Khan further limited the conservative platform. During the1970 general elections, the religious conservative and right-wing conservative parties participated in the election with a direct competition with left-orientedPPP. TheIslamic conservative parties successfully pressedPPP'sBhutto to declareAhmadiyya sect asNon-Muslim domination. The right-wing mass made its notable comeback in a response tonationalization program of Bhutto, and called for right-wing alliance,PNA, against PPP.
In the 1960s, the conservative movements in the country had emphasized Islamic roots and values in the society but ultimately it did not have any lasting effects in an opposition toPresidentAyub Khan aggressive policies to put theagrarian country into the roads ofindustrialization.
In 1965, the conservative movements prudently went out to gather their support forFatima Jinnah, sister ofMuhammad Ali Jinnah, had initially campaigned on Islamic tradition and promotion of nationalistic society.[17] During the1965 presidential election, PresidentAyub Khan used the hard-line Islamic conservative groups to getFatima Jinnah disqualified from theelections; nonetheless, this scheme failed when the huge public voted for Fatima Jinnah's bid for presidency.[17] It is noted by historians that without the usage of state machinery, President Ayub Khan had almost lost the elections.[17]
The religious right was dismayed when President Ayub Khan abrogated his deal with the orthodoxy religious parties, theJeI, in 1966.[18] Its right-wing populism was one of many factor that made the party popular, though it was short-lived. In 1967, the leftist ideas dominated byPPP gained much support from the public.[18] The conservative parties produced a performed poor electoral performance during thegeneral elections held in 1970.[18] OnlyPakistan Muslim League (PML) led byNurul Amin had gained considerable votes from all over the country; theJeI faced with an embarrassing election result winning only four out of 300 seats.[18]
After abitter war with India and theloss ofEast Pakistan, the conservative movements were seen as the last blow to their vision at that time. The left-orientedPPP initiated anationalization process to hamper theprivate-ownership of the industries in the country. In 1973, a violent disturbances instigated by JeI forced the PPP to pass theSecond Amendment law to declareAhmadiyya domination asNon-Muslim. Much of theConstitution was philosophically leaning towards conservative roots and foundations.[19] The JeI lost all of its support during this time, and a new conservative party,Pakistan Muslim League had found its own support provided by influential capitalist thinkers, investors, and wealthy donors who resisted the nationalization program.[20] Although, the JeI was the major contributory of right-wingPakistan National Alliance (PNA), it was thePakistan Muslim League who was the most resource party of all.[20] Despite populism and mass financial capital spent in favor ofPakistan National Alliance (PNA), the alliance performed poorly during thegeneral elections held in 1977.[20] A massivecivil disobedience acts, right-wing violence and calls for martial law led up to be dismissal ofPPP's government in 1977 after amartial law took advance.[20]
With the successfulcoup d'état against theleft-wing government ofPakistan Peoples Party (PPP), the modern conservatism movement took over the control of state's affairs under PresidentZia-ul-Haq.[5] The conservative principles dominated Zia's economic and foreign policies, including theinterest-free system andstrict opposition toSoviet Communism defining his military administration's political philosophy.[21]
PresidentZia-ul-Haq largely depended on theCouncil of Islamic Ideology (CII) for work and political recommendation for policy guidance issue. On legal philosophical issues, theFederal Shariat Court was greatly espoused and extended its activities at federal level judiciary.[22] President Zia is credited with the success of modern conservatism movement in the country, by his supporters; some galvanizing the Zia's directives prevented the widerSoviet incursions into the region as well as economic prosperity.[23] President Zia's military administration brought a fury of conservative economists; conservative foreign policy practitioners; and social conservatives, who identified with his religious and social ideals.[22] Zia was attacked byleft-wing personalities at the time as being a "source of fundamentalism", but conservative historians asserted that he decisively limitedSoviet Union toAfghanistan.[24]
In defining the conservatism, President Zia once described to British journalist Ian Stephen that: "The basis of Pakistan was Islam. The basis of Pakistan were Muslims inSouth Asia are a separate culture. It was theTwo-Nation Theory that lead to the independence of Pakistan."[23] Theuniversity curriculum in the country was upgraded by President Zia-ul-Haq, that includes the teaching ofIslamic Studies andArabic languages courses, which were made compulsory for students to get their degrees in arts and social sciences.[22] ThePakistan Studies were made compulsorily forengineering, medical education, commerce, law and nursing education. Extra educational certificates and diplomas were given to people who wereHafiz.[22] On national priorities, theatomic bomb project was aggressively put forwarded by President Zia-ul-Haq to counter Indian threat on East and Soviet threat on West.[25]
During his eleven years in office, President Zia's conservative reforms and economic policies pushed the country's national economicGDP percent rate reached to 5.88%, surpassing the economic record of President Ayub Khan in the 1960s.[26] TheGNP was rated at 6.8%; both rates, theGDP and theGNP, were highest in the world at that time.[27] His policies had hard-hitting impact on Pakistan and some of his economic policies were continued by the successive governments. According to the historians, his policies were directed towards making Pakistan the citadel of Islam so that it could play an honorable and prominent role for the Islamic world.[22] Leftist historians maintained that his legacy remains a most toxic, enduring, and tamper-proof legacy,[28] but to point of view of conservative thinkers, Zia credited by some for preventing wider Soviet incursions into the region as well as economic prosperity.[29]
Despite Zia's tough rhetoric and hisauthoritarianism, the country'ssociety continued to move forward towards the enlightenment, and the sense of moderation.[30] According to the critic of Zia and leftist cultural writer,Nadeem Paracha, further wrote that in 2013 that it was the "conservative regime of Zia when theWestern1980's fashion wear and hairstyle was popularized, and the rock music bands that were gaining momentum under his regime.[31] Paracha further wrote that: "Ironically, it was thesepolitical andeconomic tensions and pretensions, heavy metal, rock music power plays and the economic prosperity that also propelled the gradual expansion of the country's urban middle and lower-middle-classes.[31] According to the leftist cultural critic,Nadeem F. Paracha: "The youth culture at that emerged from these classes that launched the first shots of the kind of pop culture, scene and music we now call modernPakistani pop and rock."[31]
After Zia'sdeath in 1988, the left-orientedPakistan Peoples Party (PPP) came innational power throughgeneral elections held in 1988.[32] The 1990–2000s is a period of intense and fierce competition betweenleftist sphere led byBenazir Bhutto and conservative circle led byNawaz Sharif.[32] In less than two years, thePPP government was dismissed in by the usage ofEighth Amendment in mere two years.[32] In 1990, the conservative mass led byNawaz Sharif won thegeneral elections; the elections were controversial withjudicial inquiries revealing the role ofintelligence community playing a vital role in support forPakistan Muslim League (N) (PML(N)) during the 1990 general elections.
The Conservatives led byPrime MinisterNawaz Sharif came in national prominence for the first time in the history, under ademocratic transition.[32] Immediately, the PML(N) government launchedprivatization and reforms towards theeconomic liberalization in the country. Key proponents ofSharia was made part ofPenal Code in 1993.[33] Islamic values were emphasized as a part of the social conservative reforms by the PML(N) government which support at a mainstream level.[34]
In 1997, thePML(N) came back to power with anexclusive mandate during thegeneral election which sawPML(N) struck its overwhelmingtwo-third majority in theparliament for the first time in thehistory of Pakistan.[35] Despite the confrontation with leftist presidentFarooq Leghari and liberalChief Justice,Sajjad Ali in 1997,PML(N) decisively consolidated its authoritative position by appointing thenational conservative jurist,Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui, asChief Justice, and religiously conservative,Rafiq Tarrar, asPresident in 1997.[36]
Upon resolving the authority issue, thePML(N) made notable constitutional reforms towards the constitutional conservatism when thePML(N) government oversaw the passages ofthirteenth,fourteenth,fifteenth amendment in thenational assembly, a lower house.[37] However, thefifteenth amendment failed to passed from theSenate as Prime MinisterSharif never brought the bill to senate.[37] A projection of strong military defence was supported at themainstream media, finally the conservativePML(N) ordered the activation of country'snuclear testing program in 1998 for the first time in the history of the country.[38] Thenuclear testing program authorized by Prime MinisterSharif was used as "tit for tat" policy in a direct response to Indiannuclear tests in 1998.[38] The nuclear tests in competition with India was highly popular in the country at that time, the conservativePML(N) government had an uttermost public support over that issue.[38] ThePML(N) further used its political position afterPrime MinisterSharifdismissed theChairman joint chiefs andchief of army staff, GeneralJehangir Karamat, marking the perception ofcivilian control of themilitary in 1998.[39] The same year, thePML(N) government cancelled theFriday holidays, despite exacerbated concerns of the conservatives.[33] Major education reforms were carried out byPML(N) government, emphasizing on scientific research and religious studies.[40]
In 1999,Prime MinisterSharif struck another political achievement after holding theLahore Summit, in which, hisIndian counterpart,Atal Bihari Vajpayee was delegated toLahore,Punjab, via aBus service.[41] Despite peace initiatives withIndia, thePML(N) government lost all its prestige after becomingmilitarily involved with India inKargil sector.[42] Despite his authoritative actions, his economic programmes were failed during the period of worldwide economic growth, especially his attempts to exert intense control over the military ultimately led to his undoing.[33] In 1999, thePML(N) government was dismissed by theChairman joint chiefs GeneralPervez Musharraf in a bloodless, rather self-coup d'état.[39] At the time of staging of the coup d'état, conservatism was at its lowest level of support from the public. Further, the support for thePML(N) government and its conservatives programs were largely disapproved by the public.[23]
By 2000, conservatism had been its lowest point in popularity since the 1960s. Financial problems,economic stagflation, and social tensions had been a contributory factors in lowering of the conservatism and its opposite, thesocialism at once. Searching for a new political philosophy,PresidentPervez Musharraf called for a "Third Way" after forming thePML(Q) group, totally hostile towards thePakistan Muslim League.[43]
President Musharraf brought a new generation of liberal thinkers to power inIslamabad. Musharraf pioneered the liberal idea of "Enlightened Moderation" and launched a successfulliberalization programs in the country.[43] The9/11 attacks in theUnited States and launch of theAfghanistan war in 2001 lead to re-defining moments for theleft-wing politics as well as right-wing politics. The2002 general elections held in 2002 marked the liberals coming into the power, withPML(Q) andMQM forming the government. The religious orthodoxies, under a massiveMMA alliance, struck its notable victory in theparliament, securing a considerable number of seats in the parliaments.[18] In 2002, a massivecommunist party demonstration against theUnited States and the fierce joint-opposition ofPPP andPMLN had politically weakened the government. Historians of Pakistan also noted that the fact that theatomic proliferation debriefings had enraged and outraged the leftists and conservatives alike of their national hero, Dr.Qadeer Khan.[44] Overall,social conservatism and hard leftist ideas grew in an opposition against PresidentPervez Musharraf, including afar-right insurgency in the country.[45]
The religious identities, nationalism, and rightist ideas has greatly influenced theliterature,theatre,architecture, and popular culture.
Approximately 97 percent of Pakistanis are Muslims.
conservatism in pakistan Muslim League (N).
Jinnah 1930.
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