The Politics of Ethnicity in Pakistan: The Baloch, Sindhi and Mohajir Ethnic Movements

161 Pages·2012·1 MB·English

by  Farhan Hanif Siddiqi

The Politics of Ethnicity in Pakistan
In order to understand the Pakistani state and government’s treatment of
non-dominant ethnic groups after the failureof the militaryoperation in East
Pakistan and the independence of Bangladesh, this book looks at the ethnic
movementsthat were subject to a militaryoperation after 1971: the Balochin
the 1970s, the Sindhis in the 1980s and the Mohajirs in the 1990s.
The book critically evaluates the literature on ethnicity and nationalism by
taking nationalist ideology and the political divisions which it generates
within ethnic groups as essential in estimating ethnic movements. It goes on
to challenge the modernist argument that nationalism is only relevant to
modern industrialised socio-economic settings. The available evidence from
Pakistan makes clear that ethnic movements emanate from three distinct
socio-economic realms: tribal (Baloch), rural (Sindh) and urban (Mohajir),
and the book looks at the implications that this has, as well as how further
arguments could be advanced about the relevance of ethnic movements and
politics in the Third World.
It provides academics and researchers with background knowledge of how
the Baloch, Sindhi and Mohajir ethnic conflicts in Pakistan took shape in a
historicalcontextaswellasprobablefuturescenariosoftherelationshipbetween
thePakistanistateandgovernment,andethnicgroupsandmovements.
Farhan Hanif Siddiqi isAssistantProfessorintheDepartmentofInternational
Relations at the Universityof Karachi, Pakistan. He specialises in theories of
nationalism and ethnicity, ethnic conflict and ethnic movements in Pakistan.
Routledge Contemporary South Asia Series
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ethnic movements
India
FarhanHanifSiddiqi
BidyutChakrabarty
The Politics of Ethnicity in
Pakistan
The Baloch, Sindhi and Mohajir ethnic
movements
Farhan Hanif Siddiqi
Firstpublished2012
byRoutledge
2ParkSquare,MiltonPark,Abingdon,OxonOX144RN
SimultaneouslypublishedintheUSAandCanada
byRoutledge
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©2012FarhanHanifSiddiqi
TherightofFarhanHanifSiddiqitobeidentifiedasauthorofthiswork
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Siddiqi,FarhanHanif.
ThepoliticsofethnicityinPakistan:theBaloch,SindhiandMohajirethnic
movements/FarhanHanifSiddiqi.
p.cm.–(RoutledgecontemporarySouthAsiaseries;57)
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN978-0-415-68614-3(hardback)–ISBN978-0-203-12308-9(ebook)
1.Pakistan–Politicsandgovernment–1971-1988.2.Pakistan–Politics
andgovernment–1988-3.Pakistan–Ethnicrelations.
4.Pakistan–History–Autonomyandindependencemovements.5.Ethnic
groups–Politicalactivity–Pakistan.6.Ethnicconflict–Pakistan.
7.Ethnicity–Pakistan.8.Nationalism–Pakistan.I.Title.
DS384.S462742012
305.80095491–dc23
2011040537
ISBN:978-0-415-68614-3(hbk)
ISBN:978-0-203-12308-9(ebk)
TypesetinTimesNewRoman
byTaylor&FrancisBooks
Contents
Acknowledgements viii
1 Introduction 1
2 Nationalism, politics of ethnicity and the state 8
3 The state and politics of ethnicity in post-1971 Pakistan 28
4 Balochistan: ethnic politics in a tribal setting 52
5 Sindh: ethnic politics in a rural setting 75
6 The Mohajirs: ethnic politics in an urban setting 95
7 Conclusion 112
Notes 120
Bibliography 141
Index 148
Acknowledgements
The present book is aproduct of my doctoral thesiswhich I completed at the
Universityof Karachi. Aswith the doctorate, a lot of hardwork, perseverance
and patience have gone into the completion of the book. It would have been
utterly impossible for me to sustain the hard work and perseverance without
the active support, encouragement and love of the people around me.
First of all, thanks aredue to my supervisor, Prof. Dr Moonis Ahmar, who
has taught me the virtues of hardwork and professionalism in both teaching
and research. His support to the present project and my work is commendable
as well as the fact that he stood by me and guided me throughout.
Specialthanksarealsoduetoformerstudents,AghaAbdulSattar,Mushtaq
Rajpar and Fahim Raza for arranging interviews with Baloch, Sindhi and
Mohajirnationalistsaswellasprovidingrelevantsourcematerial.Thestaffat
Routledge, in particular, Dorothea Schaefter and Jillian Morrison have been
mosthelpfulinguidingmethroughoutthepublicationprocessaswellasagreeing
toanextensioninthesubmissionofthefinalmanuscript.Thanksalsotothetwo
anonymous reviewers who provided excellent feedback on the chapters and
suggestions on how to improve the draft further.
The book is dedicated to my wife Sabeen and son Faris. Despite coming
from acompletelydifferentacademic background, Sabeentook activeinterest
inmysubjectontheBaloch,SindhisandMohajirsandsawtoitthatIstuckto
deadlines and finished the work in time. To her, I am most thankful for all the
love and emotional support as well as her propensity to talk me through
tough times, when I found it hard to concentrate. This book would not have
seen the light of the day without her presence in my life.
Farhan Hanif Siddiqi
Karachi
6 August 2011
1 Introduction
The political history of Pakistan since independence can be neatly divided
into its pre-1971 and post-1971 phases. The year 1971 is an important
watershed in Pakistan’s political history, for it was in this year that Pakistan
earned the distinction of being the first state in the post-warerato experience
disintegration. The storyof East Pakistaniswell researched and documented,
signifying the plight of the Bengali populace and the political, economic,
socialandculturalpoliciesthatthePakistanistateinstitutedindenyingpower
and participation to its own people. The present work seeks to move beyond
1971, to critically evaluate the new Pakistan’s treatment of its non-dominant
ethnic groups. The story of post-1971 Pakistan, as will be seen, is not mark-
edly different from pre-1971 Pakistan. In more ways than one, the Pakistani
state and its despotic powers continued to manifest themselveswith the same
force and intensity in the post-1971 era. In this important phase, the range of
ethnopolitical actors increased with the addition of an assertive Sindhi and
Mohajir ethnic movement, while the Baloch ethnic movement remained
potent, aswas the case before the separation of East Pakistan.1
In moving towards the post-1971 phase of the state of ethnic politics and
movementsin Pakistan,twopreliminary thoughts informed my interestin the
subject:
1 What lessons, if any, had the Pakistani state learned in the aftermath of
thesecessionofEastPakistanwhereanarmy-ledmilitaryactionagainstthe
AwamiLeagueresultedindisintegrationofthePakistanination(s)state?
2 An initial review of post-1971 Pakistan revealed a picture of increased
ethnic conflict highlighted by military action against the Baloch in the
1970s, against the Sindhis in the 1980s and Mohajirs in the 1990s. Ethnic
conflict and ethnic movements in post-1971 Pakistan had certainly not
abated but had shown a remarkable tendency to rise.
Before moving further, it is prudent to designate the key features of the
post-1971 state as distinct from the pre-1971 Pakistani state:
1 In terms of territory and geography, the post-1971 Pakistani state was
distinct from the pre-1971 state as the province of East Pakistan had