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ENGLISH ESSAYS PAKISTAN AFFAIRS

A Short Essay: Democracy in Pakistan

By Wardah Sattar December 2, 2022

Home / English Essays / A Short Essay: Democracy in Pakistan

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Pakistan ranks 104th in the Democracy Index of 2021 (compared to 105th in
2020). Its democracy score is only 4.31. It implies that there is no true
democracy in Pakistan. Rather it has a hybrid regime. Norway has the highest
score on this index(9.75). On the poverty index, we can see that Norway is once
again at the top. It implies that it has the least amount of poverty. So,
democracy and less poverty are directly proportional. Uncertain political
conditions reduce foreign investment which creates inflation. Ultimately, the
country becomes the victim of poverty.

A country having a better ranking in the Democratic index will be having a

better ranking in the poverty reduction index. So there is a connection in
both and we clearly obtain result that democracy is a solution for poverty
reduction in a nation.

Robert petric

Introduction
Democratic governance means a government system in which all the people of
a country can vote to elect their representatives. The government in turn runs
the country according to the mandate given by the people.

A controlled democracy existed in the 1950s, and a simple democracy did so in

the 1960s. A socialist democracy existed in the 1970s, a guided democracy
existed in the 1980s, and a sham democracy existed in the 1990s. India and
Pakistan, two gained independence in 1947. They had the same constitution,
the Act of India 1935. However, governance was the issue. Unlike India,
Pakistan experienced an alternative system of government; civil and martial
administration.

Pakistan saw several pitfalls. But, now Pakistan is convinced that strengthening
democracy in Pakistan can be shaped with hard work. It can be done by the
supremacy of the constitution, independence of the judiciary, and rule of law.

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Causes of Failure of Democracy in Pakistan
There are a number of following factors responsible for the failure of
democracy in Pakistan.

1. Institutional Imbalance
Since the creation of Pakistan, it is experiencing institutional imbalance. Its
roots go back to the British period. Pakistan’s institutional imbalance is due to
civil and military bureaucracies and non-democratic parties. Besides, weak
political institutions are also causing an imbalance in Pakistan.

Pakistan always lacked a system that could hold free and fair elections. Free
and fair elections should be based on a universal franchise. If there was such a
system, it could provide a conducive environment for democracy to grow.

2. Intervention of Military
The democratic failure in Pakistan left so much gap to give an opportunity to
the military to fulfill that gap. Formal involvement of the military in civilian
matters began in 1953. They intervened to contain the riots between Sunnis
and Ahmedis. But, in 1958 military intervention resulted in the martial law
period.
From 1958 to 1969, Field Marshal Ayub Khan ruled Pakistan. Generals Yahya
Khan from 1969 to 1971, Zia-ul-Haq from 1977 to 1989, and Pervez Musharraf
from 1999 to 2008 ruled Pakistan. All martial law rulers banned political
parties during their regime periods. Moreover, even constitutional abolitions
and desired amendments have been there relentlessly.

3. Evasion of Land Reforms

The greatest factor responsible for the failure of democracy in Pakistan is the
evasion of land reforms in Pakistan. Feudal hold has increased since its
creation. Supreme bureaucracy and feudalism are the two main consequences
of the evasion of land reforms.

4. Lack of Vision in Politicians

Lack of vision and lack of competence in leaders is being seen in Pakistan.
Pakistan’s conservative clerics and leaders have concocted theology with
democratic culture. They have not even established the correct system
according to religion. Moreover, they didn’t want the development of modern
times.

5. Manipulated Election Process

“Free and fair elections” is one of the necessary elements of democracy.
Democratic government is actually the most popular government which can
only be achieved by free and fair elections. Only free and fair elections
guarantee the genuine representation of people in Parliament. Furthermore,
only elections are the source of peaceful regime change. People create a
nuisance if they can’t represent their needs and desires.

In this regard, Pakistan has a disappointing image. All general elections except
2006 and 1971, have been manipulated in different ways. Some of them were
manipulated during the pre-phase of elections and some were manipulated
during elections. Besides, some of them were manipulated in the post-phase of
elections.
6. External Threats & Internal threats
Since the creation of Pakistan, it is facing huge threats from everywhere. Some
of the threats are from strong neighbors and the remaining are from extremist
Pakistanis. Both threats, whether it is external or internal make it compulsory
for the armed forces to become involved in civilian matters. Subsequently, this
involvement weakens democratic decision-making.

7. Corruption
Corruption is rampant in Pakistan and pushing our nation to a dead end. It
includes the misappropriation of public funds, debts, nepotism, bad debts,
misuse of power, and favoritism. The corrupt mafia has blocked the
development of Pakistan. Subsequently, people have lost their trust in
democratic government. Besides, corruption poses a great threat to Pakistan’s
development in the future.

8. Sectarianism
Sectarianism is engulfing Pakistan since 1947. The adoption of religion as a
guiding principle in the constitution is causing uncertainty in Pakistan.
Basically, it is due to two major sects inhabiting Pakistan i.e. Sunnis and Shias.

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Way Forward
Recommendations for Political Parties:
1. Political parties should develop well-defined people-friendly ideologies.
2. They should expand their organizational network.
3. All political parties should have an outlook on democracy as a culture,
rather than a process.
4. They should train their staff for imparting democratic education.
5. They should counter the supremacy of non-political institutions.
 Recommendations for State
1. First of all, the state should make sure of the supremacy of constitutions.
2. There should be immediate steps taken to abolish feudalism in Pakistan.
3. Some new laws should be introduced to ensure free and fair elections in
order to prevent rigging.
4. An independent judiciary should be ensured to implement the rule of law.
5. Moreover, there is a dire need for civil-military cooperation in Pakistan. it
should be ensured.

Recommendations for Youth

1. Youth is an indispensable role in democracy. They should register their
votes and take an active part in elections.
2. They should join political parties after education.
3. All youth members should participate in the election considering it a
responsibility.
4. They should be aware of political parties and institutions in Pakistan

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