Pakistan in 1981: Staying on
In: Asian Survey, Jg. 22 (1982-02-01), S. 136-146
Online
unknown
Zugriff:
IN A YEAR punctuated by several notable events-the dramatic hijacking of a PIA airliner from Karachi to Kabul, the effective abrogration of the 1973 constitution, the coalescing of opposition parties, the imposition of Islamic banking, and the revival of economic aid and military sales from the U.S.-much happened but very little changed in Pakistan. The martial law government of General Zia ul-Haq, in its fifth year, continued to proclaim a willingness to turn over power to civilians but had adopted a political formula for rule that seemed to leave future elections more indefinite than ever. The economy maintained its recent vigor, though problems of budget deficits, low productivity, and population growth continued to cast their shadow over the future. Notwithstanding its agreements with the U.S., Pakistan retained its non-aligned course and sustained its nuclear program. Though buffeted by external and internal pressures, the government held to a steady, largely standoffish policy toward the Afghan insurgency. Pakistan is suspended between the 1973-75 mood of self-confidence, when Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was at the height of his popularity and powers, and the despair of the post-coup period of 1977-79, when the very future of the state was in question. Yet what persists is the sharp edge of uncertainty about the future-even the immediate future. The year 1981 could turn out to have been the relatively calm interlude before the storm, or it might give way to a relatively stable period; such are Pakistan's uncertainties that either outcome is plausible.
Titel: |
Pakistan in 1981: Staying on
|
---|---|
Autor/in / Beteiligte Person: | Weinbaum, Marvin G. ; Cohen, Stephen P. |
Link: | |
Zeitschrift: | Asian Survey, Jg. 22 (1982-02-01), S. 136-146 |
Veröffentlichung: | University of California Press, 1982 |
Medientyp: | unknown |
ISSN: | 1533-838X (print) ; 0004-4687 (print) |
DOI: | 10.1525/as.1982.22.2.01p0346z |
Schlagwort: |
|
Sonstiges: |
|