Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the
Islamic Republic of Pakistan (), is a
country located in
South Asia that overlaps with the
Greater Middle East. It has a thousand-kilometre coastline along the
Arabian Sea in the south and borders
Afghanistan and
Iran to the west,
India to the east and the
People's Republic of China in the far northeast.
[The Kashmir region is claimed by India and Pakistan. Both countries and China separately administer parts of the region with the Indian- and Pakistani-held areas defined by the Line of Control. The Pakistan–China border is not recognized by India.]Pakistan is the
sixth most populous country in the world and the second most populous
Muslim country. It was established as a modern state in 1947, as one of the two parts of the
partitioned British India, but the region has a long history of settlement and civilisation including the
Indus Valley Civilisation. The region was invaded by
Afghans,
Greeks,
Persians,
Arabs, and was incorporated into the
British Raj in the nineteenth century. Since
independence, Pakistan has experienced times of significant military and economic growth, and times of instability, with the loss of
East Pakistan (present-day
Bangladesh). Pakistan has the seventh largest armed forces in the world and is a
declared nuclear weapons state.
The name
"Pakistan" (
IPA: ) means "Land of the Pure" in
Urdu and
Persian. It was coined in 1933 by
Choudhary Rahmat Ali, who published it in the pamphlet
Now or Never[Text of the Now or Never pamphlet, issued on January 28, 1933] as an
acronym of the names of the "Muslim homelands" of western India —
P for
Punjab,
A for
Afghania (the
Afghan areas in the Northwest Frontier Province),
K for
Kashmir,
S for
Sindh and
tan for
Balochistan. An
i was later added to the
English rendition of the name to ease pronunciation.
The modern state of Pakistan was established on
14 August 1947, but the region it encompasses has an extensive history that overlaps with the histories of
Ancient India,
Iran and
Afghanistan. The region was a crossroads of historic trade routes, including the
Silk Road, and was settled over thousands of years by many groups, including
Dravidians,
Indo-Aryans,
Persians,
Greeks,
Scythians,
Parthians Kushans,
White Huns,
Afghans,
Turks,
Mongols and
Arabs. Historian and geographer de Blij Muller characterized the historical embodiment of the land when he said, "If, as is so often said,
Egypt is the gift of the
Nile, then Pakistan is the gift of the
Indus." The earliest evidence of humans are pebble tools from the
Soan Culture[University of Sheffield's archaeological research in Pakistan] in the province of
Punjab, dated from 100,000 to 500,000 years ago. The
Indus region was the site of several ancient cultures including
Mehrgarh, one of the world's earliest known towns, and the
Indus Valley Civilisation at
Harrappa and
Mohenjo-Daro.
[Minnesota State University page on Mohenjo-Daro] The Indus Valley Civilisation collapsed in the middle of the second millennium BCE and was followed by the
Vedic Civilisation, which extended over much of northern India and Pakistan. Successive empires and kingdoms ruled the region from the
Achaemenid Persian empire
[Livius.org on the extent of the Achaemenid Empire] around 543 BCE, to
Alexander the Great[Plutarch's Life of Alexander] in 326 BCE and the
Mauryan empire. The
Indo-Greek Kingdom founded by
Demetrius of Bactria included
Gandhara and
Punjab from 184 BCE, and reached its greatest extent under
Menander, establishing the
Greco-Buddhist period with advances in trade and culture. The city of
Taxila (Takshashila) became a major centre of learning in ancient times - the remains of the city, located to the west of
Islamabad, are one of the country's major archaeological sites.
In 712
CE, the Arab general
Muhammad bin Qasim[Infinity Foundation's translation of the Chach-Nama] conquered
Sindh and
Multan in southern
Punjab, setting the stage for several successive Muslim empires including the
Ghaznavid Empire, the
Ghorid Kingdom, the
Delhi Sultanate and the
Mughal Empire. During this period
Sufi missionaries played a pivotal role in converting a majority of the regional population to
Islam. The gradual decline of the Mughal Empire in the early eighteenth century provided opportunities for the
Afghans,
Balochis and
Sikhs to exercise control over large areas until the
British East India Company[Library of Congress study of Pakistan] gained ascendancy over South Asia.
The
War of Independence in 1857 was the region's last major armed struggle against the British Raj, and it laid the foundations for the generally unarmed freedom struggle led by the
Congress. However, the
Muslim League rose to popularity in the late 1930's amid fears of under-representation and neglect of Muslims in politics. On
29 December 1930,
Allama Iqbal's presidential address called for a separate Muslim state in northwest and eastern
South Asia.
Muhammad Ali Jinnah espoused the
Two Nation Theory and led the Muslim League to adopt the
Lahore Resolution[Jang.com page on the Lahore Resolution] of 1940, which ultimately led to the creation of Pakistan.
|
Governor General Jinnah delivering the opening address on 11 August 1947 to the new state of Pakistan. |
Pakistan was formed on
14 August 1947 with two Muslim-majority wings in the eastern and northwestern regions of
South Asia, separated by
Hindu-majority India, and comprising the provinces of
Balochistan,
East Bengal, the
North-West Frontier Province,
West Punjab and
Sindh. The
partition of British India resulted in communal riots
[Estimates for the 1947 death toll] across India and Pakistan—millions of Muslims moved to Pakistan and millions of Hindus and
Sikhs moved to India. Disputes arose over several princely states including
Jammu and Kashmir which led to the
First Kashmir War (1948) ending with Pakistan and India each occupying large parts of the state. From 1947 to 1956, Pakistan was a
Dominion in the
Commonwealth of Nations. The republic declared in 1958 was stalled by a
coup d'etat by
Ayub Khan (1958–69), who was president during a period of internal instability and a
second war with India in 1965. His successor,
Yahya Khan (1969–71) had to deal with the
cyclone which caused 500,000 deaths
["Community participation in disaster management can reduce the losses"] in East Pakistan. Economic and political dissent in
East Pakistan led to violent political repression and tensions escalating into
civil war[1971 war summary by BBC website] (
Bangladesh Liberation War) and the
Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 and ultimately the secession of East Pakistan as the independent state of
Bangladesh.
[US Country Studies article on the Bangladesh War]Civilian rule resumed from 1972 to 1977 under
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, until he was deposed by General
Zia-ul-Haq, who became the third military president. Pakistan's
secular policies were replaced by Zia's introduction of the Islamic
Shariat legal code, which increased religious influences on the civil service and the military. With the death of General Zia in a plane crash in 1988,
Benazir Bhutto, daughter of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was elected as the first female Prime Minister of Pakistan. Over the next decade, she alternated power with
Nawaz Sharif, as the country's political and economic situation worsened. Military tensions in the
Kargil conflict[Kargil conflict timeline on the BBC website] with India in 1999 was followed by a military
coup[Daily Telegraph (UK) article on the 1999 coup] in which General
Pervez Musharraf assumed executive powers. In 2001, Musharraf became
President after the resignation of
Rafiq Tarar. After the 2002 parliamentary elections, Musharraf transferred executive powers to newly elected Prime Minister
Zafarullah Khan Jamali, who was succeeded in the 2004 Prime-Ministerial election by
Shaukat Aziz.
The
Muslim League formed Pakistan's first government under the leadership of
Muhammad Ali Jinnah and
Liaquat Ali Khan. The Muslim League's leadership of Pakistani politics reduced significantly with the rise of other political parties, with the
Pakistan People's Party in West Pakistan, and the
Awami League in East Pakistan, which would ultimately lead to the creation of Bangladesh. The first
Constitution of Pakistan was adopted in 1956, but was suspended in 1958 by
Ayub Khan. The Constitution of 1973, suspended in 1977 by
Zia-ul-Haq, was re-instated in 1991 and is the country's most important document, laying the foundations of government. Pakistan is a
federal republic with
Islam as the state religion. The
semi-presidential system includes a
bicameral legislature consisting of a 100-member
Senate and a 342-member
National Assembly. The
President is the
Head of State and the
Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces and is elected by an
electoral college. The
prime minister is usually the leader of the largest party in the National Assembly. Each province has a similar system of government with a directly elected Provincial Assembly in which the leader of the largest party or alliance becomes Chief Minister. Provincial Governors are selected by the Provincial Assemblies on the advice of the Chief Minister.
The
Pakistani military has played an influential role in mainstream politics throughout Pakistan's history, with military presidents ruling from 1958–71, 1977–88 and from 1999 onwards. The leftist Pakistan People's Party (PPP), led by
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, emerged as a major political player during the 1970s. Under the military rule of
Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, Pakistan began a marked shift from the British-era secular politics and policies, to the adoption of
Shariat and other laws based on Islam. During the 1980s, the anti-
feudal, pro-
Muhajir Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) was started by unorthodox and educated urban dwellers of
Sindh and particularly
Karachi. The 1990s were characterized by coalition politics dominated by the PPP and a rejuvenated Muslim League.
In the October 2002 general elections, the
Pakistan Muslim League (Q) (PML-Q) won a
plurality of National Assembly seats with the second-largest group being the
Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarians (PPPP), a sub-party of the PPP.
Zafarullah Khan Jamali of PML-Q emerged as Prime Minister but resigned on
26 June 2004 and was replaced by PML-Q leader
Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain as interim Prime Minister. On
28 August,
2004 the National Assembly voted 191 to 151 to elect the
Finance Minister and former
Citibank Vice President
Shaukat Aziz as Prime Minister.
Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, a coalition of Islamic religious parties, won elections in
North-West Frontier Province, and increased their representation in the
National Assembly.
|
President Pervez Musharraf (right) with U.S. President Bush (left) |
Pakistan is an active member of the
United Nations (UN) and the
Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), the latter of which Pakistan has used as a forum for
Enlightened Moderation,
[President Musharraf on Enlightened Moderation] a plan to promote a
renaissance and
enlightenment in the muslim world. Pakistan is also a member of the major regional organisations of the
South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and the
Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO). In the past, Pakistan has had mixed relations with the United States especially in the early 1950s when Pakistan was the United States' "most allied ally in Asia"
[Pakistan: The Most Allied Ally in Asia] and a member of both the
Central Treaty Organisation (CENTO) and the
Southeast Asia Treaty Organisation (SEATO). During the
Soviet-Afghan War in the 1980s Pakistan was a crucial US ally, but relations soured in the 1990s, when sanctions were applied by the US over suspicions of Pakistan's nuclear activities. The
September 11 attacks and the subsequent
War on Terrorism have seen an improvement in US–Pakistan ties, especially after Pakistan ended its support of the
Taliban regime in
Kabul. In January 2004, founder of Pakistani nuclear program
A. Q. Khan confessed of nuclear proliferation to
Libya,
Iran and
North Korea. On
5 February 2004, the president
Pervez Musharraf, announced that he had pardoned A. Q. Khan.
Pakistan has long had troubled relations with
neighbouring India. The long-running dispute over
Kashmir resulted in full fledged wars in
1947 and
1965. Civil war in 1971 flared into the simultaneous
Bangladeshi Liberation War and the
Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. Pakistan conducted nuclear weapon tests in 1998 to counterbalance India's
nuclear tests and became the only muslim
nuclear weapons state. The relations with India are steadily improving following peace initiatives in 2002. Pakistan maintains close
economic,
military and
political relationships with the
People's Republic of China.
Pakistan also faces instability in the
Federally Administered Tribal Areas, where some tribal leaders support the
Taliban. Pakistan has had to deploy its army in these regions to suppress the local unrest, although a recently declared ceasefire between the tribal leaders and the Pakistani government will bring back the significantly needed stability to the region.
['Taliban' gain sway in tribal region. Daily Times. 31 December 2005.]Additionally, the
country has long faced instability in its largest
province,
Balochistan. The army was deployed to fight a serious
insurgency within the province from 1973–76. Social stability resumed after
Rahimuddin Khan was appointed
martial law administrator beginning in 1977. After relative peace throughout the 1980s and 1990s, some influential Baloch tribal leaders once again started a separatist movement after Pervez Musharraf took over in 1999. Recently, this struggle has also begun to lose support, due in large part to the central government's implementation of social and economic reform in the region.
 |
Provinces and territories of Pakistan |
Pakistan is a
federation[The Constitutional basis of the Federation of Pakistan] of four provinces, a capital territory and federally administered tribal areas. Pakistan exercises
de facto jurisdiction over the western parts of the
Kashmir region, organised as two separate political entities (
Azad Kashmir and
Northern Areas), which are also claimed by India. In 2001 the federal government abolished the third tier of government (
administrative divisions) in favour of the former fourth tier districts. The provinces and the capital territory are subdivided into a total of
107 districts which contain numerous
tehsils and local governments. The tribal areas comprise seven tribal agencies and six small frontier regions detached from neighbouring districts whilst Azad Kashmir comprises seven districts and Northern Areas comprises six districts.
Provinces:#
Balochistan#
North-West Frontier Province (NWFP)#
Punjab#
Sindh |
A map of Pakistan with District and Agency boundaries |
:* Balochistan and NWFP also have
Provincially Administered Tribal Areas[Constitutional article 246(b) on the Provincially Administered Tribal Areas] (PATA) which are being developed into regular districts.
Territories:
- Islamabad Capital Territory
- Federally Administered Tribal Areas
Pakistani-administered portions of the Kashmir region:
- Azad Kashmir
[India does not recognise Azad Kashmir and the Northern Areas as part of Pakistan and refers to them as Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK)] - Northern Areas
|
The world's second-highest mountain, K2 |
Pakistan covers 880,254 square kilometres (339,867 sq. mi.), approximately the combined land areas of
France and the
United Kingdom, with its eastern regions located on the
Indian tectonic plate and the western and northern regions on the
Iranian plateau and
Eurasian landplate. Apart from the 1,046 kilometre (650 mi)
Arabian Sea coastline, Pakistan's land borders total 6,774 kilometres—2,430 kilometres (1,509 mi) with Afghanistan to the northwest, 523 kilometres (325 mi) with China to the northeast, 2,912 kilometres (1,809 mi) with India to the east and 909 kilometres (565 mi) with Iran to the southwest.
[ [https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/pk.html CIA World Factbook] URL accessed on March 20, 2006]The different types of natural features range from the sandy beaches,
lagoons, and
mangrove swamps of the southern coast to preserved moist temperate forests and the icy peaks of the
Himalaya,
Karakoram and
Hindu Kush mountains in the north. There are an estimated 108 peaks above 7,000 metres (23,000 ft) high that are covered in snow and
glaciers. Five of the mountains in Pakistan (including
K2 and
Nanga Parbat) are over 8,000 metres (26,000 ft). Linking
Indian-controlled Kashmir to the
Northern Areas of Pakistan and running the length of the country is the
Indus River with its many tributaries. To the west of the Indus are the dry, hilly deserts of
Balochistan; to the east are the rolling sand dunes of the
Thar Desert. Most areas of Punjab and parts of Sindh are fertile plains where agriculture is of great importance.
The climate varies as much as the scenery, with cold winters and hot summers in the north and a mild climate in the south, moderated by the influence of the ocean. The central parts have extremely hot summers with temperatures rising to 45 ºC (113 ºF), followed by very cold winters, often falling below freezing. There is very little rainfall ranging from less than 250 millimetres to more than 1,250 millimetres (9.8–49.2 in), mostly brought by the unreliable south-westerly
monsoon winds during the late summer. Water shortages have been eased by the construction of dams on the rivers and the drilling of water wells in many drier areas.
|
The Hunza valley in northern Pakistan. — Agricultural and scenic |
The wide variety of landscapes and climates in Pakistan allows for a wide variety of wild animals and birds. The forests range from
coniferous alpine and
subalpine trees such as spruce, pine, and
deodar cedar in the northern mountains to
deciduous trees such as the mulberry-type Shisham in the Sulaiman range in the south. The western hills have
juniper and
tamarisk as well as coarse grasses and scrub plants. Along the coast are
mangrove forests which form much of the coastal wetlands.
In the south, there are crocodiles in the murky waters at the mouth of the Indus River whilst on the banks of the river, there are boars, deer,
porcupines, and small rodents. In the sandy scrublands of central Pakistan are found jackals, hyenas, wild cats, panthers, and leopards while the clear blue skies abound with hawks, falcons, and eagles. In the southwestern deserts are rare Asiatic cheetahs. In the northern mountains are a variety of endangered animals including
Marco Polo sheep,
Urial sheep,
Markhor and
Ibex goats,
black and
brown Himalayan bears, and the rare
Snow Leopard. However, Pakistan donated an orphaned snow leopard cub called
Leo to USA on 9 August 2006.
[Leo the snow leopard is US-bound] Another rare species is the blind
Indus River Dolphin of which there are believed to be about 1,000 remaining, protected in two major sanctuaries. In recent years the number of wild animals being killed for fur and leather trading led to a new law banning the hunting of wild animals and birds and the establishment of several wildlife sanctuaries and game reserves.
[Wildlife Sanctuaries of Pakistan] |
Karachi is the financial capital of Pakistan. |
Pakistan is a rapidly
developing country which has faced a number of challenges on both political and economic fronts. Despite being a very poor country in 1947, Pakistan's economic growth rate was better than the global average during the subsequent four decades, but imprudent policies led to a slowdown in the late 1990s.
[Pakistan Studies URL accessed March 21, 2006] Recently, wide-ranging economic reforms have resulted in a stronger economic outlook and accelerated growth especially in the
manufacturing and
financial services sectors. There has been great improvement in the
foreign exchange position and rapid growth in
hard currency reserves in recent years. The 2005 estimate of foreign debt was close to US$40 billion. However, this has decreased in recent years with assistance from the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) and debt-relief from the United States.
Pakistan's
gross domestic product (GDP) in 2005 was estimated at US$404.6 billion and its
per capita GDP was US$2,400. Pakistan's GDP growth rates have seen a steady increase over the last 5 years. In 2001, the country's GDP growth rate was at 1.8%, but in the fiscal year that ended
June 30,
2005, the nominal GDP growth rate peaked at 8.4%. This put Pakistan's growth rate as the second-highest after China, among the ten most populous countries in the world.
[Bloomberg.com article: China's New Growth Challenger Is Pakistan] However, inflationary pressures and a below par savings rate, among other economic factors, would make it difficult to sustain a high growth rate.
[Country-by-Country Growth and Forecasts - Asian Development Bank, VIEW: Is GDP growth sustainable? - Daily Times ] The growth of non-agricultural sectors has changed the structure of the economy, and agriculture now only accounts for roughly 20% of the GDP. The
service sector accounts for 53% of the country's GDP with
wholesale and
retail trade forming 30% of this sector.
 |
Major Ethnic Groups in Pakistan and surrounding areas, 1980 |
Pakistan has an estimated population of 165,803,560, as of April 2006.
[International Data Base U.S. Census Bureau. URL accessed on 5 May 2006.] Pakistan has the world's sixth largest population, more than
Russia, but less than
Brazil; because of Pakistan's high growth rate, it is expected to surpass
Brazil in population in the year 2020. Population projections for Pakistan are relatively difficult because of the apparent differences in the accuracy of each census and the inconsistencies between various surveys related to fertility rate, but it is likely that the rate of growth peaked in 1980s.
[Feeney and Alam, 2003] The population was estimated at 162,400,000
[Population Reference Bureau's 2005 World Data Sheet] on
July 1,
2005, with a fertility rate of 34 per thousand, a death rate of 10 per thousand and the rate of natural increase was 2.4%. Pakistan also had a high infant mortality rate of 85 per thousand births.
Urdu is the
national language and
lingua franca of Pakistan, but
English is the
official language used in the
Constitution and widely used by corporate businesses, the educated urban elite and most universities.
Punjabi is spoken by over 60 million people, but has no official recognition in the country.
[Pakistanis represent a variety of races and ethnic groups, mostly of Indo-European stock and hence quite distinct from the aboriginal peoples who inhabit this part of the Indian Sub-Continent. Ethnologue Western Punjabi] These major ethnic groups are further broken down into several smaller ethnic groups -
Punjabis (44.68)% of the population,
Pashtuns (15.42%),
Sindhis (14.1%),
Seraikis (10.53%),
Muhajirs (7.57%),
Balochis (3.57%) and others (4.66%).
Census data
[Census results for languages of Pakistan] indicates that 96% of the population are
Muslims of whom nearly 80% are
Sunni Muslims and 19% are
Shi'a Muslims. Pakistan has the second highest Shia population in the world, after Iran, and more than India or Iraq. Census data
[Census results for shia population in Pakistan] The remainder comprises of
Christians and
Hindus,
Jews,
Sikhs,
Zoroastrians,
Ahmadis, and
Animists (mainly the
Kalasha of Chitral). A few
Buddhists are included in Pakistani statistics; however, these live in Indian administered
Ladakh which Pakistan claims along with the rest of
Kashmir.
The demographics of Pakistan were significantly influenced in 1947 by the movement of Muslims to Pakistan, and Hindus and Sikhs to India. As of 2005, over three million refugees (approximately 81.5% being ethnic
Pashtuns) remain in Pakistan as a result of the wars in
Afghanistan, according to the
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, with 83% of the refugees reporting their intent to permanently settle in Pakistan.
[UNHCR Statistical Summary Report: Census of Afghans in Pakistan]Pakistan has a rich and unique culture that has preserved established traditions throughout history. Prior to the arrival of Islam, many Punjabis and Sindhis were Hindu and Buddhist but this changed during the expansion of Islam by the
Ummayad General
Muhammad bin Qasim,
Mahmud of Ghazni and others. Many cultural practices, foods, monuments, and shrines were inherited from the rule of Muslim
Mughal and
Afghan emperors including the national dress of
Shalwar Qameez. Women wear brightly coloured Shalwar Qameez, while men often wear solid-coloured Shalwar Qameez, usually with a
sherwani or
achkan (long coat) that goes over the Shalwar Qameez.
The rich variety of
Pakistani music ranges from diverse provincial folk music and traditional styles such as
Qawwali and
Ghazal Gayaki to modern forms fusing traditional and western music, such as the synchronisation of Qawwali and western music by the renowned
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Other major
Ghazal singers include
Mehdi Hassan,
Ghulam Ali,
Farida Khanum,
Tahira Syed,
Abida Parveen and
Iqbal Bano. The arrival of
Afghan refugees in the western provinces has rekindled
Pashto and
Persian music and established
Peshawar as a hub for Afghan musicians and a distribution centre for Afghan music abroad. Until the 1990s, the state-owned
Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV) and
Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation were the dominant media outlets, but there are now numerous
private television channels such as
Geo TV,
Indus TV,
Hum and
ARY with a strong focus on plays or soap operas - some of them critically acclaimed. Various American, European, and Asian television channels and movies are available to a majority of the Pakistani population via
cable and
satellite television. There are also small indigenous movie industries based in Lahore and Peshawar (often referred to as
Lollywood and
Pollywood). Although
Bollywood movies are banned, Indian film stars are popular in Pakistan.
Pakistani society is largely
multilingual and predominantly
Muslim, with high regard for traditional family values, although urban families have grown into a
nuclear family system due to the socio-economic constraints imposed by the traditional
joint family system. Recent decades have seen the emergence of a middle class in cities like
Karachi,
Lahore,
Rawalpindi,
Hyderabad,
Faisalabad,
Sukkur and
Peshawar that wish to move in a more liberal direction,
[Beinart, Peter. "Understate". The New Republic Online. July 01, 2002.] as opposed to the northwestern regions bordering Afghanistan that remain highly conservative and dominated by centuries-old regional
tribal customs. Increasing
globalization has increased the influence of "Western culture" with Pakistan ranking 46
th on the Kearney/FP Globalization Index.
[Kearney Foreign Policy Globalization Index] There are an approximated four million Pakistanis living abroad,
[http://www.pakistaneconomist.com/database1/cover/c2000-50.asp URL accessed March 17, 2006] with close to a half-million
expatriates living in the United States
[Ahmed, Fasih. "U.S. Rules Give Pakistan a Windfall". Wall Street Journal. New York, New York. October 22, 2003. Page A18.] and around a million living in Saudi Arabia.
[Hussain, Shaiq. Musharraf to focus on Palestine in Saudia visit from today. The Nation. June 25, 2005. URL accessed March 17, 2006]Tourism is a growing industry in Pakistan, based on its diverse cultures, peoples and landscapes. Examples include ancient civilization ruins such as
Mohenjo-daro,
Harappa and
Taxila, to the Himalayan hill stations that attract those interested in field sports and winter sports. Pakistan is home to several
mountain peaks over 7000m, which attracts adventurers and mountaineers from the around the world, especially to K2
[PTDC page on mountaineering]. The northern parts of Pakistan have many old fortresses, towers and other architecture as well as the
Hunza and
Chitral valleys, the latter being home to the small pre-Islamic
Animist Kalasha community who claim descent from the army of
Alexander the Great.
Punjab is the site of Alexander's
battle on the
Jhelum River and the historic city
Lahore, Pakistan's cultural capital with many examples of
Mughal architecture such as the
Badshahi Masjid and the
Shalimar Gardens.
There are many holidays and festivals celebrated annually in Pakistan. While Pakistan is an Islamic nation, there are also several secular holidays including Pakistan Day (
23 March), Independence Day (
14 August), Defence of Pakistan Day (
6 September), Pakistan Air Force Day (
7 September), the anniversaries of the birth (
25 December) and death (
11 September) of
Quaid-e-Azam,
Allama Iqbal (
9 November) and the birth (
30 July) and death (
8 July) of
Madar-e-Millat.
Labour Day (also known as
May Day) is also observed in Pakistan on
1 May.
Several important festivals are celebrated by Pakistani Muslims during the year, dependent on the
Islamic calendar.
Ramadan, the ninth month of the calendar, is characterised by daytime fasting for 29 or 30 days and is followed by the festival of
Eid ul-Fitr. In a second festival,
Eid ul-Adha, an animal is sacrificed in remembrance of the actions of
Abraham and the meat is shared with friends, family, and the less fortunate. Both Eid festivals are public holidays, serving as opportunities for people to visit family and friends, and for children to receive new clothes, presents, and sweets.
Some Muslims celebrate
Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi, the birthday of the prophet
Muhammad, in the third month of the calendar (
Rabi' al-Awwal).
Shia Muslims mark the
Day of Ashurah on the 9th and 10th days of the first month (
Muharram) to commemorate the martyrdom of
Husayn bin Ali, (the grandson of prophet
Muhammad). Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, and Christians in Pakistan also celebrate their own festivals and holidays.
Sikhs come from across the world to visit several holy sites in
Punjab, including the shrine of
Guru Nanak, the founder of
Sikhism, at Hassan Abdal in the
Attock District, and his birthplace, at
Nankana Sahib. There are also several regional and local festivals, such as the
Punjabi festival of
Basant, which marks the start of spring and is celebrated by kite flying.
The official and national sport of Pakistan is
field hockey, although
squash and
cricket are also very popular. The
national cricket team has won the
Cricket World Cup once (in
1992), were runners-up once (in
1999) and co-hosted the games twice (in
1987 and
1996). The team has also won the
Australasia Cup in 1986, 1990, and 1994.
At an international level, Pakistan has competed many times at the
Summer Olympics in field hockey,
boxing,
athletics,
swimming, and
shooting. Hockey is the sport that Pakistan has been most successful at the Olympics, with three gold medals (
1960,
1968,
1984). Pakistan has also won the
Hockey World Cup four times (1971, 1978, 1982, 1994).
[Bharatiya Hockey] Pakistan has hosted several international competitions, including the
SAFG in 1989 and 2004.
A1 Grand Prix racing is also becoming popular with the entry of a
Pakistani team in the 2005 season. The
Tour de Pakistan, modelled on the
Tour de France, is an annual cycling competition that covers the length and breadth of Pakistan. Recently,
football has grown in popularity across the country, where traditionally it had been played almost exclusively in the western province of Balochistan.
* Cohen, Stephen P.
The Idea of Pakistan. The Brookings Institution. November 2004. ISBN 0-8157-1502-1.
* Banuazizi, Ali and Weiner, Myron.
The State, Religion, and Ethnic Politics: Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan. Syracuse University Press. August 1988. ISBN 0815624484.
* Halliday, Fred.
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*
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