Chapter 8 National Integration and Prosperity pakistan studies Notes for class 12 short question and long question for kpk. 2nd years pk study notes. ics Pakistan study notes for Peshawar board of education.
Chapter 8 National Integration and Prosperity Pakistan studies notes for 2nd year (kpk) Pakistan history
1) Give Laski’s definition of nationality.
Answer:
Nationality is the legal relationship between a person and a state. According to Laski:
“The feeling of nationhood marks off those who share in it from the rest of mankind.”
2) “Solution of the problems of national integration, mine yours and our role” comment briefly.
Answer:
National integration is a positive aspect. It reduces socio-cultural and economic differences and strengthens national unity and solidarity, which is not imposed by any authority. The measures needed to be taken in order to promote national integration and strengthen national unity can be classified into three broad categories, i.e.:
1. Education and opinion-forming
2. Administrative
3. Political
3) What is the importance of educating our people about Pakistan Ideology?
Answer:
Pakistan Ideology was a practical programme for enabling the Muslims of South East Asia to model their lives on Islamic ideals in private and public affairs. Therefore, it is necessary to realize and educate people about the Ideology of Pakistan that our existence is directly related to the existence of Pakistan. If Pakistan lives, we live and we have no existence independent of our national existence.
4) Signify the role of Urdu with reference to national solidarity.
Answer:
Urdu is not the language of a particular region; it is a common national heritage. During the days of freedom struggle, Urdu emerged as a strong symbol of Muslims’ national identity. Muslims from all parts of India rendered sacrifices for the defense of Urdu, although for most of them Urdu was a second language; it was not their mother tongue. Therefore, Urdu should be adopted as the medium of instruction at all levels as well as the language of the official business for the promotion of national cohesion and identity.
5) Why the democratic system of government is essential for the promotion of national integration.
Answer:
The democratic system creates a sense of responsibility and participation in the people. They participate in political activities for the betterment of the people and country. Dictatorship, on the contrary, creates a sense of deprivation among the people; and they get alienated from the national and collective affairs. They develop enmity not only towards the rulers but also towards the province or the class to which the rulers belong. Their dislike for the rulers may turn into hatred for the country. In this way, national integration is threatened.
Long Questions/ Answers
1) What is national integration, discuss in detail.
Answer:
Nation and Nationality:
The word ‘nation’ belongs completely to the modern sphere of ideas of political and philosophical individualism in a modern democracy. The term ‘Nation’ is derived from the Latin word “Natio” which means ‘birth’ or ‘race’. Authors have used this word to denote people who have a common ethnic origin. Burgess defined “Nation” as:
“A population of ethnic unity, inhabiting a territory of geographic unity.” While the concept of ‘Nationality’ was first defined in distinct terms by the Muslim historiographer and sociologists Ibn-e-Khaldun. He defined Nationality as ‘Asabia’ and said that “the sentiment of nationhood (Asabia) forms the basis of civil life, and the rise and fall of human groups generally depends on this sentiment.”
Among the modern western political scientists, Laski has defined “Nationality” as:
“The feeling of nationhood marks off those who share in it from the rest of mankind.”
This implies that if a particular group of people develops a feeling that they are one among themselves, and the factors that separate them from the rest of humanity. The group of people turns into nationality and taking a step forward, this nationality transforms itself into a nation.
National integration is a positive aspect. It describes the togetherness or oneness felt by citizens of a country with regard to citizenship. It is a process of harmony, common identity, and above all national consciousness of a nation.
Benjamin says:
National integration is the “assimilation of the entire people of a country to a common identity.’’
Importance of National Integration:
The nation is formed when members of any group of people forget their differences and strengthen their bonds of unity. The point of differences, which separate the members of civil society from one another is, called ‘centrifugal forces’. These forces act like the centrifugal pump of a tube well or a fountain, which separates a single stream of water flowing in its hose, into numerous parts and spreads it in different directions. On the contrary, the forces that attract different scattered parts towards one center and create a sense of unity among the members of a group are called centripetal forces. A nation can survive only if the centripetal forces working within it are more powerful than the centrifugal forces working on its member. The national integration happens if the binding or cementing forces working on its members are more powerful than the disintegrating figures. The tendency of disintegration is developed by the nation when the centrifugal forces start to overpower or dominate the centripetal forces.
Conclusion:
Thus, it can be concluded that national integration may be summed up as a course in which groups of people gradually develop into well-defined and identifiable national groups or communities. However, the nation-forming factors i.e. race, language, geography, religion etc. are not required to achieve the ideal of national integration. Thus, in this way, national integration is the only force with the help of which all types of people live together peacefully and consider themselves members of a single whole.
2) Signify the importance of National solidarity in an Islamic Democratic State.
Answer:
Importance of National Solidarity in Islamic State:
National integration is to combine and bring together all the people of a country irrespective of their colour, race, religion, caste etc. The founders of Pakistan aimed at creating an Islamic democratic state in SouthEast Asia. The people who became a part of Pakistani Nation were different from each other in many respects, they spoke different languages i.e. Urdu, Bengali, Sindhi, Balochi, Punjabi, Pashto, Saraiki, and many others. They did not come of common racial stock and traced their descent to a number of racial groups. Some of them were the descendants of the invaders coming from Central Asia, and others were Arabs, Turks, and indigenous races. Their living patterns, dresses, foods, desert, households, agricultural practices, customs and traditions, poetry, literature and many other things differed from each other. In spite of all their diversity, they decided to form a coherent national group, which is called “Pakistan’. The principles of Pakistani nationalism were proclaimed by Quaid-e-Azam in his speech at Dhaka on 21 March 1948, in which he said;
“You belong to a Nation now, you have now carved out a territory, vast territory, it is all yours; it does not belong to a Punjabi, or a Sindhi, or a Pathan, or a Balochi … it is yours.”
The strongest reason for this national cohesion was Islam. They were all Muslims, faced one Qibla while offering prayers and the Quran was the common code of life they cherished to follow. The belief in the oneness of Allah (Tauheed) and his Prophet Muhammad S.A.W united them. Their vow was eternal religiously and irrevocable politically. Islam was the paramount bond that united them and it was so strong that it overcame all the factors that separated them from each other e.g. language, race, culture, geography etc. Thus, it can be concluded that:
- The people of Pakistan should forget their linguistic, racial, and geographical differences and stand united based on Islamic fraternity.
- They should know that they are Muslims and Pakistanis first and all their other identities are subservient to their Islamic identity.
- Pakistan’s different languages, tribes, clans, customs, and traditions are like the different colors of the picture.
- Every colour is important in its own place and removing colour from the picture will spoil both the picture and the colour. Therefore, each colour should remain steadfast to its position as a colour and should not try to take the place of the picture.
3) Enlist the obstacles interposed in the way of national integration and cohesion.
Answer:
Countries inhabited by heterogeneous racial and linguistic groups and divided by natural geographical boundaries (mountains and rivers) generally develop centrifugal tendencies among their cultural groups. Pakistan is placed in a similar position and if these tendencies are allowed to grow and flourish without any restraint, it will expose the danger posed by these differences. In order to form a strong and coherent nation, people must be aware of the presence of the disintegrating forces and shall prepare themselves to counter wisely because the elimination of differences in human society is neither possible nor desirable. Human differences cannot be crushed with the brutal state authority in a democratic society but resolved through dialogue, compromise, and mutual understanding. Thus, in order to make a coherent and integrated society, it is needed to create a culture of tolerance, in which people are educated to live amicably.
Problems of National Integration in Pakistan:
There is a crisis of national integration in Pakistan since its formation and it has been subjected to comment by intellectuals in the country. The major obstacles interposed in the way of national integration in Pakistan are:
1. Provincialism and Parochialism:
It is a very big obstacle in the way of our national progress and national integration. Every person loves his/ her province but he/she should not forget that the nation is greater than the province. The inhabitants of one province should not look upon those of another province with hatred and feeling of inferiority.
2. Linguistic Differences:
Language is the connecting link for the people. It is an important means of national unity. Linguistic differences and laxity are becoming the great hurdle in the implementation of the national language Urdu.
3. Racial and group differences:
The growing racial differences in Pakistan have become a matter of concern to its people as it poses a serious threat to its solidarity and territorial integrity. The racial movements sprout in Pakistan from time to time that is damaging to its national unity. The racial problem in Pakistan is indeed an important and intricate issue and must be addressed prudently to avoid unacceptable consequences. Regrettably, no serious efforts have ever been made in Pakistan to create solidarity among the several disparate ethnic groups. As a result, the hopes of making the country a unified Muslim State, nurtured by its founding fathers, have turned out to be illusory.
4. Economic Disparities:
Pakistan’s economic system is very corrupted which generates income inequalities. It makes the rich the richer and the poor the poorer. It strengthens the rich, the elites, who come of the privileged class. While it rather weakens the poor who just earn their physical existence. Therefore, economic disparity has weakened the organs of national integration in the country.
5. Political Instability:
Since achieving independence in 1947, Pakistan has had a checkered constitutional history reflected not only in the country’s political instability but also in the relative immaturity of its legislative institutions. Frequent military interventions on the one hand and endemic violence and corruption in public life on the other have stunted the growth of a true parliamentary system. This has affected the state machinery and distorted the public approach towards collective interest. Long periods of undemocratic rule, creates discontentment among the deprived classes of the people.
6. Bureaucrat Setup:
There is a direct relationship between bureaucracy and national integration in Pakistan. Pakistan had inherited its bureaucrat setup from British. After independence people are struggling to achieve their objectives but bureaucracy in its pursuit of power has contrived to keep the people divided. Autocratic behavior of bureaucracy is a hurdle in national integration because the bureaucracy is looked at by the people as the representative of some special classes and areas of the country.
7. Feudal system:
Feudalism is a great challenge to national solidarity in Pakistan as feudalists hold over their serfs and have a greater stake in the status quo. They always remain politically active in decision making regarding the common masses due to large holding and wealth. Thus, the power continues to flow from a feudalistic order of the society rather than a broad-based popular public support.
8. Illiteracy:
Education is a powerful means of bringing about national integration and illiteracy is not less than a curse for a society. Education has been the most neglected sector in Pakistan. This is a fact that 50% of children do not complete their primary education. Uneducated adults are the burden on national exchequer. Economics prospers in an educated society. On the contrary, an illiterate society closes the doors of prosperity. Without the active cooperation of education, we shall not be able to defend the structure of the nation.
9. Ignorance of religious and moral values:
The religious ideology is the basis of an Islamic state and it is a tool for nation building. Pakistan was built on Islamic and moral values but unfortunately, the people of Pakistan are now impressed by Western culture, and they have forgotten their religious and moral values. This is causing great damage to the national solidarity of Pakistan.
10. The negative role of the media:
The growth of electronic media over the past few decades is very rapid in Pakistan. The media can affect public opinion in a significant manner. In Pakistan, the national integration and cohesion is indeed a serious issue, which needs to be analyzed. The electronic media has touched every sphere of the human aspect.
11. Poverty:
Poverty is the mother of all evils which is the root cause of economic and cultural instability. Inequitable distribution of wealth, the difference between the living standards of the people of different areas of the country is making life miserable. Despite being an agricultural country, Pakistan is still facing food shortage. People are unable to make their both ends meet.
Conclusion:
Pakistan has a traditional society, which is full of several kinds of inequalities, and various kinds of prejudices and discrimination based on caste, creed, race, tribe, wealth language etc. Therefore, for strengthening the process of national integration, it is necessary to develop a system at national level, which has the potential to provide a sense of satisfaction to all regional subsystems.
4) What sort of measures can be adopted for the promotion of national solidarity by way of education and opinion forming?
Answer:
Education and opinion forming:
Education is critical for achieving environmental and ethical awareness, values and attitudes, skills and behaviour consistent for national integration. The education and opinion forming measures needed to be taken in order to promote national integration and strengthen national unity, i.e.
i. Spreading Religious Education:
The religious sentiment of the people of SouthEast Asia served as a driving force behind the creation of Pakistan. Pakistan was achieved only because the Muslims of this region wanted to model their lives according to the tenets of Islam. Keeping the religious considerations supreme, they forgot all the differences of language, race, culture, and geography that divided them. Problems of national integration are only due to the reason for forgetting the lesson of fraternity and brotherhood. Islam has taught us that:
“… and hold fast, all together, by the rope which Allah (stretches out for you), and be not divided among yourselves; and remember with gratitude Allah’s favour on you; for ye were enemies and He joined your hearts in love, so by His Grace, ye became brethren……” (3:103)
Thus, unity, brotherhood and the true spirit of Islamic fraternity need to be revived to remind the people of Pakistan in order to achieve national integration.
2. Revival of the National Spirit based on Two Nation Theory:
“Two Nation Theory” was a practical Programme for enabling the Muslims of South East Asia to model their lives on Islamic ideals, in private and public affairs. Pakistan was created with the sole objective of safeguarding the spiritual identity as well as the physical existence of the Muslims in this area. The citizens of Pakistan must realize that their existence is directly related to the existence of Pakistan.
3. Promotion of Islamic Culture and Tradition:
Individual and collective lives of the people of Pakistan bear a deep imprint of Islam to whatever region, racial or linguistic group they may belong. Local customs and traditions with the racial, parochial, and cast differences are also common. These are the remnants of the uncivilized local traditions. These things divide people, create bitterness in their feelings, and sow the seeds of discord among them. This situation can be remedied by promoting Islamic cultural values.
4. Application of Media for Nation Building:
Media can play an important role in the promotion of a national outlook and in dispelling the negative sentiments of parochialism and regionalism. Radio and television programs need to be useful and purpose directed. They should serve the cause of educating the people about Pakistan Ideology. They should inform the people about the objectives of our freedom struggle.
5. Promotion of Urdu:
Urdu is the lingua franca i.e. the language that serves as a medium of communication between different areas of the country. It is not the language of a particular region; it is a common national heritage. During the days of freedom struggle, Urdu emerged as a strong symbol of Muslims’ national identity. Therefore, Muslims from all parts of India rendered sacrifices for the defense of Urdu, although for most of them Urdu was a second language; it was not their mother tongue. Therefore, Urdu should be adopted as the medium of instruction at all levels as well as the language of the official business for the promotion of national cohesion and identity.
Conclusion:
Education is a very powerful weapon for national integration. Through education, we may give the necessary motivations to children, who are the future citizens of the nation. Our general policy in the organization of curriculum, in admission in various educational centers and in the appointment of teachers, should be to encourage the propagation of national elements and national solidarity and not to give any place to caste, religion, class, and community.
5) What type of administrative and political measures should be adopted for the promotion of national integration?
Answer:
National integration is a process of achieving national cohesion, stability, prosperity, strength, and feelings of being united as a nation. Pakistan is facing various administrative and political issues, which are the biggest challenge in the security and solidarity of Pakistan. There are different techniques through which the process of national integration can be enhanced and the issues of administration and political instability could be resolved.
Administrative measures:
It is the responsibility of policymakers to make a strategy to create uniformity among different ethnic identities of Pakistan through evolving mutual consensus regarding different developmental projects and issues, which are common in the state e.g.
i. Administration with Responsibilities and Patriotic Outlook:
Federal administration is a national institution under federal civil services officers. There will be no reason for the people of any province to complain of an alien rule if these officers perform their duties with a real sense of service and consider themselves the servants of the people and not their masters or rulers. It is also necessary that all the provinces be given their due share in civil and military services. If this is not done, certain parts of the country will suffer a sense of deprivation.
ii. Restructuring of the Provinces:
Pakistan comprises four provinces. These provinces have different cultural, linguistic, and ethnic characteristics. Such differences are common in all countries of the world. Nevertheless, unfortunately, these differences have become a challenge for national integration due to the conspiracies of the unpatriotic elements. Such groups have emerged in all the four provinces of Pakistan. There are people who speak in terms of narrow parochial nationalism instead of a wider Pakistani nationalism. They take pride in calling them Punjabis, Sindhis, Pakhtoons or Balochis but nor Pakistanis. In order to prevent the people from thinking that the provinces can form independently administered or sovereign units, the government must plan restructuring the boundaries of all the provinces.
2. Political Measures:
The issue of provincial autonomy has always caused great problems for constitution makers and legislatures. This problem gave birth to the grave crises of constitutional and political history. The existence of minor conflicts between the demands of national integration and the claims of provincial autonomy is natural to exist. In order to resolve this conflict, the following proposals can be taken into considerations:
i. Bi-Cameral Legislature:
A bicameral legislature was established for the first time under the 1973 Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The upper house was named Senate. The Lower house or the National Assembly represents the people of Pakistan. The Senate is the house of provinces and all the provinces have been given equal representation in the Senate. This is an important step to dispel the sense of deprivation in small provinces. Now the bigger provinces are not in a position to override or overrule the opinion of the smaller provinces. It is necessary to keep up with these new constitutional securities.
ii. Separation of Powers:
In the federal form of government, powers are divided between the federal and the provincial government. Separation of power between the central government and the federating units is an essential requirement for a strong federal system. Provincial governments should be given adequate powers, which will create a sense of self-confidence in the people. The center should be given only such powers as are indispensable to keep the nation integrated. The Constitution of 1973 provides adequate safeguards for provincial autonomy. All the four provinces expressed satisfaction regarding these principles. The only thing now required is the implementation of the constitutional clauses in letter and spirit.
iii. The democratic system of Government:
The democratic system creates a sense of responsibility and participation in the people. They start to love their country and live for it. Dictatorship, on the contrary, creates a sense of deprivation among the people; and they get alienated from the national and collective affairs. They develop enmity not only towards the rulers but also towards the province or the class to which the rulers belong. Their dislike for the rulers may turn into hatred for the country. In this way, national integration is threatened. We should establish a democratic system based on the principles of Islamic ideology.
Conclusion:
There is a need to develop Pakistani nationhood which should give people the feeling that despite regional differences, they form a nation destined for common statehood. The policy-makers of local governments have a clear responsibility to foster unity among diverse populations. The sincerity of approach and purpose is the most vital element of success. Therefore, the ruling party must evolve an identity of its own, which should inspire faith, hope, and confidence.
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