This site has had a lot of content on Pakistan and Afghanistan in the last little while, from a variety of perspectives and viewpoints. The problems in these two countries will only grow larger in the coming years, so the more history lessons, the better.
Understanding Pakistan is so important, especially since its role in Afghanistan and the region will increase as the U.S. and NATO pull out of the area by the end of this year.
Pakistan is a cocktail of traditions, faiths, and peoples so it has always been a fascinating place to read about. But, the more one looks into its history the more it becomes clear that this country shouldn't have ever been created. Pakistan has never been able to get properly on its feet ever in its short history. There are many reasons, some of which are given in the video below.
The core of the problem is that Pakistan is an artificial country. Pakistan was created to be a slave state. It was not created for any logical or patriotic reasons, but for sentimental and military ones. It was created for the purpose of preventing the Soviet Union from advancing into South Asia and the Indian subcontinent. Creating a country out of nothing to hold back the Red Army was a good idea for the U.S., England, and the West, but not for the natives.
The Pakistani ruling elite never separated itself from the British colonial system and their Western masters. Throughout their years in power, the Pakistani military establishment has been more occupied with fighting foreign enemies than growing their country's economy and building its national infrastructure.
For decades, Pakistan has played a very destructive role in Afghanistan, backing Islamist extremist groups against the state. It also periodically attacks India without achieving anything. At least when Israel periodically attacks its Arab neighbours it gets some land out of it. Pakistan has lost land in its aggressive campaigns.
Pakistan's claim to fame was stealing the technology for the atom bomb, which they tout as a major achievement, but this sense of pride is rooted in delusion, ignorance, irrationality, and insecurity. As Mashal Khan Takkar says in the video below, having nuclear bombs didn't prevent the Soviet Union from collapsing and fragmenting in 1989. And nuclear bombs likely won't prevent Pakistan from collapsing and fragmenting either.
II. Mashal Khan Takkar: Birth And Death of Pakistan
Below are long excerpts from a lecture called, "Birth and Death of Pakistan" by Mashal Khan Takkar. In the lecture, Takkar describes the colonial origins of Pakistan after World War II and explains why it has so many problems in our present era. Takkar is the founder of the "Great Afghanistan Movement." Here is his Twitter account.
"Dear friends, there was another big problem in Pakistan, which the British didn't want to solve deliberately because they wanted Pakistan a weak state so that it will be dependent on them or on their allies forever. Their problem was a territorial problem. Pakistan was formed on the land of other countries. There were five provinces in Pakistan. One belongs to Afghanistan, Balochistan was the land of Balochis, East Pakistan was the land of Bengalis, Punjab was separated from India, and a similar situation was in Sindh.The painting in the background of the video below is of Ahmad Shah Durrani, "1722 – 16 October 1772) the founder of the Durrani Empire and is regarded as the founder of the modern state of Afghanistan."
So the formation of Pakistan was an unnatural phenomenon. But any unnatural phenomenon cannot survive for a long time. And that was the reason that Pakistan was disintegrated in 1971, and the further disintegration is around the corner. Because we the Pashtuns and the Baloch, occupied by Pakistan, don't want to be a part of this terrorist and occupying state. We the Pashtuns living in Pakistan want to be an integral part of our motherland, Afghanistan.
Dear friends, we Pashtuns and Baloch don't have any problems with each other. We have been living together for thousands of years, side by side, just like brothers. And in Pakistan anyone who wants to create problems between the Pashtuns and Baloch are working for the agenda of the Pakistan army, Pakistan establishment, and Pakistan intelligence organization, ISI. We Pashtuns also don't have any problems with the minorities living with us on our land. They are our brothers. We strongly the massacre by any terrorist organization. All these terrorist organizations are sponsored and supported by Pakistan intelligence organization, ISI.
Ladies and gentlemen, the alliance between both armed and unarmed religious groups and ISI made these religious groups and terrorist organizations very powerful. It was claimed that Pakistan was formed for the Muslims of the Subcontinent. But why did Muhammad Ali Jinnah (founder of Pakistan) when delivering a speech in the Constitution Assembly on 11 of August, 1947, say 'We have many non-Muslims, Hindus, Christians, and Parsis, but now they are all Pakistanis, they will enjoy the same rights and privileges as any other citizen. You are free to go to your temples, to mosques, and to any other place of worship, in this state of Pakistan.' But before partition, he was proclaiming that Hindus and Muslims are two different nations, they have different religions, they have different cultures, so they cannot live together, but after Independence he says completely against this statement.
Dear friends, sufferings and sacrifices are essential to get freedom. The Indian freedom fighters made a lot of sacrifices to get freedom from British rule. The Indian freedom movement was a mass movement. But what Muhammad Ali Jinnah sacrificed? The Indian freedom fighters would be in the jails, and Muhammad Ali Jinnah would be enjoying a luxurious life, drinking whiskey, and attending British high-level meetings, and helping the British against those freedom fighters. He and his stooges were not put in jail for five seconds by the British, then how can they say that 'we got independence' from British? Where is their sacrifice for that?" [12:22 - 16:20 in the video below].
"Since 1947, United States of America has given $40 billion dollars to Pakistan. Can Pakistan show any thing positive they have done with such big amount? Of course not. Ladies and gentlemen, Pakistan [inaudible] its freedom not through mass movement, or any positive sense of Pakistan nationality. Pakistan was born in intrigue. It was a unique product of a calculated British-Indian policy using the name of Islam. Pakistan emerged from the partitionist policy of the dying British colonialism. Pakistani elites inherited and adopted the Britain colonial model of administration with strong executives. They filled the power vacuum at the top, but failed to address the issues of democracy, meaningful political, economic, and social change in Pakistan.
Dear friends, if Pakistan was a state for all Muslims, then why more Muslims choose to stay in India rather than migrate to Pakistan? It means that Pakistan died at its birth. Muhammad Ali Jinnah (founder of Pakistan) even couldn't convince his own daughter to migrate to Pakistan.
Deer friends, Pakistan emerged on the name of Islam. But Islam was only used as a tool to justify the wrongdoings in Pakistan by the Pakistan army and establishment. And due to Islam, nobody could question anything. After all, Pakistan was Islamic. Therefore, anything that Pakistan did, from waging wars, avoiding elections, genocides, corruption, could not be criticized by anyone. Any criticism of Pakistan was criticism of Islam. Pakistan came into being in 1947 for Muslims, but Pakistan is a very dangerous country for the Muslims.
Dear friends, the money poured into Pakistan during the Cold War time was used to strengthen the army, not for development projects. In Pakistan, military and intelligence services have played a leading role in building Pakistani national identity on the basis of religion since 1947. State apparatus started using religion and religious groups for political purposes. The sentiment against India was maintained to keep the people's mindset busy, because hatred of India was needed as the justification for the build-up of the Pakistan army, and for the health of army business. However, Pakistan initiated four wars with India, and in all the wars Pakistan was terribly defeated." [17:10 -20:25 in the video below].
Mashal Khan Takkar: Birth And Death of Pakistan.Source: Pukhtun TV. Date Published: July 27, 2013.
