Imagining Pakistan
Modernism, State, and the Politics of Islamic Revival
Seiten
2017
Lexington Books (Verlag)
978-1-4985-5395-7 (ISBN)
Lexington Books (Verlag)
978-1-4985-5395-7 (ISBN)
This study examines the conflict between two visions for Pakistan: a modern constitutional framework and an Islamist state. The author argues that Western liberal ideas were at the root of Pakistan’s creation, analyzes the society’s drift away from its founding philosophy, and assesses optimistic indications of its revival.
Imagining Pakistan argues that the creation of Pakistan is a result of Muslim modernism in the Subcontinent, as it defined the struggle for identity, nationalism, and empowerment of Muslim communities. This modernist movement represented the ideals of inclusivity, equal rights, a liberal constitutional framework, and a shared sense of political community among diverse ethnic and regional groups. However, while this modernity was the ideal of Pakistan’s founders, it faced resistance from Islamists obsessed with recovering a past legacy of lost Muslim glory. A major threat to political modernism also came from the military that wanted to create a strong and secure Pakistan through ‘controlled’ democracy. Multiple interventions by the military and deviations from the foundational republican ideas left Pakistan in the rough sea of power struggles, causing institutional decay and creating space for the rise of radical Islam. Imagining Pakistan analyzes the institutional imbalance between the military and the civilian groups, the idea of the security state, and the Islamist social forces and movements that have been engaged in the politics of Islamic revival. It argues that Pakistan’s stability, security and progress will depend on pursuing the path of political modernity. Although the restoration of parliamentary democracy and the resilience of the Pakistani society are hopeful signs, resolving the critical issues that Pakistan faces today will require consolidation of democracy, better leadership, and a moderate and modernist vision of both, the state and the society.
Imagining Pakistan argues that the creation of Pakistan is a result of Muslim modernism in the Subcontinent, as it defined the struggle for identity, nationalism, and empowerment of Muslim communities. This modernist movement represented the ideals of inclusivity, equal rights, a liberal constitutional framework, and a shared sense of political community among diverse ethnic and regional groups. However, while this modernity was the ideal of Pakistan’s founders, it faced resistance from Islamists obsessed with recovering a past legacy of lost Muslim glory. A major threat to political modernism also came from the military that wanted to create a strong and secure Pakistan through ‘controlled’ democracy. Multiple interventions by the military and deviations from the foundational republican ideas left Pakistan in the rough sea of power struggles, causing institutional decay and creating space for the rise of radical Islam. Imagining Pakistan analyzes the institutional imbalance between the military and the civilian groups, the idea of the security state, and the Islamist social forces and movements that have been engaged in the politics of Islamic revival. It argues that Pakistan’s stability, security and progress will depend on pursuing the path of political modernity. Although the restoration of parliamentary democracy and the resilience of the Pakistani society are hopeful signs, resolving the critical issues that Pakistan faces today will require consolidation of democracy, better leadership, and a moderate and modernist vision of both, the state and the society.
Rasul Bakhsh Rais is professor of political science at the Lahore University of Management Sciences.
Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Islam and the State
Chapter 3: Modernism and Imagining of Pakistan
Chapter 4: Erosion of Modernist Tradition
Chapter 5: State in Decline
Chapter 6: The Politics of Islamic Revival
Chapter 7: The Struggle Within
Chapter 8: Conclusion: Reviving the State and Society
| Erscheinungsdatum | 31.01.2018 |
|---|---|
| Verlagsort | Lanham, MD |
| Sprache | englisch |
| Maße | 158 x 237 mm |
| Gewicht | 535 g |
| Themenwelt | Geisteswissenschaften ► Geschichte ► Regional- / Ländergeschichte |
| Geisteswissenschaften ► Religion / Theologie ► Islam | |
| Sozialwissenschaften ► Politik / Verwaltung | |
| Sozialwissenschaften ► Soziologie ► Spezielle Soziologien | |
| ISBN-10 | 1-4985-5395-8 / 1498553958 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1-4985-5395-7 / 9781498553957 |
| Zustand | Neuware |
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Pantheon (Verlag)
CHF 22,40
