Journal of Contemporary Studies

A biannual publication of Faculty of Contemporary Studies

Patron-in-Chief Lieutenant General Nazir Ahmed Butt, HI (M),

President, National Defence University, Islamabad.

Chairman Prof. Dr. Pervaiz Iqbal Cheema, Dean, Faculty of

Contemporary Studies, National Defence University,
Islamabad

EDITORIAL BOARD
Editor-in-Chief Dr. Zulfqar Khan
Editor Dr. Shaheen Akhtar
Assistant Editors Dr. Khuram Iqbal
Mr. Tasawar Hussain
EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD
 Prof. Ian Talbot, Professor of Modern British History at the University
of Southampton, UK.
 Prof. Dr. Sally Wallace, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies,
Georgia State University, USA.
 Prof. Dr. Mehmet Asutay School of Government and International
Affairs, Durham University, UK.
 Prof. Marvin G. Weinbaum, Director for Pakistan Studies at the Middle
East Institute, USA.
 Dr. Andrew Futter, Associate Professor of International Politics at
University of University of Leicester, UK.
 Dr. Julian Droogan, Department of Security Studies and Criminology,
Macquarie University, Australia.
 Dr. S. Gulden Ayman, Associate Professor, Marmara University
Istanbul, Turkey.
 Dr. Nishchal N. Pandey, Director Centre for South Asian Studies,
Kathmandu, Nepal.
 Dr. Ying Rong, Senior Research Fellow, China Institute of International
Studies (CIIS).
 Professor Tim Edmunds, Director of Teaching and Learning School of
Sociology, Politics and International Studies (SPAIS), University of
Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom.
 Dr. Hasan Askari Rizvi, Political and Defence Analyst, Pakistan.
 Dr. Moonis Ahmar, Dean, Faculty of Arts, University of Karachi,
Pakistan.
 Dr. Rashid Ahmad Khan, Dean Social Sciences, University of Sargodha,
Pakistan.
 Dr. Ejaz Hussain, Professor National Institute of Pakistan Studies,
Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad.
 Winter 2016
Volume V, Number 2

JOURNAL OF

Editor-in-Chief
Dr. Zulfqar Khan

Editor
Dr. Shaheen Akhtar

Assistant Editors
Dr. Khuram Iqbal
Mr. Tasawar Hussain

Faculty of Contemporary Studies

National Defence University
Islamabad, Pakistan
 Editor’s Note
The Journal of Contemporary Studies is a flagship publication of the
Faculty of Contemporary Studies (FCS), National Defence University
(NDU), Islamabad. It started with the unequivocal objective of advancing
critically oriented, inter-disciplinary academic and intellectual discourse.
It is a biannual, double blind peer-reviewed journal which offers its
readers- in academia, the government as well as policymaking circles-
insightful scholarly analyses, diverse policy perspectives on important
contemporary issues, and ongoing debates concerning national and
international security, public policy and the wider field of world politics.
This is the tenth issue of the journal containing five articles, two
book reviews and five primary documents containing valuable information
on significant international developments. The first article, titled Impact of
Violent Extremism on Girls’ Schools in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by Dr. Mussarat
Jabeen, dwells on the effects of militancy on girls’ education in KPK. She
argues that a conservative socio-cultural tradition, along with violent
religious extremism, impedes girls’ education as the militants target girls’
schools.
The second article, titled Continental Drift: Tracing the “Why” of
Brexit in the History of European Integration, is by Muhammad Farouq
Khan Lodhi. It examines three perspectives pertaining to Brexit: UK’s
historic rivalry with European powers, Britain’s aversion to the process of
European integration for the last seven decades, and the economic
considerations that have overshadowed the post-World War II era. The
author concludes that the economic rationale is a formidable force behind
Brexit.
The third article on the Role of UN and European Union in the
Syrian Refugee Crisis is by Dr. Fauzia Ghani. It analyses the role played by
the United Nations and the European Union in managing the Syrian
refugee crisis, their policy response and the challenges faced in return. It
also offers recommendations that can make their role effective in dealing
with this situation.
The fourth article on Digital Payments: Prospects for South Asia and
Pakistan is co-authored by Dr. Muhammad Zia-ur-Rehman and Umara
Afzal. It discusses the prevailing digital payment patterns across South
Asia and subsequently the trends and challenges that are emerging in
Pakistan. It also analyses the advantages of various instruments of digital
payments.
 The last article on Burhanisation of Social Media and the Resistance
Movement in Kashmir is co-authored by Sheikh Gh. Waleed Rasool and
Ameer Abdullah Khan. The authors analyse the impact of the killing of
social media icon Burhan Wani on the Kashmir resistance movement. They
argue that the interplay of images and sentiment has given birth to a new
phenomenon called “Burhanisation.” These images did not pass through
routine media gate keeping; and therefore, triggered a mass resistance
against the Indian rule in occupied Kashmir and Burhan Wani became
glorified as a freedom fighter.
I am grateful to all the contributors who have sent their articles for
this issue, and the anonymous peer-reviewers whose valuable comments
helped the authors to improve their contributions. We hope that the study
of this Journal will invoke the desire among the readers to contribute their
perspectives in the ongoing academic discourses. Contributions are
welcomed from a broad spectrum of inter-related fields like political
science, security studies, political economy, terrorism, politics and
religion, politics of energy, feminism, media and politics, leadership
psychology, military strategy, modern history, international law, sociology,
education, conflict management and resolution, demography, social
anthropology, and foreign policy analysis etc.
We are accepting articles for the upcoming issue of the Journal of
Contemporary Studies based on original qualitative or quantitative
research, an innovative conceptual framework or a substantial literature
review that opens new areas of inquiry. Case studies and comparative
analyses are also welcome. The editorial team at the journal encourages
submissions from expert analysts from around the world. The Journal
seeks to promote a scholarly understanding of contemporary
developments and changes related to the aforementioned
disciplines/fields of social sciences. It intends to stimulate
interdisciplinary research and writing.

Editor
Dr. Shaheen Akhtar
 CONTENTS

ARTICLES
1. Impact of Violent Extremism on Girls’ Schools in 1
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Dr. Mussarat Jabeen
2. Continental Drift: Tracing the “Why” of Brexit in the 21
History of European Integration
Muhammad Farouq Khan Lodhi
3. Role of the UN and the European Union in the Syrian 37
Refugee Crisis
Dr. Fauzia Ghani
4. Digital Payments: Prospects for South Asia and 52
Pakistan
Dr. Muhammad Zia-ur-Rehman & Umara Afzal
5. Burhanisation of Social Media and the Resistance 67
Movement in Kashmir
Sheikh Gh. Waleed Rasool & Ameer Abdullah Khan

BOOK REVIEWS
1. The Third Option for the South China Sea: The Political
Economy of Regional Conflict and Cooperation 81
David Jay Green
2. Counter Insurgency and Counter Terrorism: A Prism of
Stabilization and Peace Building Efforts 84
Beenish Sultan and Gareth Boyd
DOCUMENTS
1. President Donald J. Trump’s Inaugural Address, 88
January 20, 2017.
2. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s Address at the 53rd 92
Munich Security Conference, February 18, 2017.
3. Prime Minister Modi’s Address to the Nation from the 100
ramparts of the Red Fort on 70th Independence Day,
August 15, 2016.
4. Statement by Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, Prime 121
Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan at the 71st
Session of the UN General Assembly, September 21,
2016.
5. Statement by Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign 128
Affairs, Mr. Sartaj Aziz, at the Sixth Heart of Asia
Ministerial Conference held in Amritsar, December
12, 2016.
Extremism, Militancy and Girls’ Schools in KP 1

IMPACT OF VIOLENT EXTREMISM ON GIRLS’

SCHOOLS IN KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA
Dr. Mussarat Jabeen

Abstract
All over the world, terrorist attacks on places of learning are
increasing. These attacks are different in types, including armed
assaults, bombings and hostage taking. In Pakistan, these attacks
began in 2009 and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), with its
conservative culture was the worst affected area, where mainly
girls’ schools were the targets of militants. Women in a
conservative society are already marginalized and the extremist
elements have further constrained their rights. According to the
extremist’s viewpoint, a woman’s life is limited to the traditional
roles where education is unnecessary and counterproductive. The
customary norms also discourage female education and interpret
it as a ‘futile pastime.’ The existing literature, focusing on gender
disparity in the low enrolment of girls in schools, points out three
main causes: tradition, poverty and extremism as hurdles in
women’s path to education. The religious extremists are
deliberately keeping girls/women away from education. The paper
explores the impact of violent extremism on educational facilities
and a look into how it impedes the path of girls going to school.

Key Words: Girls’ schools, Extremism, Terrorist attacks,

Traditional roles, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Introduction

I
n the contemporary world, rising waves of extremism and terrorism,
with diverse dimensions, pose the biggest threat to mankind. The
worldwide proliferation of terrorist attacks motivated by religious
extremism, are raising concerns across all segments of society as a threat
to human security. The War on Terror once again brought Pakistan at the
forefront (Pakistan was the front-line state in the Afghan war) and it
became an American ally in the US-led coalition for counter terrorism.
Apart from the loss of human lives and economic resources, the war


Dr. Mussarat Jabeen is serving in the Department of IR & Political Science,
University of Lahore, Sargodha Campus, Pakistan.
2 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

caused enormous damage to the social and cultural fabric of Pakistan and
enhanced religious extremism, militancy and violence in the society. The
socio-religious milieu of Northern Pakistan was directly influenced by
extremism and terrorism, and no sphere of life was free from its impact.
Women, a relegated gender in the patriarchal setting of the area, became
victims to the prevailing circumstances. The war also led to the
proliferation of Jihadi organizations, controlled by the Islamist militias,
which directly controlled the region under their influence. It was reported
that women employees of international NGO’s were forced to wear the veil
(burqa) and were prohibited or discouraged from working away from
their homes. Girls’ schools were under direct threat from militants who
threatened female teachers as well. Video/music shops and barbershops
were either closed or destroyed, showing an extremist approach.1
Female literacy rate in Pakistan is still quite low, ranking it in the
bottom ten countries of the world and such practices have further
worsened the ranking. Above it, poverty has kept 5.4 million children
(aged 7-12) out of schools; girls constituting 62 percent compared to boys
who are five percent. 2 According to a report of the UN, about two third of
girls have not been enrolled in any school, whereas 55 percent of adults
are unable to read or write, thus increasing the illiterate population. The
overall female literacy rate is 25 percent.3

Definitions of Extremism
Extremism and militancy are two inseparable terms. However, it is
pertinent to differentiate between the two. Terrorism is a physical act
while extremism is related to a mindset. Terrorism resorts to violence or
threat of violence in order to accomplish religious, political or ideological
objectives. Extremism means having beliefs and support for ideas that are
considered unreasonable and unacceptable by most people. Extremists
forcefully preach and convince others to follow their thoughts. The term
extreme is taken from the Latin words extremus, which means far from
the centre. Metaphorically, an extreme meant behaviour and ideas, which
are not in conformity with the mainstream, particularly in the political
arena.4 A study by Kornilov (2011) explained that the first use of this term

1 Magnus Marsden, “Women, Politics and Islamism in Northern Pakistan,”

Modern Asian Studies 42, no. 23 (2008): 405.
2 “If You’re a Girl in Pakistan: What are Your Chances of going to school,” ABC
NEWS, October 7, 2013. [Link]
chances-school/story?id=20475108.
3 “Nearly three quarters of Pakistani girls not in school,” Dawn, December 12,
2012.
4 Josie Ryan, “What language tells us about changing attitudes to extremism,”
The Conversation, August 31, 2017. [Link]
language-tells-us-about-changing-attitudes-to-extremism-80789.
Extremism, Militancy and Girls’ Schools in KP 3

was found in the statements related to theory of the state. In the middle of
the 19th century, the terms extremism and extremist began to be used
extensively by the press in England. The Civil War (1861-1865) in the USA
introduced these concepts as the hardliners in warring parties (Northern
and Southern States) called each other extremists. In France, the term
extremism began to be used during the World War I (1914 - 1918) when
the confrontation started between the left-wing and the right-wing
political forces, which continued for several decades.5 The Macmillan
English Dictionary defines an extremist as one who “tend to have political
or religious ideas that are considered extremely unreasonable by the most
of the people.”6 According to another definition, extremism is a
commitment to extreme views and actions usually political.7 Merriam-
Webster dictionary defines extremism as “the quality or state of being
extreme.”8 The Greenwood Encyclopaedia of International Relations
defines extremism as “immoderation in policy or in one’s intellectual
political or social opinions and judgments.”9 Oxford English Dictionary
defines extremism “opposed to moderate.”10 Shanghai Convention called
extremism “an act, aimed at the forcible seizure of power or forcible
retention of power, as well as a violent change of the constitutional system
of the state and a violent encroachment upon public security…as well as
illegal armed formations and participation in them.”11 After the 9/11
terrorist attacks, the UN Security Council’s Resolution 1373 (September
28, 2001) stated, “the Security Council ... is deeply concerned that in the
various regions of the world, the acts of terrorism are more likely to occur,
motivated by intolerance or extremism.”12
After the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the terms terrorism and
extremism have become abused terms and are associated with Islamic

5 Diana B. Baisagatova, Saken T. Kemelbekovb, Diana A. Smagulovaa and Aigul

S. Kozhamberdiyeva, “Correlation of Concepts ‘Extremism’ and ‘Terrorism’ in
countering the financing of Terrorism and Extremism,” International Journal
of Environmental and Science Education,11, no. 13 (2016), 5908.
[Link] January 10, 2017).
6 Macmillan English Dictionary for Advanced Learners, 2nd, ed., (Oxford:
Macmillan Edition, 2007).
7 Baisagatova et. al., “Correlation of Concepts,” 5908.
8 Merriam Webster Online Dictionary, s. v. “ Extremism, ”[Link]
webster.
9 The Greenwood Encyclopedia of International Relations, Vol:1. “Cathal J.
Nolan.”
10 The Oxford English Dictionary (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989).
11 Baisagatova et. al., “Correlation of Concepts,” 5909.
12 UN Security Council Resolution 1373, September 28, 2001, [Link]/.../
United%20Nations%20Security%20Council%20Resolution%201373.
4 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

jihad. No doubt, religious extremism has existed throughout the human

history, but it appears to have become surprisingly strong at the end of the
last millennium.13 Viewing the current scenario, it seems that extremist
groups have no concern for Islam and its fundamental teachings. Quite the
contrary, they are working with their own perspective, ignoring religious
teachings and are deviating from it. It appears that mostly these people
have reverted to the pre-Islamic darkness of ignorance in applying
extreme ways towards their loyalty to groups, clans and tribes.
Linking extremism with religion has become common and
supporters of such views and ideas have existed throughout human
history. In conservative societies, diverse restrictions are imposed in the
name of religion. Many Christian communities, Zionist groups, orthodox
Buddhist associations, Hindu extremists and radical elements in Muslim
societies made religion an instrument for achieving their specific
objectives, which would have otherwise been difficult to gain. Looking at
such manifestations, a few commonalities are visible among these
elements like the opposition of liberalism, claim of purity and
intermingling state authority with the religious one for occupation of
political power. Maltreatment of weaker segments of society and
prejudices against other creeds and beliefs are also their common feature.
Religious extremists and fundamentalists maintain hierarchical order
where decisions are made by perceived authority, which are in the form of
sacred messages that are not challenged.14
In September 2007, the Association for Women’s Rights in
Development (AWID) conducted a survey and inquired about the meaning
of religious fundamentalism (extremism) from more than 1,600 gender
activists. The survey revealed that 49 percent were either uncertain or
rejected the phrase for different reasons including feeling that it
emphasized negative stereotypes and ‘targets Muslims in particular or it is
too jargonistic’ while 51 per cent of the respondents opined positively,
taking it as useful in their work.15
Claudio, a philosopher and gender activist, mentioned that
religious extremism poses a threat to gender rights and women’s ‘physical
integrity’ as they are physically tortured for control of their bodies. In
several Asian societies, women are granted a broad range of rights
through domestic and international laws, but they are on paper and
scarcely fully exercised. The traditional settings of these societies keep
women away from the decision-making process, restricting their roles and

13 Manuel Castells, The Power of Identity (London: Blackwell, 1997), 13.

14 David Domke, God Willing?: Political Fundamentalism in the White House, the
'War on Terror' and the Echoing Press (London: Pluto Press, 2004), 119.
15 Cassandra Balchin, Exposed: Ten Myths about Religious Fundamentalism
(Toronto: AWID, 2008). [Link]
about-religious-fundamentalisms.
Extremism, Militancy and Girls’ Schools in KP 5

curtailing their emancipation in comparison to their male counterparts. 16

For example, during the Taliban era in Afghanistan, extremist policies
were enforced in the name of religion and these policies not only
restricted women movements, but also denied them freedom, suppressing
their role in society through draconian laws. It is ironic that reassertion of
an ideology of past is nothing, but to marginalise women and as it occurs
in all conservative societies from Kabul to Cambridge.17 Keeping in view
the phenomena of extremism, it is difficult to construct a shared definition
of extremism. A more useful approach can be looking at the practices of
the religious extremists rather than finding a clear-cut definition.
Religious extremism encircles every sphere of a woman’s domestic
and social life, including education. Constraining women’s role, denying
identities, depriving them of rights, creating insecurity, harassing sexually
and controlling them physically remain central to pseudo religious
extremist practices. Analysis of power relations between men and women
at the micro level of society indicates that women are being victimized at
domestic level as well as facing certain barriers at global level, due to
prevailing notion of masculinity. Imbalance in relations arises due to
inequality of power, particularly in a gender-based conflict. In such a
situation, males attempt to subdue females either in groups or as
individuals. Their aim is to govern their actions and control their
decisions. Women are taken as the ‘weaker sex’ in the hierarchy of power
relations. The ‘powerful sex’ enjoys more freedom of action as compared
to those whose options and opportunities are limited and social norms
and culture weakens them further. Due to these practices, women have to
face socioeconomic problems, labour exploitation, gender discrimination,
honour killings, acid attacks and above all extremism in developing
societies.18

Culture of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

KPK is the third largest province of Pakistan in terms of
population. It is located in the northwestern region of Pakistan. Its former
name was the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP), commonly known as
Sarhad (frontier). It shares an international border with Afghanistan and

16 Sylvia Estrada Claudio, “Sanctifying Moral Tyranny: Religious

Fundamentalisms and the Political Disempowerment of Women,” in Religious
Fundamentalism and their Gendered Impacts in Asia, ed. Andrea Fleschenberg
and Sylvia Estrada Claudio (Berlin: Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, 2010).
17 Kavita Ramdas, “Feminists and Fundamentalists,” Current History, 105, no.
689 (March 2006).
18 Laura Christina Macedo Piosiadlo, Rosa Maria Godoy Serpa da Fonseca and
Rafaela Gessner, “Subordination of Gender: Reflecting on the Vulnerability to
Domestic Violence against Women,” October-December, 2014.
[Link]
6 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

the people living on both sides of the border belong to the same tribes,
living on one side while having relatives and jobs on the other side. This
affinity has brought KPK under direct influence of the Afghan culture.
These cultural similarities have denied empowerment to women in the
tribal setting where the society is conservative. Impacts of cultural
traditions, religious teaching and gender prejudices have reduced the
women’s status, generating gender discrimination. Tracing the link
between extremism and culture, Elaine Pressman explores “extremism to
be a culturally relative term in that extremist beliefs are dependent on the
cultural perspective since the person who holds views which (have been)
considered to be extreme within another cultural context or time may not
be considered to hold extremist beliefs within another cultural context or
time.”19
Furthermore, economic underdevelopment and poverty have
reduced a woman’s position. Besides, the patriarchal setting has given
control to men for administrating women’s roles. Interpretation of familial
relations is often derived from the Holy Quran, strengthening it with tribal
code ‘Pakhtunewali’,20 which is a hybridized compromise of religion and a
tribal code of masculinity. It mostly negates female rights.21 This prevailing
cultural environment has made women exceptionally vulnerable to abuse,
exposing state’s failure to ensure their rights. Islam delivers a message
that seeking of knowledge is obligatory for every Muslim, but in
conservative societies, it is being denied to women by cultural laws.
In the 1980s, Soviet military intervention in Afghanistan gave birth
to extremism in the region, which was due to a process, encompassing
socio-political change under the influence of jihadi culture and
transformation in the perception of the people, considering war against
the Soviets as a religious duty. Pakistan, being a front-line state in the
Afghan war, was equally affected by it. The war gave birth to a generation
of ‘Jihadists’ in Pakistan and Afghanistan, propagating religious extremism.

19 Muhammad Feyyaz, “Youth Extremism in Pakistan – Magnitude Channels,

Resident Spheres and Response,” Defense Against Terrorism Review 6. no. 1
(Spring & Fall 2014): 65.
20 Pashtunwali or Pakhtunwali is a non-written ethical code about tribal
traditions, which is following by Pashtun people. It is a system of law and
governance that began in prehistoric times is valid even today, especially in
rural tribal areas. It is a set of customs and manners of the Afghan tribes. It
was originated in the pre-Islamic era. Every Pashtun feels pride in following it
either he lives in Afghanistan, Pakistan or any other place. Aftab Yasmeen Ali,
“Understanding Pashtunwali,” The Nation, August 6, 2013.
[Link]
21 H. Ahmed-Ghosh, “A History of Women in Afghanistan: Lessons learnt for the
Future or Yesterdays and Tomorrow” Journal of International Women’s
Studies, 4, no. 3 (2013).
Extremism, Militancy and Girls’ Schools in KP 7

Moreover, Islamization by General M. Zia-ul-Haq, the former president of

Pakistan, strengthened this affect. The Afghan Jihad brought enforcement
of rigid policies, particularly regarding women’s freedom. The Mujahideen
(warriors of faith) paved the path for the emergence of the Taliban in
Afghanistan. After consolidating their power, the Taliban imposed
draconian laws and curtailed women’ role, denying rights to them. Limited
access was given to women in different areas including education. Girls’
schools were closed down in Kabul, which had been an area of liberal
traditions and women were forced to wear a veil. After the fall of Taliban
regime, the pictures of Afghan women celebrating their freedom by
throwing their veils fascinated the West and the US, but more amazing was
the role of those women who reopened schools amid the debris and
started teaching children. Throwing away the veil is not a new
phenomenon as Queen Soraya, wife of King Amanullah (1919-29), took a
bold step to bring a revolutionary change in the country. She removed the
veil from her face during a public speech and the wives of the officers
followed her, taking away their veils. Later the queen used to wear a wide
brimmed hat in public gatherings, promoting liberal traditions in the
society. She opened the first girls' school and a hospital in Kabul, while her
mother launched the first women's magazine in the country, which
featured stories of brave and successful women from history and their
elevated place in society. Soraya was also the minister of education. She
managed to send a young woman of 18 years old to Turkey for higher
education in 1928. This happened for the first time in the history of the
country.22 This was a highly bold step in a traditional society with its
conservative approach.

Militancy, Extremism and the Role of Sufi

and Fazlullah regarding Girls’ Education
Following Taliban’s policies, the religious extremists in KPK
publicly opposed girls’ education. These elements looked down upon
education, taking it as an intrigue of the West or state-led bodies. They not
only threatened the female students by attacking their schools, but also
prevented health workers from performing their duties. Observing this
situation, a gender activist, Sudduth commented, “The fundamentalist
elements launched campaigns against polio vaccination, and called girls’
education as un-Islamic.”23 These observations surfaced when the
terrorists attacked girls’ schools and threatened female health workers in

22 “Leading Lady Spraya Tarzi: The Afghan Queen,” Dawn, January 29, 2012.
[Link]
23 Jennifer Sudduth, “CEDAW's Flaws: A Critical Analysis of why CEDAW is
Failing to Protect a Woman's Right to Education in Pakistan,” Journal of Law &
Education, 2009.
8 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

hospitals. Girls were prevented from going to schools in the areas under
their control or influence. South Waziristan Agency was the first area
where the militants destroyed a girls’ school.24 They had also blown up
many girls' schools before the eruption of fighting with security forces.
They were not hesitant to target the schools even during the fighting.
Sufi Mohammad, a Taliban leader and founder of the Tehreek-e-
Nafaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi (1992), was the first person who publicly
called for the implementation of Sharia (Islamic) law in 1994. Sufi, along
with his son- in- law Fazlullah, tried to enforce Sharia laws, restricting
women’s education and closing down the girls’ schools. Fazlullah
established 30 illegal FM radio stations to communicate his message to
like minded groups and allies. He was known as ‘Radio Mullah.’ He used to
broadcast extremist views from these radio stations and also advocated a
ban on female education. During July 2007, Fazlullah declared jihad
against military forces of Pakistan to take revenge of the siege of the Red
Mosque (Lal Masjid) in Islamabad.25 His Tehreek-e-Nafaz-e-Shariat-e-
Mohammadi (TNSM) was reported to be one of the founding groups of the
Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), along with the other groups and at the
time of its formation, Fazlullah, was formally appointed in Swat as the
Taliban commander. 26 He motivated hundreds of people and acquired
new recruits for enforcement of Sharia law forcefully. Doing all this, he
followed Sufi Muhammad, who took ten thousand jihadis to Afghanistan to
fight against the US-led forces in 2001.27
Sufi was imprisoned when President Musharraf banned terrorist
organizations in January 2002, criticizing religious extremism after the
terrorist attacks on the Indian parliament in December 2001. Sufi was
involved in acts of militancy and destroying girls’ schools. However, he

24 Ali A. Naqvi, S. Z. Khan & Z. Ahmad, “The Impact of Militancy on Education in

FATA,” Tigah, A Journal of Peace & Development, 2(2012).
25 The Lal Masjid (Red Mosque) was founded in 1965. During the Afghan war,
the mosque was frequently used by the Pakistan military and government.
Imam (leader) of the mosque and General Zia-ul-Haq were closed-friends.
After the Afghan war, the mosque continued its working as a center for
Islamic teaching and thousands of male and female students had been
residing in neighbouring seminaries. It was reported that young students
were being trained for jihad in Kashmir or any other area. Training camps
were also established by the terrorist organisations like Al-Qaeda. In July
2007, Lal Masjid Operation was carried out by army, targeting clerics and
students. Qandeel Siddique, “The Red Mosque Operation and its Impact on the
Growth of the Pakistani Taliban,” Norwegian Defence Research Establishment,
October 8, 2008. [Link]
26 Q. Siddique, “The Red Mosque Operation”.
27 Rabia Zafar, “Development and the Battle for Swat, Alnakhlah,” The Fletcher
School Online Journal for Issues Related to Southwest Asia and Islamic
Civilization (2011).
Extremism, Militancy and Girls’ Schools in KP 9

managed to come out of prison in April 2008, signing an agreement with

the government on not engaging in the heinous act of schools’ destruction
and other violent activities. Sufi also promised to maintain peace in the
militancy-hit areas. He also agreed to surrender, along with his militant
allies, in lieu of acceptance of his terms and conditions for enforcement of
Shariah law. For this purpose, an official deal was made with him on
February 15, 2009, but he immediately rejected the deal and renounced it
formally in April 2009. He accused the government of violation of the deal
and not establishing for Shariat courts.28
In December 2007, Fazlullah gained administrative control of Swat
valley and established Islamic courts. He enforced his hard-line
interpretation of Sharia law and launched a violent campaign against
female education. On January 15, 2009, girls were banned from going to
school out rightly through an edict. About 900 schools were either closed
or stopped enrollment of female-students. This decree snatched the right
of education from 120,000 girls and remaining were 40,000 only.29
Moreover, closure of schools and the violent campaign against female
education deprived 8,000 female teachers of their jobs in Swat Valley.30
These events were protested nationwide. Under the pressure and protest
of the people, he amended the edict, allowing girls to ‘attend school up to
grade five.’31 Over the following months, the military launched ‘Operation
Black Thunderstorm’. Its aim was to free the area from the militants’
control. The operation started on April 26, 2009. In post-operation period,
attempts were made by the military and the government to bring back
girls to school, restoring the confidence of both teachers and parents. But a
large number of female-students were not prepared to join the schools out
of fear of terrorist attacks. A Fact-Finding team of the Human Rights
Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) portrayed the tragic situation, showing
the dismal state of affairs in Taliban-controlled areas, which were the
worst-hit zones. Access of girls to school was affected disproportionately
and most girls’ schools were either destroyed or damaged by the militants’
bombing. If school-buildings remained intact, parents were doubtful about
the safety of their daughters and were reluctant to send them back in their
schools.32

28 HRCP Fact Finding Mission, “Swat: Paradise Regained?” (July 2010), 35-37.
[Link]
29 “Taliban bans education for girls in Swat Valley,” The Washington Times,
January 5, 2009. [Link]
taliban-bans-education-for-girls-in-pakistans-swat/.
30 HRCP Fact Finding Mission, “Swat: Paradise Regained.”
31 Baela Raza Jamil, “Girls Education in Swat,” South Asian Journal, April-June
2009: 31.
32 HRCP Fact Finding Mission, “Swat : Paradise Regained,” 24.
10 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

Destruction of Girls’ Schools

in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
From 1970 to 2013, about 3,400 educational institutions were
attacked by terrorists in 110 countries. The ratio of these attacks was 2.7
percent of the total worldwide attacks in this period. In Pakistan, from
2009 to 2013, this ratio was higher than any other country of the world,
and the north-western area was its main target.33 Apart from Pakistan,
educational institutions in Afghanistan, Colombia, Somalia, Sudan and
Syria were also victim of terrorism.34 These countries had experienced
more than one thousand attacks on schools, universities, teachers and
students. These attacks target the persons and facilities of the institutions,
which were used for military purposes. The most dangerous country was
Colombia, where 140 teachers lost their lives and a thousand received
death threats during 2009-2012. A report on the killing of teachers
pointed out that in remote areas, teachers and schools were the only signs
of state authority in the face of powerful armed non-state groups, who
alleged them of collaboration with the enemy.”35 In Swat, education was
also the target of extremism, challenging the writ of the government.

33 Erin Miller, “Background Report : Terrorist Attacks on Educational Institution,

National Consortium Study of Terrorism and Response to Terrorism,
December,[Link]://[Link]/pubs/Peshawar%20School%20
Background%20Report%20December%[Link].
34 Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attacks (GCPEA), Country Profiles:
Pakistan, 2014. [Link]
pakistan.
35 Sarah Marsh, “Targets for Terror : The Shocking Data on School and
University Attacks,” The Guardian, April 30, 2015. [Link]
com/teacher-network/datablog/2015/apr/30/terror-data-school-
university-attackes-peshawar.
Extremism, Militancy and Girls’ Schools in KP 11

Terrorism against Educational Institutions 2004-2013

1031
Turkey 7 33
5 35
Phillipines 3 56
6 92
India 3 143 Percent of all
2 184 terror…
Afghanistan 4 205
9 213
Pakistan 10 724
0 200 400 600 800
Source: University of Maryland analyzed data of the Global Terrorism Database.
[Link]

In Pakistan, terrorist attacks on educational institutions increased

in the aftermath of the operations of the Red Mosque and Swat. Tehrik-i-
Taliban Pakistan (TTP) was taken as the prime perpetrator in these
attacks despite the fact that many attackers were unidentified and there
were other sources of tension as well. In the beginning, these attacks
mainly targeted educational institutions, destroying the infrastructure.
These were non-lethal in nature as their primary objective appeared to be
the disruption of education, particularly of girls. Mostly the buildings were
vacant at the time of attack; therefore, no loss of life occurred.
According to a BBC Report, more than 500 schools were
demolished by the TTP in the tribal areas from 2009 to 2013. This
situation not only dissuaded half a million students from going to schools,
but also took the lives of many teachers. It was also reported that more
than 838 attacks were launched, which destroyed hundreds of schools
from 2009 to 2012. This was a higher number than any other country of
the world. In the same period, 15 teachers were shot dead and eight were
injured while four female teachers became victim of acid attacks.36
In January 2009, five schools of Mingora in Swat Valley were
destroyed by the militants, which resulted in a worldwide protest,
particularly in the Western world, which condemned the tragic event as
subject to international law and demanded the safety of children and
women. The French ministry took a hard stance and insisted that
Islamabad take operative measures to secure gender rights in the region.
It stated, “It is, however, by the acknowledgment of the dignity of women
that this great country (Pakistan) will achieve peace and development.
Pakistani authorities have to do everything they can to protect the
fundamental rights of women and children as recognized by international

36 GCPEA, “Country Profile : Pakistan,”.

12 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

law.”37 France supported Pakistan against the evils of fanaticism,

terrorism, extremism and militancy.
Despite nationwide protest and condemnation at the international
level, the militants continued their practices. Two female teachers were
killed in Bajaur Agency on November 4, 2009, despite high security alert in
the area.38 Killing of females at the hands of militants seems to be
motivated by their stance against education and women working outside
their homes. However, other reasons were also there, including use of
school buildings by the military as its base.
From 2009 to 2011, about 758 schools were destroyed by the
militants in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and neighbouring tribal areas, including
640 schools in Malakand Division. Among these schools, 477 were
partially damaged and 166 were totally destroyed. In addition, 36 schools
in Peshawar, Hangu, Bannu, Lakki Marwat and other areas were destroyed
while the number of damaged schools was 82.39 Mushtaq Jadoon,
Education Secretary of KPK, issued a statement while talking with the
media, “Most of the damaged schools were rehabilitated by the Pakistan
Army and different NGOs. However, the schools completely destroyed are
still awaiting reconstruction. Unfortunately, when a school is rebuilt, it is
destroyed again by militants. However, we will not lose hope and spread
education to all corners of the province.”40
In 2011, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Federal Administrative Tribal
Areas (FATA) collectively lost 1,600 schools. These schools were either
demolished or partially damaged. This devastation affected 3, 71,604 girls
out of 7, 21,392 students.41 According to another report of FATA
Directorate of Education (2011), 505 schools were demolished or
devastated, while 108 girls’ schools and 542 boys’ primary schools became

37 France in Pakistan, “Destruction of five Schools in Swat Valley: Statement by

the Foreign Minister for European Affairs,” January 20, 2009.
[Link]
38 Anwarullah Khan, “Militants kill Two Women Teachers in Bajaur,” Dawn,
November 5, 2005.
39 Naveed Ahsan, “Schools vs Militants: An Overview of the Situation in KPK and
FATA,” Conflict Monitoring Centre, January, 20, 2013. [Link]
[Link]/2013/01/20/schools-vs-militants-an-overview-of-the-
situation-in-kpk-and-fata.
40 Islamuddin Sajid, “Over 3000 Schools were destroyed in Militancy, Disasters:
Official,” The Express Tribune, June 15, 2012. [Link]
41 S. Younis, “Militancy Fallout: 7 Lakh Students deprived of Education in KP,
2011.” Associated Press of Pakistan. [Link]
[Link]?option=com_content&task=view&id=134087&Itemid=200.
(accessed, January 15, 2014).
Extremism, Militancy and Girls’ Schools in KP 13

dysfunctional due to militancy and the threat of terrorism.42 In the same

year, Pakistan saw more than 135 attacks at different educational
institutions. Out of 76 attacks, 53 took place in FATA and KPK.43 In
Charsaddah and Peshawar districts, ten and seventeen public schools were
destroyed respectively. Many girls’ schools remained closed due to threats.
On March 09, 2011, a school was blown up in Darra Adam Khel while
another school was destroyed in Nowshera. A girls’ school of Mardan was
also bombed in November 2011. All such attacks did nothing but deprive
children of their places of learning, as hundreds of schools became non-
functional. Moreover, school children and madrassa students were
recruited by the militants for suicide bombings. There were also targeted
killings of teachers and academics.44
In July 2012, a newly constructed school was attacked while
another girls’ school became the target of militants in Swabi district in
August. In Swat, a school girl named Malala Yousafzai became the target of
Tehrik-i-Taiban Pakistan (TTP) on October 9, 2012. She was accompanied
by two school girls on her way to school in her school pick-up van.
Ehsanullah Ehsan, a TTP spokesman, took responsibility for this attack as
he himself admitted and alleged Malala was working against the Taliban
and propagating secular values. Malala was identified by a gunman before
being shot in the head and neck.45 She was a 15-year-old school girl of
Swat Valley, who raised her voice against the atrocities of the militants,
highlighting their heinous character and contempt towards girls’
education. The militants alleged Malala was writing an anonymous blog for
the BBC against the Taliban, highlighting the life of a school girl under
their control. She was also blamed for launching a campaign for female
education, which aroused TTP’s anger against her. Afterwards, the military
ousted this group from the valley. All this made Malala an icon of
education worldwide. The UN General Assembly invited her to New York
and she addressed the Assembly as the representative of youth in July
2013. In her address to the UN, she advocated the need of education for
the poor school girls of Pakistan and asked for “free, mandatory education

42 Islamuddin Sajid, “The Woeful State of Education in KPK, Fata,” The Express
Tribune, May, 3, 2011. [Link]
43 GCPEA, Country Profile: Pakistan.
44 Ludovica Iaccino, “Peshawar School Massacre: Girls-hating Taliban Attacks
1,000 ‘Un-Islamic’ Pakistan Schools in last five years,” International Business
Times, December 16, 2014. [Link]
massacre-girl-hating-taliban-attack-1000-un-islamic-pakistan-schools-last-
1479821.
45 Fazal Khaliq, “Malala Attack: Government finally realizes there were two
other victims,” The Express Tribune, October, 14, 2012.
[Link]
there-were-two-other-victims/.
14 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

around the world.” She also stated that her goal was to educate females
“because they are suffering the most.”46
The annual report of Conflict Monitoring Centre (CMC) (2012)
highlighted that 81 schools were blown up by the militants and mainly
girls’ schools were their target in the area. In FATA, 29 schools were
destroyed, whereas 52 schools were attacked in KPK. The worst-hit
districts were Charsadda and Swabi where militants destroyed 10 and 13
schools respectively. Nowshera and Mardan districts were the next victim
as eight and five school-buildings were destroyed respectively. In Tank
district, one school was destroyed while in Hangu and Dera Ismail Khan
each, two schools were demolished. Kohat and Laki Marwat were equal
targets, where eight (four in each) schools were destroyed. Mohmand
Agency and Khyber agency of FATA were the worst affected parts where
sixteen and nine schools were destroyed respectively. Bajour Agency,
North Waziristan Agency and South Waziristan Agency each lost one
school to extremism.47
The situation did not change and militants continued their attacks
on schools. In March 2013, a girls’ school was blown up in Lakki Marwat
while a boys’ school was attacked in Mohmand Agency in June. A girls’
school of Bannu was blown up in July 2013 with a 10-kg explosive device
and in August, another school was attacked in Mohamand Agency.
Hussaini Madrassa in Peshawar was also attacked in this year. On January
2014, a school in Hangu was attacked by a suicide bomber, countered by a
brave student named Aitzaz Hasan, who lost his life but saved the school
by killing the attacker. However, the militants did not stop their atrocious
act and only after one month burnt down another school. In Bajaur agency,
a girls’ school was again destroyed on September 8, 2014, after its
reconstruction. It was first destroyed on International Literacy Day in
2010. In Bara, a girls’ school was attacked in October 2014.48 While a girls’
school was blown up in Charsada on November 14, 2014, in the same city,

46 Valerie Strauss, “The Amazing Thing Malala Plans to say if a Taliban Gunman
Approaches her Again," Washington Post, October 10, 2014.
[Link]
-amazing-thing-malala-plans-to-say-if-a-taliban-gunman-approaches-her-
again/?utm_term=.f193cd1ac1b7.
47 Naveed Ahsan, “Schools vs Militants: An Overview of the Situation in KPK and
FATA,” Conflict Monitoring Centre, January 20, 2013. https
//[Link]/2013/01/20/schools-vs-militants-an-overview-of-
the-situation-in-kpk-fata.
48 “Militant Attacks on School in Pakistan,” The Tribune Express, December 16,
2014. [Link]
schools-in-pakistan/.
Extremism, Militancy and Girls’ Schools in KP 15

an NGO school was attacked on December 15, 2014.49

The most heinous event happened on December 16, 2014 when
the school children of Army Public School, Peshawar became the victim of
terrorism. The militants attacked the school and opened fire, which killed
134 children and nine staff members. This attack left 118 students injured
along with three teachers.50 Prior to this event, the average death ratio of
lethal attacks on educational institutions was 0.8 percent as compared to
2.3 percent for all other types of attacks.51 Previously, school buildings
were the target of militants at the time when they were unoccupied and
the number of casualties was low.
Responding to this fatal attack, the government launched the 20-
point National Action Plan in December 2014. The plan underlined the
need to adopt a political discourse to counter religious militancy. The
government took different initiatives to control the situation, but
destruction of schools did not stop. On the first anniversary of the
martyrs of APS, Peshawar, the parliament was informed that 360 schools
were destroyed in FATA, 166 in North Waziristan Agency, 139 in Khyber
Agency and 55 in South Waziristan Agency during 2015.52
In January 2015, two girls’ primary schools in Swabi were attacked
while two boys’ schools were blown up by the militants in Bajur Agency on
June 17 and July 5, 2015 respectively. On October 29, 2015, an aerial firing
was opened on two girls’ schools in Charsada and Shabqadar separately.
The most recent event of students’ killing was not against a school, but
Bacha Khan University in Charsadda became the target of militancy. On
January 20, 2016, four terrorists killed 21 people, including students and
teachers. These people were gathered for a poetry recital to commemorate
the death anniversary of Bacha Khan, the leader of KPK whom the
university is named after. It was reported that the mastermind of APS
attack, Khalifa Omar Mansoor, commander of banned TTP (Geedar Group),
was the person who planned this attack, while based in Achin district of
Afghanistan.53 Later he was killed in a drone strike in Afghanistan. Both

49 Rana Muhammad Usman, “Will Pakistan see more School Attacks?” Dawn,
May 12, 2016.
50 Rameesha Qurashi, A. Gulraiz and Z. Shahzad, “An Analysis of Media’s Role:
Case Study of Army Public School (APS) Peshawar Attack,” Social
Communication 2 (2016), [Link]
of_Medias_Role_Case_Study_of_Army_Pub.pdf.
51 Erin Miller, "Terrorist Attacks on Educational Institutions" December,
2014. [Link]
d%20Report%20December%[Link].
52 Azam Khan, “360 Schools were Destroyed in 2015,” Express Tribune,
December 17, 2015, [Link]
53 Ismail Khan, “APS massacre mastermind killed in US drone strike,” Dawn, July
12, 2016.
16 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

attacks (APS and Bachah Khan University) caused a huge cost in terms of
human lives. During this period, 450 persons were killed in Pakistan,
which was the highest number, while the next was Russia with 361
casualties.54
Across the Swat Valley, the militants’ campaign of pulverizing the
education system began in 2008 and forced the government to step in to
continue education in the affected region. In spite of the combined efforts
of the military and civilian government, it still appears that the radical and
violent interpretation of religious teachings has not yet stopped.
In KPK, there are many ‘tented schools,’ as their buildings have
been destroyed. These schools are uncomfortable and hardly keep out the
whips of the cold winds of winter. The little girls of the valley shared their
feelings about the cold weather, sitting on the debris of their school, which
was now situated in a tent and unable to compete the severe weather. The
tented school setup was established on a temporary basis due to lack of
time and funding, but severe weather conditions foiled it. Besides the
‘tented schools,’ double shifts were also introduced in schools to continue
education. The government worked for the repair of schools and tried to
continue the system without interruption. However the attendance
remained poor as many schools were still under the threat due to
continued danger of returning of the Taliban laws. The Provincial Disaster
Management Authority (Peshawar) estimated in its preliminary damage
assessment report that US$ 68.1 million were required to reconstruct the
schools.55

Causes of Low Enrollment in KPK and FATA

Enrollment in girls’ schools is discouraging in KPK and FATA. A
high drop-out rate exists between grade one and two and overall ratio of
drop outs is 70 percent in girls as compared to boys, which is 43 percent.
Dropout rate varies from one area to another. Those areas that are rural or
more exposed to the TTP have low enrollment with high dropout. The
dropout rate of school girls of the age 6-14 years of poor families is 76
percent as compared to boys of 46 percent. In 2011, net enrollment in
primary education was 72 percent, secondary education had 35 percent
and tertiary institutions had eight percent.56 It also pointed out that young
Pakistani girls have not been enrolled in schools for the last three
quarters. The dropout ratio is quite depressing in rural areas where the

54 Usman, “Will Pakistan See More School Attacks?” Dawn, May 14, 2016.
55 I. Khattak, “Pakistan Struggles to keep Education System Intact amid
Militants’ Bombings,” Central Asia Online, (February 25, 2010),
[Link]/ en_GB/articles/caii/.../pakistan/.../feature-03?
56 GCPEA, “Education Under Attack 2014, Country Profiles: Pakistan.
[Link]
Extremism, Militancy and Girls’ Schools in KP 17

average education that a girl receives in schools is one year as compared

to boys of wealthy families living in urban areas, who attend school for ten
years.57 Education for All Global Monitoring Report (2012) pointed out
that 5.1 million Pakistani children were not enrolled in any school.58 This
number is alarming and ranking of Pakistan is the second highest country
in the world, where children are away from schools. In terms of
population, Pakistan is at sixth number in the most populated countries
facing the problem of illiteracy.59
Apart from extremism, several other factors are keeping a large
number of children out of schools. These include poverty (cost), social
attitudes, poor teaching, unavailability of female teachers, corporal
punishment, location of schools, domestic duties, lack of mobility and
unavailability of accommodation. Poverty and environmental hurdles lead
the majority of the enrolled students to leave school without completing
the full course of study while teachers’ unavailability and poor
infrastructure equally impinge upon the quality of education. The nature
of the curriculum and division of school systems in private, public and
madrassa system are also affecting the education. The cost of education for
poor families is un-affordable even in public schools. It is observed by
many studies that female education has suffered sometimes due to
perceived opportunity cost. Increase in fee and other expenditures cause
dropouts among girls as their chances of future earning are nominal while
boys are not affected.60 There is great disparity in the number of schools
for boys and girls and lower number of girls’ schools is a big cause of low
enrolment. The heavy dropout rate at primary level discourages higher
education and in the absence of advanced degrees, there is a shortage of
female teachers. The traditional environment does not encourage teachers
from settled areas to serve in schools located in remote areas. Other social
factors like early marriage, tribal hostilities, travelling hazards and
cultural taboos are equally impeding the path of female education.
A report by UNESCO about the education of girls of poor families
ranked Pakistan as the least developed country of the region. It stated, “the
poor girls in Pakistan are twice as likely to be out of school as the poorest

57 Ibid.
58 Aroosa Shaukat, “Despite having Second Worst Record for Children out of
School, UNESCO Optimistic,” The Express Tribune, October 24, 2012.
[Link]
for-children-out-of-school-unesco-optimistic/.
59 U. Manzoor, “Over 800 Schools blown up in KPK & Fata,” Dawn, January 27,
2013.
60 Elizabeth M. King and Rebecca Winthrop, “Today’s Challenges for Girls’
Education,” Working Paper 90 (Brookings : Global Economy & Development,
June 2015). [Link]
[Link].
18 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

girls in India, almost three times as likely as the poorest girls in Nepal and
around six times as likely as the poorest girls in Bangladesh.”61
A college teacher of Mingora (Swat Valley) shared that the majority
of students were male and out of 1000, only 300 were girls. The major
reason of girls’ are being deprived of education is poverty and conflict.
Moreover, cultural norms are also a hurdle in their path due to societal
biasness against educated and independent women. The tradition and
practice of early marriages mar the prospects of girls’ education and
restrict their learning period.62
Several studies have observed that attendance in schools is highly
gender-imbalanced. The ratio of girls is only three percent among 5-9
years old while boys’ ratio is 26 percent, several times higher. It is a
known fact that four out of ten girls, at the age of 15 years, can read and
write while this ratio in men is 70 percent. The reason for this disparity is
an unsupportive atmosphere for girls’ education and the patriarchal
values of society. However, improvement is visible in girls’ enrolment, but
only at the primary level. At the secondary and higher level, the position is
quite disappointing and girls’ enrolment is only 29 percent.63
Proliferation of Deeni Madaris (religious schools) is also one
reason of low enrollment as they fulfil the need of boys’ education.
Majority of these boys are orphans, who have lost their parents and homes
in conflict. The people of the area deliberately ignore the necessity of girls’
educational institutions in the presence of these madrassas due to societal
pressure amongst other restraints. NGOs are also discouraged from
opening any girls’ school, particularly foreign NGOs since there is a
perception of distrustfulness attached to them. Khwendo Kor NGO became
militants’ target allegedly for educating and empowering females through
opening community-based girls’ schools. The NGO staff was not only
threatened, but was also attacked and even grenades attack with.64 This
hostile environment finally forced them to close their services in the

61
UNESCO, ‘Global Monitoring Report’, Education For All, [Link]
org/images/0023/002325/[Link].
62 International Crisis Group, “Education Reform in Pakistan,” Asia Report No.
257, (Brussels (Belgium): Crisis, June 23, 2014). [Link]
download/Documents/116000/[Link].
63 Alexandra Raphel, “Gender Equality, Education, and Economic Development
in Pakistan,” Journalist's Resource, July 22, 2013. [Link]
org/studies/international/human-rights/pakistan-women-equality
education-economic-development-research-roundup.
64 Riaz Ahmad, “Aid Workers Targeted?: Armed men Storm Khwendo Kor Office,”
The Tribune, April 21, 2013. [Link]
workers-targeted-armed-men-storm-khwendo-kor-office/.
Extremism, Militancy and Girls’ Schools in KP 19

area.65 The other NGOs working in the area also faced security threats and
hindered from carrying out their task of educating females. Another
reason was the uncooperative attitude of tribal elders, which was a
continuous source of tension and fear for services and lives of NGO
workers.66 Mostly these NGOs engaged women either as employees or
students to improve their education and economic status. All this was
conceived as opposite to prevailing conservative and cultural norms. This
attitude does no good and is counterproductive as it slows down women’s
access to education and work.

Conclusion
Education is the basic need of a civilized society. It is essential for
all human beings to acquire it irrespective of gender and identity, but
unfortunately, girls’ education is the prime target of militants in Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa. The attacks on schools are even destroying the available
infrastructure and forcefully depriving girls of education. The process of
education has been disrupted by the destruction of schools as
reconstruction of buildings takes time and enrolled students rarely return.
In the traditional society of KPK, women’s education is already a victim of
traditional norms and countless issues. The militants are not only
discouraging females from getting educated, but also preventing the
teachers from educating them. Due to the prevailing environment, NGOs
workers engaged in the education sector are facing threats. No doubt,
arms make a nation victorious, but they cannot safeguard gender rights.
However, force is useful for improving the plight of women. Change in
societies occurs with the support of the people and the government, which
is often tentative and slow. The tribal values adhered to by the people
must maintain the standard of human rights as depriving women of their
basic rights is not endorsed by any convention and charter. The traditions
which the tribal people hold dear should be held up to the standard of
human rights.
The government and the military need to work in a close
relationship with tribal leaders to discover a solution to this ‘non-
negotiable issue.’ No doubt, the state is already doing much against
militancy and insurgency, but the rights of individuals cannot be sidelined
in the interest of the state security. The end goal must be to improve the
status of women and education achieved through a peaceful society. To get

65 Jocelyn Richard, “Women in Northern Pakistan: Protected by Tribe, Territory

or Taliban?,” UCL Human Rights Review 3, 2010, 242.
[Link]
hrr/docs/hrreviewissue3/richard.
66 Amnesty International, “Pakistan: Insufficient Protection of Women,” April 15,
2002,[Link]
[Link].
20 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

rid of terrorism and extremism requires a change in the workings and

beliefs of the society, leading to a discourse that works for women’s
inclusion in decision-making. There is also need to change public and
private policies, laws and ideas that affect women’s position. A change in
those norms that delegate women to a position of inferiority is essential,
as moderation and rationality require practical efforts; merely rhetoric
cannot dispose of them. Here are a few recommendations to improve the
situation:
 Political reforms are required to improve the situation of law and
order in the area.
 Education must be a priority of the government and people to
change the mindset.
 The allocation of huge funds is required to repair and rebuild the
schools, but ensuring their security is more important to avoid
further destruction.
 Construction of new schools is the need of the hour and the
government should provide a budget for new schools.
 Most of the schools do not have sufficient staff as per the need of
students and the government must fulfill this deficiency.
 Female teachers demand to be posted near their home and in case
of remote areas; accommodation and transport should be
provided.
 Civil society, NGOs and tribal elders should step ahead and
contribute to the local administration in their efforts to secure
schools from militancy and promote education in tribal areas.
 The role of parents is important and they should be encouraged to
send their daughters to school and help them in getting rid of the
fear of militancy.
Brexit: Continental Drift 21

CONTINENTAL DRIFT: TRACING THE “WHY”

OF BREXIT IN THE HISTORY OF
EUROPEAN INTEGRATION
Muhammad Farouq Khan Lodhi

Abstract
For the United Kingdom (UK), the rationale for the decision to exit
the European Union (EU) may be found in UK’s historic rivalry with
European powers, Britain’s fatigue after having contributed
towards the process of European integration for seven decades,
and the urgent economic reasons that have overtaken the post-
World War II historical causes. This article examines and compares
all three perspectives that may explain the phenomenon of the
Continental Drift to find a compelling rationale for Brexit Viz.
relatively weaker financial performance of Britain vis-à-vis some of
the European partners. Imprudent lending compounded by
increasing taxation to bail out ailing sectors of the British
economy, led to poor financial performance as compared to
Germany and France, during the critical years of recession from
2008 to 2010. The crisis worsened because of an imbalance in the
net migration within the EU. The migration-related issues
embittered the British voters as shown in Brexit polls’ results.

Key Words: European Union, European Integration, Recession,

Financial Performance, Brexit.

Introduction

T
he relations between the European powers and the United Kingdom
(UK) had never been entirely cordial from 17th to mid-20th century.
Ever since the end of World War II, Britain had been committed to
the security of Europe as a leading member of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO). They had been an active partner in the European
Union until the conservative government headed by David Cameroon
decided to hold a referendum in June 2016 and ask the question of Britain
leaving or staying in the European Union. The questions that had been
paramount in everyone’s mind prior the EU referendum had been: (1)


Muhammad Farouq Khan Lodhi is a freelance security analyst based in
Islamabad, Pakistan.
22 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

Does the UK need to enhance control of its sovereignty? (2) Will the UK
benefit from leaving EU? (3) Will Britain lose some of the rights and
privileges availed now in the European Union? (4) What impact will Brexit
have on immigration? (5) Will leaving the EU set-in the break-up of the
UK? (6) Will Brexit makes the UK more, or less safe? (7) Will leaving the
EU save taxpayers money?
The referendum decided the issue in favour of leaving with 52
percent vote in favour and 47 percent against it. The Brexit question
touched a raw nerve in the UK and hot debates ensued. The outcome of the
referendum shook British political system to the core with damages to the
image of the ruling conservative party. Prime Minister David Cameroon
had to resign leaving the office to Theresa May who showed a commitment
to see the Brexit process through. This divorce is likely to have far-
reaching effects on British economy and the society. Its causes must be
understood clearly before suggesting the course UK may steer to secure
Britain’s best interests in future. This paper brings out three different
perspectives to determine the most dominant cause of Brexit. The first
perspective gauging the succession of the longer-term historic chain of
events point to the existence of a permanent fault line that tends towards a
Continental Drift. Britain always stayed on the brink of European political
system, being barely within, without becoming a part of it. The second
perspective, a shorter-term view of history, takes in Britain’s behaviour in
post-World War II era. It presents Britain as a European actor committed
to European integration and offering guaranteed security. It is interesting
to note that the movement for post-1945 integration, rather
uncharacteristically, occurs in parallel with the phenomenon of perpetual
drift. The third perspective, perhaps even more relevant in the present
context, places economic performance in focus. This view shows Britain
drastically lacking vis-à-vis European partners-cum-competitors in terms
of productivity and trade balance. A dispassionate analysis of the probable
causes must therefore; shun all rhetoric that merely cloaks facts while
exaggerating less significant facets of the problem. There are, to
summarize, at least three different perspectives that affect an investigation
into the causes of Brexit:

1. Centuries’ long disharmony and conflict between Britain and

European powers is likely to cause Britain and Europe drift apart
when strong integrative forces are not at work or when such forces
are weakened by other causes that may be pervasive at the time.
2. The basic trend from Westphalia onwards is one of integration and
not that of drifting apart and rivalry. The present state of discord
and disharmony is merely a temporary phase. Historically
trustworthy integrative forces will prevail and help overcome the
‘Continental Drift.’
Brexit: Continental Drift 23

3. Economic performance is increasingly the real cause of conflict and

disharmony. Economic interests exert a determining influence, far
greater than that exerted by geostrategic realities or the security
situation. Britain, being a poor economic performer vis-à-vis some
of the stronger European partners, finds EU membership to be
counterproductive, and its commitments onerous. Britain may fare
better if it retracts into its former ‘splendid isolated’.

Additionally, environmental issues and migration problems add

complexity to the question of integration and cooperation.

Continental Drift: The Long-Term Historical Perspective

The British traditionally pursued an isolationist policy intervening
in Europe only when their own security was threatened, such as in the
case of the sudden expansion of French power under Napoleon, and that of
Germany under Kaiser/ Hitler. Britain’s maritime insular position proved
to be doubly advantageous in geopolitical and marine-mercantile terms.
Europe’s endless feudal wars, so wasteful in nature, by and large, spared
the island nation. The kingdom did not have to keep large standing armies;
instead, money was poured into shipbuilding to realize Elizabeth I’s
obsession – expanding her naval strength beyond that of rival continental
powers. Superior naval power meant that British merchant ships could sail
round the globe freighting raw materials and merchandize back and forth
throughout the world without the fear of being set upon by enemy raiders.
This impunity gave a tremendous boost to British trade and that meant
surplus wealth, part of which could be spent on improving farming and
industrial production and the other part on expanding the naval fleet and
raising ever larger overseas armies. Many Englishmen feel that they are
always better off when they are left to their own devices rather than being
told by the Europeans what to legislate, how to govern and what to trade.
Several European powers bid for supremacy, built large naval
fleets, waged wars for colonies and set up a global trade system in 18th and
19th centuries. The geostrategic location, however, especially favored
Britain. The island nation rose to become the mightiest power in the
world. Britain’s position as an island opened sea-lanes and trade routes in
all directions and yet the kingdom was militarily more defendable than the
continental empires and states. British naval mastery turned London into
the world’s commodity exchange and insurance headquarters in the
18th and 19th centuries. The surplus from trade and the steady income from
colonies bestowed upon the British people unmatched prosperity and a
certain enviable quality of life. Britain owed its naval mastery and global
trade to its large and efficient industry which had its origin in simple
mechanical technologies, notably steam – the lead technology of that era.
The steam technology revolutionized propulsion and locomotion. The
24 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

speed of the merchant ship increased, and the vessel became independent
of the wind. The trend of electrical technologies, towards the end of the
19th Century, however, started to tip the balance of power away from the
UK. World leadership rapidly slipped out of British hands as more and
more trade got diverted to Germany. World War I became necessary to
halt the Germans in their tracks. Sanctions and war reparations imposed
by the Allies after WW I were regarded as downright humiliating by
German intellectuals and common man alike. Voters were disenchanted
with the loyalists and the veterans. They voted the NAZI party into power.
Germany resumed its technological surge under Hitler and started re-
arming. Another great war became inevitable. The Continental Drift that
had set in during the colonial era, intensified and never abated thereafter.
The Allies won WWII and U.S. stationed 256,000 soldiers on German soil
for next 45 years, adding injury to insult. For almost four decades, the
formation of a single European Union helped close the rift, but now it has
been widened by Britain’s financial woes.
American Admiral Mahan always quoted the rise of Britain as
a classic example of sea power and emphasized the role that a
powerful navy could play in securing colonies, in protecting commercial
trade and in winning wars. The Germans, by comparison had traditionally
followed continental strategists such as Hal Mackinder and the advocates
of continental expansion such as Karl Haushofer.1 Mackinder had made
his debut when he read his famous paper to the Royal Geographic Society
in 1904, titled The Geographical pivot of History. He had prophesized:

The successful powers will be those who have the greatest industrial
base. It will not matter whether they are in the centre of a continent or an
island; those people who have the industrial power and the power of
invention and of science will be able to defeat all others .2

Hitler was influenced by Haushofer who frequently visited Hitler

when he was writing Mein Kampf in detention near Munich after the
1923 Beer Hall Putsch. 3 The likeness of the following passages from Mein
Kampf with Haushofer’s writings is rather striking:

1 Karl Haushofer was the founder, editor and principal contributor to

the Zeitschrift für Geopolitik (1924) and director of the Institute of Geopolitics
at the University of Munich.
2 Paul Kennedy, The Rise and Fall of Great Powers (London: Vintage, 1989), 493.
3 The Beer Hall Putsch (the Hitlerputsch or Hitler-Ludendorff-Putsch), was a
failed coup attempt by the Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler to seize power
in Munich, Bavaria dating 8-9 November 1923. Hitler and two thousand Nazis
confronted the police in Munich. Sixteen Nazis and four policemen were
killed. Hitler himself was wounded during the clash, arrested and charged with
treason.
Brexit: Continental Drift 25

The foreign policy of a folkish state is charged with ... establishing bet-
ween the number and growth of the population, on the one hand, and
the size and value of the soil and territory, on the other hand, a viable,
natural relationship . . . . Only a sufficiently extensive area on this globe
guarantees a nation’s freedom of existence. (Hitler)4

Every nation is primarily concerned with the task of maintaining itself in

a hostile environment, and since its very existence depends on the pos-
session of an adequate space, if the space has grown too small, it has to
be expanded. (Haushofer) 5

Germany set itself firmly on the course of expansion into

neighbouring territories, supposedly justified by the theory of
Lebensraum.6 The price paid by this proud nation is a lesson in history.
Germany still competes for the European “space” but the nature of
competition is now economic rather than forceful annexation. German
politics is now based on cooperation rather than coercion.
Britain can play the honest broker in European feuds. The classic
example of brokering a peace after Napoleonic Wars is the Congress of
Vienna, a feather in Britain’s cap. Vienna had been a success of intra-
European integrative forces at their best. European powers soon
entangled themselves in a web of multiple alliance treaties. When these
complex ‘Balance of Power’ treaties failed, the world was pushed into a
general war. It can be said that in the Pax Britannica7 era, Britain had
defeated the forces of Continental Drift with skilful international
diplomacy, remaining itself secluded from European rifts.
Short-term Historical Perspective
Britain as the Champion of European Integration: The process of
European integration had started through a deliberate ‘cultivation of
harmony’ initiated at the Peace of Westphalia in 1648. British Wartime
Prime Minister Winston Churchill proposed a “United States of Europe” at
an address at the University of Zurich in 1946. The Union was, however,

4 W. Haushofer, in E. Earl, Makers of Modern Strategy (Princeton: Princeton

University Press, 1973), 408.
5 Ibid.
6 The concept of Lebensraum—or “living space”—served as a critical
component in the Nazi worldview that drove both its military conquests and
racial policy.
7 Pax Britannica (Latin for "British Peace", modelled after Pax Romana) was the
period of relative peace between the Great Powers during which the British
Empire became the global hegemonic power and adopted the role of a global
police force.
26 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

proposed to be an all-European affair and Britain was not supposed to be a

part of it. The European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) comprising of
six European countries was incorporated in 1951. The European Common
Market was established on March 25, 1957. The European Community
Parliament was set up in 1972. UK had joined in 1973. The dream of
unification was finally realized when the European Community was
renamed as the “European Union” in 1993 under the Maastricht Treaty. In
1999, the EU adopted a single currency – the Euro. The Free trade
Agreement allows trade goods to cross the borders throughout Europe
without having to pay any custom duties. Schengen Borders Agreement
allows the residents of Continental Europe to travel to each other country
without having to obtain Visa. And then the Champion of European
integration, United Kingdom, to everyone’s surprise, declared an intention
to leave the EU in June 2016. Brexit instantly became a thorny political
issue in the UK. The “Why” of Brexit may, thus, be found in the fatigue of
having to act as the leader in EU within current financial means available
to UK.
Shattered dreams of being number one and basking once again in
the radiance of splendid Victorian sun bred disillusionment and bitterness.
British politics is tainted by a desire to return to the cosy state of former
‘splendid isolation.’ The glorious stories of the age of Pax Britannica haunt
British political leaders but there is little room for political manoeuvre at
that grand a scale once again. Monopoly over global trade and steady flow
of raw materials from colonies, that had once made British transactions so
profitable, are no longer there. Bankers have no easy solutions for non-
performance of loans and economic recession that persists. Britain had
been a dedicated partner of U.S. in underwriting European security under
NATO’s emblem, but it seems that they are now treated by European
cousins as if they are of no account in the European inner circle. The words
of Lloyd George from his address to the bankers on July 21, 1911, haunt
them:
But if a situation were forced upon us in which peace could only be
preserved… by allowing Britain to be treated as if she were of no account
in the Cabinet of nations, then I say emphatically that peace at that price
would be a humiliation intolerable for a great country like ours to
endure.8

This uneasy feeling of being ignored or pushed around in the

EU is central to Brexit and there appears to be no therapy at hand to
emancipate or placate them.

8 J. McCain, Hard Call: The Art of Great Decisions (New York: Twelve, 2007), 79.
Brexit: Continental Drift 27

Perspective of Financial Performance and Social Spending

Europeans, today, regard integration as a cause linked with such
issues as trade, standard of life, migration and environment. Rather than
talking in vague and less commonly understood terms like geostrategic
location, dominance and liberal hegemony, they prefer to place integration
in the perspective of resources, production, and trade balance. They
measure performance in terms of the work and resources input to realize
a dream; and the output received. Performance being the key standard in
new Europe, it is important to review how Britain meets European
expectations on finance and trade, in tackling sensitive environmental
issues, and in handling of migration crisis. British sincerity toward these
prime areas of typically European interest may not be doubted but they
prefer sentiments to be backed by sound financial performance.
As regards to financial performance when international aid seen as
an indicator of integration Maurizio Carbone said in his 2007 publication
The European Union and the International Development: The Politics of
Foreign Aid, assesses the European economies through the lens of aid
given by the Member States to the Least Development Countries (LDC). An
assessment made under this criteria places France and the United
Kingdom in the lead in shaping EU aid policy while it relegates the
European Commission to the level of a marginal player. Carbone differs
and maintains that the European Commission positively influences
outcomes in the EU decision-making process and plays a leadership role in
the EU. Carbone, however, finds that the Commission’s leadership is bound
by three conditions in giving out aid: the presence of an institutional
entrepreneur, internal cohesiveness, and the astute use of a repertoire of
tactics. His analysis shows that the European Commission combines
instrumental and persuasive behaviour, and that development
cooperation acquired a greater significance in the 2000s as the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs) were instrumental in increasing the volume of
aid as well as Member States’ commitment to eradication of poverty.
Public sector aid to developing countries significantly increased from US$
25 billion (47 percent of the whole world) in 1999 to US$ 59 billion (57
percent of the world) in 2006.
The funding of global public goods (GPGs) frequently crosses over
national frontiers and demands close coordination. He extracts that the
efforts at the integration and coordination of aid, however, remained poor.
He also laments that the EU still does not ‘speak with one voice,’ in the
international arena. The failure to increase the volume of aid owed itself to
absence of concrete planning. Finally, he observes that “the stubborn
opposition of the few countries (i.e. not only the US and Japan, but also
France and Denmark was blocking the final agreement.”9

9 M. Carbone, The European Union and the International Development: The

Politics of Foreign Aid (London and New York: Routledge, 2007), 2.
28 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

As for the performance in giving foreign aid, France, Germany and

the UK are the prominent donors. The UK has “gradually increased its aid
volume, has completely untied its aid, avoids project proliferation,
transfers a high share of aid to poor recipients with democratic
governments, but has small amounts of private charitable giving
attributable to tax policies…”10 While in the case of France, the volume of
aid has gradually increased, its aid finds its way to relatively less poor and
less democratic governments in pursuance of colonial bonds. Germany has
low net aid volume when related to the size of its economy. Carbone
extracts that between 2003 and 2006 Denmark, Netherlands and Sweden
individually gave more in aid to LDCs than United Kingdom and France
individually. The four northern Member States – Denmark, Finland,
Sweden, and the Netherlands – are distinctly the top performers in foreign
aid. Their policies are not burdened by the colonial legacy. He notes: “The
evolution of development policy in France has been driven mainly by its
colonial heritage and has been closely linked to its foreign policy.”11 The
aid traditionally went to West and East Africa to balance the US influence
in the region. France allocates most of its aid to education and culture
sectors and it is channelled through the EC. By comparison, the UK aid
mostly goes to the members of the Commonwealth of Nations. Since the
1990s, the aid is focused to promote British political and commercial
interests. From the mid-2000s, the policy on aid has prioritized Africa as
the recipient of aid. After 9/11, the release of funds has been increasingly
linked to international security. UK emphasises the need to improve the
effectiveness of the international system, in particular the EC. Carbone
observes that unlike France and the UK, German aid policy is free of bonds
of colonialism. German aid focuses on the middle-income countries.
During the 1990s, the high cost of re-unification and shifting of focus to
Eastern Europe reduced the volume of aid to traditional recipients. In the
2000s, the volume of aid remained below the EU average. After the
September 2005 elections the grand-coalition government led by
Chancellor Merkel increased the aid volume from 2006 onwards. Germany
prefers to channel its aid through the EC channel.

The Comparative Financial Performance

of European Economies:
Cillian Ryan, observes that the 2007-2013 cycle, representing
depression and recovery, is marked by a net growth in the volume of
exports (goods and services) by 17.2 percent in case of Euro area, and a
meagre 1.617 percent in case of the UK (Table 1). The EU also
outperformed Japan, whose currency appreciated the most. However, all

10 Ibid. 42.
11 Ibid. 43.
Brexit: Continental Drift 29

three blocks Viz. the EU, Japan and the US outperformed the United
Kingdom over the period even though British currency depreciated
significantly relative to all three (cheaper currencies theoretically attract
more export orders). Ryan points out that there are other factors that
must be considered: (1) the import component of exports, (2) the degree
of exchange-rate which impacts the export sector, and (3) the cyclical
demand for a country’s basket of exported goods and services.12

Table 1: Percentage change in volume of exports of goods and services

Country 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Euro area 6.637 1.238 −12.661 11.099 6.281 2.48 2.126
Japan 8.699 1.417 −24.196 24.362 −0.358 −0.316 1.249
United Kingdom −2.481 1.205 −8.199 6.377 4.569 −0.325 0.471
United States 9.303 6.102 −9.133 11.137 6.682 3.403 3.332
Source: World Economic outlook database, IMP April 2013, Cillian Ryan in
Brennan and Murray 2015: 109

Ryan opines that “there is little evidence that the United Kingdom
has to date benefitted from being outside the euro area”13 As to the
assumption that the United Kingdom would have been better off within
the euro zone, Ryan considers that there are vital factors that must be
regarded: (1) location decisions of international foreign direct investors,
and (2) the trading patterns.
Ryan attributes the United Kingdom’s comparatively poorer
performance in export of goods and services to its greater vulnerability to
the financial crisis than the euro states and not to UK’s exclusion from the
euro zone. The Euro Zone’s degree of exposure to the crisis was not
related to EU’s internal integration. Likewise, European banks were
relatively immune to the upheaval caused by the Anglo-American
international financial dealings and it had no relation with the state of EU’s
internal integration. Hence EU’s internal exposure to crisis was distinctly a
function of the degree of internal integration of the Euro Zone capital
market rather than any external factors:

The crisis in Europe was precipitated by the impact on international

interbank markets as US bank losses associated with sub-prime lending
led to a crisis in confidence. Arguably most banks did not have a clear
understanding of even their primary exposure to the unfolding crisis, and

12 Cillian Ryan, “The role of crisis as a driver of regional integration: Crisis as

opportunity” in Louis Brennan and Philomena Murray, eds. Drivers of
Integration and Regionalism in Europe and Asia: Comparative Perspectives
(London and Oxon: Routledge, 2015), 106-109.
13 Ibid. 109.
30 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

certainly none had a clear understanding of the exposure of other banks

in the system.14

The collapse of interbank lending lime-lighted major financial

institutions’ dependence on interbank markets from where they raised the
short-term funds to finance long term mortgage lending, a recipe for
disaster. Once the interbank market collapsed, they faced a liquidity crisis.
Highly speculative and imprudent lending exposed financial institutions
such as Merrill Lynch (a division of Bank of America) to public finances for
a bail out. It also pushed mortgaged property owners into negative equity.
The recession pushed commercial loans into non-performing status.
Governments were reluctant in financing debts on the promise of tax
revenues to be accrued, supposedly, from future income growth. Some
states e.g. Ireland and Spain no longer generated enough revenue to meet
their financial obligations or even provide public services. Italy and Greece
fared no better.15 Europe reacted sensibly and protected international
banks from dire consequences of recession by running to the IMF, and in
partnership with the IMF, forced the tax payers to share the burden placed
on their economy by poor lending decisions. Debt to GDP ratio is always a
reliable indicator of the health of the economy of a nation. As seen in Table
2 by 2007, Ireland, Greece, Spain and Italy had an adverse ratio viz. 117.6
percent, 156.9 percent, Spain 84.2 percent, and 127 percent respectively.

Table 2:
Debt to GDP ratio
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
EU (27 countries) 61.1 62.0 62.8 59.0 62.3 80.0 85.3
Germany 59.1 64.4 68.5 65.2 66.8 82.4 81.9
Ireland 35.2 30.7 27.3 25.1 44.5 92.1 117.6
Greece 103.7 97.4 100.0 107.4 112.9 148.3 156.9
Spain 55.6 48.8 43.2 36.3 40.2 61.5 84.2
France 56.9 62.9 66.4 64.2 68.2 82.4 90.2
Italy 108.3 104.1 105.7 103.3 106.1 119.3 127
Cyprus 61.2 69.7 69.4 58.8 48.9 61.3 85.8
Portugal 53.8 59.4 67.7 68.4 71.7 94.0 123.6
United Kingdom 37.7 39.1 42.2 44.2 52.7 79.4 90.0
Source: World Economic outlook database, IMP April 2013, Cillian Ryan in Brennan
and Murray 2015: 115.

UK fared no better whose Debt to GDP ratio had gone up to 90

percent in 2007 from 37.7 in 2001. EU having started at a much higher
61.1 percent in 2001 stood better than the UK at 85.3 percent in 2007

14 Ibid., 110-111.
15 Ibid., 111.
Brexit: Continental Drift 31

which indicates a losing battle on part of the UK and one of the probable
reasons to exit from EU. Ryan points out that:

… both the United States and the United Kingdom had solvency problems
mitigated by the use of quantitative easing, a legacy that is still likely to
come back to haunt them in the form of renewed inflationary pressures
as the interbank market recovers. The EU, initially at least, rejected a
policy of quantitative easing, essentially opting to commit real future tax
income to fund the ESM [European Security Mechanism] (and its
predecessors).16

Impact of Brexit on British Economy:

Trade, Security and Migration
Interest Rates: Long-term UK interest rates are determined
through the interaction of buyers and sellers in financial markets, the
balance of supply and demand for British government bonds from
investors, traders’ expectations of future GDP growth and prevailing rate
of inflation. It is difficult to predict with any certainty how long-term
interest rates would be affected by Brexit. As for the property, prices are
stable so far except in case of high-priced costly units in Central London
which have shown a gone down recently. Again, it is difficult to say
whether or not the downward trend is a result of Brexit negotiations as
the said property is well beyond the reach of an average buyer.
Economic Impact: The independent economists are unanimous in
saying that the economic impact of leaving EU will be negative. The
demand for UK government bonds is expected to fall, which would cause
the long-term interest rates to rise. Brexit could prompt a “flight to safety”
and trigger buying of gold, which are considered safe assets. That would
cause gold prices to shoot up and that, in turn, would force long-term
interest rates downwards.
Recession: If the pound takes a nose dive, it would generate
expectations of higher future inflation which would push interest rates up.
Rates could be cut by a fraction by the Bank of England. But if Brexit
causes apprehensions of near-term inflation, expectations may shoot up
and go out of control. This dangerous trend could lead to a sterling crash.
The Bank would be forced to raise short-term rates to restore calm, which,
in turn, would probably deepen a recession.
Trade Relations with Europe: Unless EU goes vindictive, it could
offer Britain a favourable deal, applying very low tariffs to British exports
to EU’s ‘single market,’ and receive reciprocal benefits from UK. This
would minimise Brexit damage.
Public Spending: It would not be wise to cut public spending or
raise taxes. The UK Government would be wiser to do the opposite – to

16 Ibid., 121.
32 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

increase public spending to help to boost the economy. This would help
open more jobs and that would reduce embitterment induced by such
demeaning features of the Brexit deal as payment of the 40 billion pounds
leaving fee.
European Integration and Environmental Issues: Environmental
issues and effort toward this cause serves as another indicator of desire
for integration into the European system. Diarmuid Torney reports that in
March 1997, at the Kyoto Protocol conference, it was agreed that
industrialised nations should reduce their emissions of CO2, CH4, and N2O
by 15 percent vis-à-vis 1990 levels by 2010, the European Council
introduced the ‘burden- sharing’ arrangement, which specified different
targets for different EU member states. This measure amounted to a total
target reduction of 8 percent for the period 2008–2012. The UK had been a
‘pioneer’ member state together with Germany and the Netherlands.
Cooperation on environmental issues promoting the cause of European
integration:

Although initially slow to respond to the emergence of the climate issue,

in the early 1990s the European Commission came to view climate
change as a means to enhance the process of European integration…. The
European Commission in particular made the case that, in order to lead
internationally, the EU would have to develop strong internal, EU-level
climate policies and institutions... 17

However, European Community institutions did not emerge as

swiftly as expected. This resulted in inadequate progress on carbon
emissions, energy tax proposal and the subsidy arrangements. Torney
attributes the constraints in the development of EC institutions to “the
limited commitment among member states” to put emission control
measures to practice. Torney notices a “dampening of the enthusiasm”
after 2010; he concludes: “Since 2010, these drivers have become less
salient as the European policy process became increasingly preoccupied
with dealing with the economic crisis.”18
Trade and investment as drivers of Integration: International
business or trade as performed by both public and private firms,
encompasses pooling and management of assets, market expansion,
acquiring additional resources and greater efficiency. European states,
when integrated into a common trade system, boost both production and
sales through international business. Such cooperation promotes regional
integration, which may be described as territorial systems that increase

17 Diarmuid Torney, “Climate Change as a Driver of Regional Integration in Europe,” in

Drivers of Integration and Regionalism in Europe and Asia: Comparative Perspectives,
(London and Oxon: Routledge, 2015), 185.
18 Ibid., 191.
Brexit: Continental Drift 33

the interactions between their components in creating new forms of

organisations. Despite various constraints affecting the progress,
Bernadette Andreosso-O’Callaghan opines that:

The experience of the EU epitomizes a level of deep economic integration

when compared with other cases…. Trade and investment have
undoubtedly been important drivers of the… economic integration in
Europe… [Yet] the extant type of economic integration through trade and
investment (in particular financial investment) in the EU is far from being
robust.19

The contributor argues that the EU needs to develop a ‘sustainable’

form of economic integration that can withstand a financial crisis.
Commitment to Security of Europe: From 1949 until now, UK has
shouldered the responsibility of European Defence side by side with U.S.
U.S. mostly met the expenses, Britain offered the island ports and
airbases to execute the ‘massive retaliation’ in case the Soviets had
raided Europe in Cold War era. Britain played a strong role in NATO
operations in Libya during the ‘Arab Spring.’ The times have changed,
however. Europeans have started looking at the defence problem
somewhat differently. Rather than the size of the military and the
contribution of a member state towards NATO task forces, what matters
in the prevailing European scheme are economic factors – joint research
and development, joint production, global trade, and in particular
supporting weaker economies in Europe (e.g. Greece and Italy)
financially. The calibre of a nation is no longer judged in Europe by its
military muscle or the deployment abroad. It is now judged in terms of
the aid given out to the LDCs and the cooperation extended to the
European Commission in helping it meet its objectives towards
migration and environment.
Migration – a Sore Point in Britain: When the EU adopted a
Common European Asylum System, the Member States abolished the
intra-European borders. A strong external border management already
existed in the UK. Britain has always maintained a distinctive position in
the EU when it comes to border controls, opting out of the Schengen
arrangements that abolished internal border controls across the EU.
However, UK participates selectively in some aspects of EU border
policies. While rescue at sea of persons in distress is a major issue in
Europe, UK has permanent and effective rescue service which affords a
better handling of arriving migrants. A strong UK borders authority
precludes illegal entry. British society, however, has to cope racial

19 B. A. O’Callaghan, “Qualifying the type of Economic Integration in a Historical

perspective,” in L. Brennan, and P. Murray, eds. Drivers of Integration and
Regionalism in Europe and Asia: Comparative Perspectives, 215.
34 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

diversity on a major scale, which frequently triggers friction, and hate

crimes. The native British feel deprived of jobs and opportunities that are
taken up by migrants. All the same, handling of migrant issues leaves no
cause for complaint and it helps abate hard feelings. Financial assistance
from local Council is valuable in setting up arriving families in their opted
homeland.

Discussion
The first perspective discussed in the foregoing pages suggests
that Brexit is an outcome of the longer-term historical drift that has its
origin in traditional rivalry between the ‘Continental’ and the ‘Island’
nations. This perspective, with its focus on geostrategic properties of
European states vis-à-vis Britain, is readily overtaken by the second
perspective generated by the wave of integration in post-WW II era in
which Britain not only willingly extended its cooperation but in fact led the
movement. The third perspective shows forces of disintegration
overtaking the spirit of cooperation in recent years. The analysis
presented above shows the real reason of the split to be embedded in poor
financial performance of Britain vis-à-vis Europe in the past couple of
decades. This third perspective gains further credence from the fact that
Britain accepted a humiliating penalty of 40 billion pounds as leaving fee
and still considered it a good riddance.
The most important area of concern, however, is prevention of
war. The spirit and the process of European integration must be revived to
protect the world from another great war. Henry Kissinger reads the
principal objective of European unification – end to bloodletting – in the
Peace of Westphalia:

A century of sectarian conflict and political upheaval across Central

Europe had culminated in the Thirty Years’ War of 1618–48—a
conflagration in which political and religious disputes commingled,
combatants resorted to “total war” against population centres, and nearly
a quarter of the population of Central Europe died from combat, disease,
or starvation. The exhausted participants met to define a set of
arrangements that would stanch the bloodletting. 20

Britain also needs to watch out the possibility of Brexit rocking the
British Union boat itself. Brexit vote made united Ireland suddenly
thinkable. Catholic nationalists are openly campaigning for such an
initiative. Brexit vote set off a major upset in global stock markets.
Consequently, investors lost $3 trillion even though they recovered $2
trillion over the next three days. Barely out of recession, the global

20 Henry Kissinger, World Order: Reflections on the Character of Nations and the
Course of History (USA: Penguin Books, 2014), 3.
Brexit: Continental Drift 35

business can hardly afford such traumas. British and European nationals
may face problems with their passports, driving licenses, status of
European spouses etc. for some time at least, as virtually all existing
legislation that existed under the EU would be technically void until new
legislation is provided. International students possessing other than
British or European nationalities may face visa and travel difficulties in the
UK. Europe and UK face racial abuse and hate crimes vis-à-vis blacks,
Muslims and Asians. Sentiments run high in England over European
immigration problem from Polish and other East European communities.
European immigrants may not have to leave but no one can really assure
them a residency status. Uncertainty in these matters is extremely painful.
However, the way trade patterns within Europe organized in the
past 40 years makes a clean break difficult. There is too much of
interdependence between UK and Europe in technological collaboration,
joint production, joint financing of projects, research and development,
globalized marketing and the way the system of intellectual property
rights works. Brexit could have a negative impact on creativity and
innovation, more so, in all spheres of industry, trade and the economy. The
costs and benefits of shared and stand-alone technology must be re-
considered in post-Brexit scenario.

Conclusion
Conservative government headed by Theresa May is facing a ‘No
Deal’ EU stand. Anxiety caused by uncertainty upsets business and hurts
citizens’ interests. Post-Brexit Britain will, most likely, continue to honour
its commitment to the cause of security of Europe as a leading member of
the NATO but may not be able to contribute to its defence spending as
much as it did before. As an active trading partner, UK seeks a
continuation of benefits and privileges so far enjoyed by it as a full
member of European Union but as a non-member. This would require new
legislation to re-enact provisions of Customs Union without formally being
part of it. These include exemption from customs duty and inspection of
trade items arriving at UK and European ports. It is difficult to say that
leaving EU will enhance British control of its sovereignty. An inward
looking UK will have the benefit of consolidating its internal governance
the way they like rather than being told by outsiders how to manage their
own affairs. Brexit would not necessarily mean that European workers
now working in the UK would have to leave. Stringent conditions for issue
of work permit or leave to remain indefinitely may, however, induce an
exodus as it did recently in the case of German nurses.
Brexit did, however, inspire the Irish to raise the issue of Irish
Borders. It may not lead to break-up of the UK but it weakens the fibre of
the Union. Brexit will neither make the UK relatively safer nor unsafe
internally but native Britons would have a feeling that they are masters of
36 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

their own affairs. Tightening of UK Borders Authority rules will dampen

unbridled migration trend from EU countries, in particular from Poland,
but will probably have no effect on African and Asian migrants. There will
be little saving of the taxpayers money while the 40 billion pounds payable
to EU as leaving fee will continue to be a thorny issue in Britain. The Brexit
episode highlights the need for the UK to re-learn old lessons of financial
security. Britain needs to stick to the policy of lending only when prudent.
One cannot suggest de-emphasizing welfare spending in the UK but
retaining a little surplus of national savings can go a long way in rescuing
the state in a crunch. The opinions and the analyses reviewed above can be
expressed best in the words of Cillian Ryan, who considers the current
crisis to be an opportunity for reform; the only other possibility being a
recurrence of the financial crunch: “The best guide to the future, however,
is still the past, and it should surprise no one if a similar crisis occurs
again, regardless of the degree of regional integration.”21 Crucial decisions
like Brexit should not be made subject of public debate where popular
sentiment rules. Ryan considers that politicians know the correct answers
but suffer from inertia as they are weighed down by voters’ possible
reaction.
United Kingdom is still erroneously pursuing inflationary tax
policy which, in case of financial crisis results in loss of value to holders of
liquid assets and fixed-rate bonds. The UK needs to plan mortgages and
loans on the basis of real future tax revenues, particularly, as a means of
financing a bailout fund. British government needs to provide a sense of
security to immigrants without which the very fibre of the society stands
threatened. The Conservative government may hold a second referendum
hoping a vote in favour of reversal of Brexit. Alternatively, the government
may simply admit that the whole affair was botched and withdraw from
Brexit even if it costs the Conservative government another Prime
Minister.

21 Cillian Ryan, “The Role of Crisis as a Driver of Regional Integration: Crisis as

Opportunity”, 121.
UN, EU and the Syrian Refugee Crisis 37

ROLE OF THE UN AND THE EUROPEAN UNION

IN THE SYRIAN REFUGEE CRISIS
Dr. Fauzia Ghani

Abstract
A serious humanitarian crisis has erupted in the wake of the Syrian
war, which began in March 2011. A pro-democracy protest, which
turned into a deep crisis, has taken more than 500,000 Syrians
lives. According to a report by United Nations High Commissioner
for Refugee (UNHRC), in 2014 about 4.8 million refugees escaped
to different countries of the Middle East, especially Jordan,
Lebanon and Turkey, as well as Germany followed by Hungary and
Sweden in Europe. In total about 1.5 million refugees are living in
the 27 member states of the European Union EU). With the
evolving refugee crisis worldwide, it has become essential for the
two humanitarian agencies, United Nations (UN) and the EU to
formulate policies that protect refugees’ rights and empower them
with the basic provisions of life. This paper examines the role
played by UN and EU in managing the Syrian refugee crisis, the
policies pursued as a response and the challenges faced in return
as well as recommendations for improving frameworks dealing
with protection of refugees.

Key Words: Syrian refugees, UNHCR, European Union,

Humanitarian crisis, Displacement

Introduction

I
n the beginning of the 20th century, almost fourteen million people
were living as refugees who were forced to live across the
international borders. The number kept on increasing because of civil
wars, political instability, lack of governance and the absence of human
rights within territorial boundaries of states. This drove people to escape
their country devastated and desperate.1 In the 21st century, where the


Dr. Fauzia Ghani is Assistant Prof. Political Science Department, GC University,
Lahore.
1 Susan F. Martin, New Issues in Refugee Research: Forced Migration and the
Evolving Humanitarian Regime, (Institute For The Study of International
Migration, 2010), [Link] 2-41.
38 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

world is complex and globalized, this category of people has been divided
into various other groups such as asylum searchers, internally displaced
people, stateless and migrated people. This complexity leads to the
question as to what actually qualifies a person to be called a ‘refugee’. A
refugee is a person who is forced to leave the country in order to escape
war, persecution, or natural disaster. He is essentially a protection-seeker
in another state. A refugee crisis is a core issue when it comes to serving
human rights.
The Syrian refugees, who were forced to flee their country as a
result of the Syrian crisis that erupted in 2011, represent the devastating
humanitarian crisis of current times. In 2011, the revolutionaries of Syria
started to protest against the regime of President Bashar al Assad. The
government reacted brutally against the uprising groups. This led to
escalation of violence and the situation deteriorated into the civil war by
the mid of 2011. Since then, thousands of Syrian people have made their
way to Europe by sea or land. Moreover, in the year 2014, the terrorist
group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria emerged and spread in a short period
of time. This conflict has resulted in a humanitarian crisis and violation of
rights of the Syrian people.2 During this period, more than five million
people were displaced and are now refugees. Further, almost seven and a
half million people were internally displaced in Syria who were forced out
of their homes and are living without basic necessities.3 Most of the Syrian
refugees are women and children as the men are opting to fight for their
homes and identity which makes the status of these women and children
more susceptible and vulnerable.4
With time, the concern for international refugee crisis has drawn
attention to the need for an international legal framework that can enable
assistance and security for refugees. The role of United Nations as well as
European Union has evolved over time. The EU Charter follows the rules of
the Geneva Convention 1951 and the protocol of 1967.5 The European
Union has done an impressive job at responding to the refugee issue; that
is why the UN follows EU policies and collaborates with EU institutions on
asylum matters. This research analyses the implementation of the UN legal
framework for refugees as enshrined in major resolutions and conventions

2 BBC, “Syria: The Story of the Conflict”, BBC News, March 11, 2016,
[Link]
3 Ibid.
4 Thomas Gaist,"UN report: Syria Faces Worst Refugee Crisis in Recent History,"
2015, World Socialist Website, [Link]
07/10/[Link].
5 The 1951 United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees had
limited refugee status the ones who suffered any situation before 1 January
1951", moreover, categorizing the situation with territorial boundaries. The
1967 Protocol removed both territorial and time restrictions.
UN, EU and the Syrian Refugee Crisis 39

of the organization including those related to the rights of children and

women the second is the responses of states in EU towards helping the
refugees.

Conceptual Framework
A few researches have been conducted on the role of the UN and
the EU with respect to the Syrian refugee crisis in particular. Tsourdi and
De Bruycker in EU Asylum Policy stated that the asylum system of the EU
has some flaws in regulating the distribution of responsibilities among
member states on fair grounds.6 In an article, ‘Is Europe living up to its
Obligations to Refugees?’ Geoff Gilbert said that the “EU is a major actor in
the European region.’ The charter of European Union pledges to protect
refugees who apply for asylum, but there are many hurdles in the process
due to the restrictive policies of member states. The basic problem is the
absence of any supervisory body in EU; the member states have pursued
independent policies. Geoff criticized many aspects of European Union
policies regarding refugees, like the issue of refugee burden sharing, the
fusion of immigration and refugee status. It seems that the commitments
of the 1951 convention have been left far behind. It was discussed in a
conference organized by Amnesty International in 2016 that Canada,
United States and Australia have made no prominent pledge to take in
refugees from Syria though they highlighted the need for more
resettlement programs. Canada is the only country among these three
which has contributed more than its reasonable share keeping in view the
size of the economy of 26,000 refugees, 9,000 have been hosted through
the private sponsorship facilities by the state.7
In ‘European Integration and Refugee Protection: The Development
of Asylum Policy in EU’, Esther Ezra argues that the increasing influx of
refuge seekers in Western Europe has motivated the EU members to
coordinate and review their policies. She has discussed the ripostes of
Germany, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States to the Syrian
refugee issue. She analysed that these four states have augmented various
steps to protect Syrian refugees through resettlement and asylums since
2012.

6 Evangelia Tsourdi and Philippe De Bruycker, EU Asylum Policy: In Search of

Solidarity and Access to Protection (Migration Policy Centre Research Report:
May 2015) [Link]/bitstream/handle/1814/35742/MPC_PB_2015_
06. pdf?sequence=1.
7 Philippe Fargues & Christine Fandrich, The European Response to the Syrian
Refugee Crisis, What Next? (Migration Policy Centre Research Report: 2012),
[Link] 1-13.
40 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

The Role of the UN in Protecting Refugees

The United Nation is significantly helping Syrian refugees with the
assistance of its organs i.e. UNDP, UNESCO, UNICEF and UNHCR. Among
them, UNHCR is playing a key role in managing the issues and conflicts
related to refugees. In December 2015, UN Security Council passed a
resolution to enhance the role of UN in ensuring peace in Syria while
saying that “the UN should establish credible, inclusive and non-sectarian
governance in Syria”8
It is believed that “Syria is the biggest humanitarian and refugee
crisis of our time, a continuing cause of suffering for millions which should
garner a groundswell of support around the world.”9 The United Nations
High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was recognized in 1950 for the
purpose of protecting refugees. ‘Refugee’ is a legal term used for denoting
expatriate people with certain conditions. The main role of this agency is
to keep improving the standards of the systems and programs through
which they provide assistance. The agency is responsible for designing the
solutions and frameworks which facilitate the refugees and ensure long-
term solutions by developing long-term settlement and rehabilitation
programs.
UNHCR has developed a “cluster approach” which involves many
humanitarian agencies united to help the displaced and stateless people
around the world, either by helping refugees settle back in their own
homeland when the conflict ends or by regulating the assistance activities
for the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) such as in Syria, Columbia and
Iraq. Responding to the crises and conflicts immediately is an important
feature of this agency, when displaced people are in dire need of help and
security e.g. successive emergency teams were deployed in Syria and
Africa in 2013 to ensure the protection of people who were leaving their
own homeland.10 The most eminent role played by the UNHCR is that of
“coordination”. It has been able to organize the camps’ administration,
shelter facilities, provide food and other related necessities. It has been
effectively synchronized with other NGOs and helps aid agencies in
relocating programs for durable camp facilities, coordinating with host
countries, and developing socio-economic sustainable programs. In this
context, a conference was held in March 2016, in Geneva, which aimed at

8 BBC, “Syria War: UN Security Council Unanimously Backs Peace Plan,” BBC
News, December 18, 2015, [Link]
35138011.
9 UN High Commissioner for Refugees, “Syria conflict at 5 years: the biggest
refugee and displacement crisis of our time demands a huge surge in solidarity,”
Refworld, 15 March 2016, [Link]
10 Philippe Fargues & Christine Fandrich, The European Response to the Syrian
Refugee Crisis, What Next? (Migration Policy Centre: 2012),1-13.
UN, EU and the Syrian Refugee Crisis 41

convincing the international community to increase the programs of

resettlement especially for the refugees coming from Syria along with
opening the gateways towards legal rehabilitation procedures in order to
dissuade the use of dangerous sea routes.
Unfortunately, the responses of the 92 member states were not
according to expectations, while a few were discreet by obstructing the
goals of the agency for refugees.11 The UNHCR and NGOs like Oxfam tried
to push the member states to help the additional 10 percent refugees of
Syria along with expanding the resettlement framework with legal
facilities of reunion visas, educational scholarships and other labour
flexibility schemes.12 Moreover, it should be noted here that the
humanitarian organizations of the United Nations are almost on the
threshold of bankruptcy financially and are incapable of meeting the needs
of millions of refugees. Of particular concern is the worsening condition of
Lebanon and Jordan where the lack of food, shelter and other healthcare
facilities have become a problem for the 4 million Syrian refugees. In 2016,
the UN and other humanitarian agencies invoked aid of $8 billion for
helping Syrian refugees. In August 2015, due to a shortfall of millions of
dollar in United Nations fund, the World Health Organization was obliged
to shut down almost 184 health care clinics in many districts of Iraq, due
to which many internally displaced people were deprived of basic health
facilities.13 Moreover, according to the director of the emergency risk
management department of World Health Organization, people are not
being vaccinated, and are suffering from malnutrition along with mental
health problems and permanent health deterioration. The WHO was also
forced to cut down the rations of almost 1.6 million Syrian refugees.14
Many more conferences were held to deal with such refugee crises.
The Geneva Conference that took place in March 2016 under UNHCR came
up with the proposal of resettlement places for refugees. It also focused on
responsibility sharing for refugees by states. UNICEF is providing Syrian
refugee children necessities of food, clean water, medicine, schooling, safe
places, winter clothing and vaccinations. UNICEF has a six-point agenda
for betterment in Syrian refugees’ lives which is summed up as follows:

11 Susan F. Martin, Forced Migration and the Evolving Humanitarian Regime

Working paper no. 20 (Washington DC, July 2000),
[Link] 2-41.
12 Kristy Siegfried. “Rich countries fall way short on Syrian refugee resettlement,”
IRIN, last modified 2016, [Link]
countries-fall-way-short-syrian-refugee-resettlement.
13 Jhon Psaropoulos, “Greek Asylum System Reaches Breaking Point,” IRIN, March
31, 2016, [Link]
system-reaches-breaking-point, accessed April, 2016.
14 Ibid.
42 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

 No trafficking, exploitation and providing protection.

 Children should not be locked up in any circumstances.
 Family reunification must be ensured for separated children.15

UNESCO has noted how Syrian humanitarian crisis has created a

huge educational gap in the youth affecting their development in relation
to other countries of the region. According to a UNESCO report, there are
8.1 million Syrian children and youngsters with whom UNESCO is working
to reduce the educational gap while assisting host countries. Further,
UNESCO has been active in protecting the cultural heritage of Syria.16
Along with other UN agencies, UNDP is also playing a significant role in
Syria and its development. In 2013, UNDP spent 3.5 billion US dollars on
humanitarian assistance of Syrian refugees. Other humanitarian funding
comprised of 1.4 billion US dollars by UNDP.17 UNDP is working for
providing basic health facilities, and arranging jobs. Moreover, it is helping
with treatment and prevention of infectious diseases and assisting
neighbouring countries to manage refugee related economic and
infrastructural needs. Presently, humanitarian agencies are confronted
with a huge financial crunch. It is becoming difficult to manage as the
refugee crisis is escalates.

The Role of the European Union

In an anarchic world order, which is characterized by rising
conflicts, human rights abuses, displacements etc., the European Union has
become more significant than ever. The EU charter respects and follows
the rules of the Geneva Convention 1951 and the protocol of 1967. The
European Union has done an impressive job for refugees. There are an
increased number of people migrating and taking asylum in western
European countries which has dramatically changed the situation at the
European border, putting pressure on the EU member states and
motivates the European Union to review and coordinate their refugee and
asylum polices.
It is a well understood fact that the influx of refugees is not going
to stop in coming years. Attention must be given to the root causes, which
have forced such migration. Tackling this issue efficiently and rationally is

15 “Children Uprooted: UNICEF’s Agenda for Action”, UNICEF,

[Link]
16 Ekaterina Sediakina, UNESCO’s Educational Response to the Syrian Crises:
Towards Bridging the Humanitarian Development Divide (UNESCO 2016),
[Link]
17 UNDP, How Humanitarian Funds Syria Crisis Were Spent (UNDP, 2013),
[Link]
itII_How_Humanitarian_Funds_Syria_Crisis_Were_Spent_Eng_10Jan%[Link].
UN, EU and the Syrian Refugee Crisis 43

only possible through a collective effort by all member states. The

European Union regardless of being the largest sponsor of humanitarian
aid in Syria is showing unwillingness to accept the UNHCR’s all-
encompassing and extensive proposal for the program of resettlement and
rehabilitation. The International Organization for Migration (IOM)
estimates that more than 1,011,700 migrants arrived by sea in 2015, and
almost 34,900 by land. Almost 218,000 people have fled to the European
countries among which 3,500 people have lost their lives because of
under-taking the journey on boats.
In 2015, it was reported that a boat carrying about 800 people
capsized in the sea off Libya. Currently there is an inadequate arrangement
to rescue refugees who have adopted sea route.18 The European Union
initially adopted the policy of maintaining and protecting the refugees of
Syria but later in March 2016, the joint plan of Turkey and the European
Union to end the migration crisis made these countries a less likely
terminus for refugees, along with threats of detention, and deportation
especially for those refugees who adopted the illegal sea route.19 Not only
this, even the refugees who do not belong to the state of Syria such as
those of Afghanistan and Iraq, are still destitute due to lack of employment
rights in Turkey. As stated by the new the EU rules regarding refugees,
Syrian refugees do not need to have a valid visa but they are still being
deprived of basic facilities; they have to pass through stringent procedures
in order to get employment and are being given the status of B grade
citizens. Presently, Greece is incapable of helping the Syrian refugees
mainly because of the poor state of domestic economy. Greece is a prime
destination for the Syrian refugees. Applications from almost 3,545 asylum
seekers have been registered and more than 31,929 people are still
awaiting settlement many of whom are illegal. The illegal route, which the
refugees have adopted, is from the shoreline of Turkey to the Islands of
Chios, then Lesvos and from Samos to Greece. On this route, many die
because of the small, frail boats in the treacherous waves of the
Mediterranean Sea. Up until now, 2,500 people have died on this route.
According to the IOM, more than 3,770 migrants reportedly died while
trying to cross the Mediterranean in 2015. The most treacherous routes
are considered North Africa to Italy, and the Aegean crossing from Turkey
to Greece.

18 “UNHCR Urges Beefed up Search and Rescue Capacity as at Least 29 Die off
Italy”, UNHCR, February 10, 2015, [Link]
19 European Commission, Addressing the Refugee Crisis in Europe: The Role of EU
External Action (Joint communication to the European Parliament and the
counch, 2015), [Link] homeaffairs/files/
what-we-do/policies/european-agenda-migration/ proposal-implementation
package/docs/communication_on_addressing_the_external_dimension_of_
the_refugee_crisis_en.pdf.
44 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

Many additional problems have arisen due to the economic crisis

in Greece with an unemployment rate of 55 percent and more than $320
billion of debt; hence, there is almost no chance for those penurious
refugees to support their families with the necessities of housing, food or
clothing anymore. According to the analysis of UNHCR, many refugees
have chosen Greece because it serves as a gateway to the rest of the
European countries.20
Article ‘18’ of the European Union charter of fundamental rights
states that “the right to asylum shall be guaranteed with due respect for
the rules of the Geneva Convention 1951 and the protocol of 1967, relating
to the status of refugees and in accordance with the treaty of European
Union and the treaty on the functioning of European Union.”21 The
European Union has done an impressive job regarding the refugee’s issue.
It has committed to work for a common European asylum system, based
on the UN refugee convention. The EU laws and mechanism with respect
to asylum and refugees have had a visible influence on the policies of other
countries as well.
The European Union institutions i.e. European Commission,
European Council, European Court of Justice and European Parliament
have considerable power in legislative, executive and judicial areas,
directly relevant to UN mandate for refugees. That’s why the UN follows
EU policies and collaborates with EU institutions.22 Thus, the continuing
and swelling waves of refugees at the European border has sparked
discussion on how to deal with this issue and what will be the impact on
the European economies and societies. It is a fact that the refugee
population leaves a severe impact on the host country. The host country
experiences long-term economic, political and social impacts due to
refugees.
The economic impact is most visible and in the case of the EU, the
swelling wave of refugees is surely a burden on European economies.
Refugees also on occasion have a potential social impact, in the form of
social tensions, ethnic imbalance and other social conflicts. The refugee
often feels isolated in the foreign land, and finds it difficult to assimilate in
the host society. Furthermore, refugees affect public finance, the labour
market, and health care system while increasing security risks as well.23

20 Samuel Davidoff-Gore, Compliance without obligation: Examining the state

responses to the Syrian Refugee Crisis (Brown University, 2015),
[Link]
Gore_Final2015.pdf.
21 ECRE Weekly,"Refugees in the EU," EREC, 2014, [Link]
22 "Working with the European Union," UNHCR, [Link]
[Link].
23 UNHCR Standing Committee, “Social And Economic Impact of Large Refugee
Populations on Host Developing Countries Social And Economic Impact of
UN, EU and the Syrian Refugee Crisis 45

A wave of refugees from the war-torn areas of Middle East is

making its way in different states of the European Union. In 2015, about
1.2 million migrants took asylum in Europe while their number is
continuously increasing. This grave issue forced European leaders to sit
together and decide how to face this challenge. Many conferences were
held in Brussels, to discuss how to stop the continual influx of asylum
seekers. Although, German Chancellor Angela Merkel raised her voice for
the sake of refugees and offered to open the doors of Germany for asylum
seekers, but the situation got worse due to many tragic events and all
efforts failed.24 The issue of refugees is still unresolved in the European
Union. The member states of the European Union are divided on this
matter and altogether following independent policies. However, in the
present deplorable situation, the European Union’s initiative to make a
deal with Turkey to resolve this crisis is a ray of hope. The expectation that
the integrated Europe will give more liberalized policies for refugees
proved to be wrong and more restrictive policies turned out to be more
politically correct. The EU member states, instead of bearing the burden of
refugees, focused more on their national interests; therefore, restrictive
policies regarding refugees are more popular. For the EU, to resolve this
issue peacefully, more humanitarian and harmonized policies are needed.

European Union’s Contributions

for the Protection of Refugees
The years following 2011 were tough for Europe as refugees from
Syria fled to European states and 2014 experienced the largest number of
migrations to Europe.
The European Union, up till now has spent 4.2 billion Euros on the
welfare of Syrian refugees in different aspects, which includes relief and
recovery assistance to Syria. It has a fully established Common European
Asylum System and has made UNHCR the supervisory body. It effectively
deals with the refugees’ issue inside and outside the union and other states
have followed EU steps regarding refugee protection mechanisms. Various
European Union institutions have powers directly relevant to the mandate
of UNHCR. The European Union’s response to the Syrian conflict and
refugees can be divided into three categories. First is the liberal response
to reflect in immigrants open-door policies. Second is the moderate one
that believes in assistance of refugees but with the help of the EU as a

Large Refugee Populations on Host Developing Countries,” January 6, 1997,

[Link]
[Link].
24 Charles Lane, “Angela Merkel Tried to help Syrian Refugees — and it Cost
her”, Chicago Tribune, [Link]
commentary/[Link].
46 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

whole organization and the third response is restrictive, introducing anti-

immigration policies for the refugees.25
The European Union proved to be an influential actor in the
management of refugee crisis. The European Commission has evolved a
comprehensive approach to deal with the Syrian refugee crisis under the
European Agenda for Migration. It introduces a framework of different
policies such as reducing the incentives for irregular migration, saving
lives, securing external borders and a strong asylum policy.
UNHRC and the EU are working together on various projects to
improve asylum related policies to improve the quality of asylum
opportunities. Both of these actors are coordinating to resolve the issues
of stateless people. The UNHRC, as well as the EU are also coordinating
through their judicial involvement. UNHRC as a competent body assists to
interpret legislations in accordance with international asylum law. The
European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) promotes the European
asylum policies. This body started working in 1974 with the purpose of
increasing cooperation among member states to ensure the protection of
refugees. The European Union has established the Common European
Asylum System (CEAS), which aims to provide protection to persons
seeking asylum. ECRE supports the project of CEAS on the ground that this
step will help to improve asylum laws and policies, the refugees will be
treated humanely and in this way good practices will be shared among
states.
The European Union is also working for refugees outside the
sphere of the Union in the form of material aid for the refugees. The EU
provided humanitarian aid to the World Food Program (WFP) to assist
refugees and has become the largest donor to the organization. The
European Union has given 1 billion Euros to WFP in order to facilitate host
countries to manage their refugee communities. The EU has spent many
years to build institutions like CEAS, which aims to ensure the protection
of refugees residing in its member states’ in line with international law.
The system set out a procedure to process asylum applications. The
European Union has revised the European Agenda on migration, in order
to improve the condition of refugees seeking protection in Europe.26 The
European Commission has also launched an inquiry system against its
member states who failed to abide by the laws of granting decent
environment to refugees and asylum seekers.

25 Maria Hoel, The European Union's Response to the Syrian Refugee

crisis,European Studies (Thesis, Trondheim NTNU, November, 2015),
[Link]
%[Link]?sequence=1&isAllowed=y.
26 Magyar, "Understanding Migration and Aasylum in the European Union,"
Open Society Foundations, June 2015.
[Link] explainers/.
UN, EU and the Syrian Refugee Crisis 47

The refugee crisis is addressed by the Europeans Commission’s

humanitarian aid and civil protection program in various ways; urgent
material aid to the refugee influx or by acting as a global donor for
refugees. The European Union’s humanitarian aid assists directly the
affected refugees irrespective of their race, nationality, gender, religion,
political affiliation or ethnicity. The emergency assistance is used within
the EU to provide faster and more responsive help to member states to
address the issue.

Criticism of European Union’s Response

to the Refugee Crisis
There is also a wide range of criticism on many aspects of the
European Union’s policies for refugees. Firstly, it is said that the European
Union has clubbed immigration with asylum. Immigration law is all about
check and control on entry while refugee law is related to providing shelter.
There is a greater restriction on the external border of European Union due
to the EU‘s border policy which is internal and applicable among member
states; this affects the status of refugees who are applying from outside the
European Union sphere.
It is also said that the EU pursues a cherry picking policy while
granting refugee status to asylum seekers and prefers qualified and skilled
persons. However, refugee status should be assigned to individuals
irrespective of their qualification, as its major purpose is to provide
protection to humanity. There is no harmonization of refugee law among
member states due to the absence of any supervisory tribunal. The EU is
trying hard to harmonize refugee policies amongst the member states, but
the target is hard to achieve with 28 member states when every state has
its own judiciary and police force. All states have developed the
interpretation of laws independently. Therefore, there is a need of a
common asylum policy.
The European court of justice had no jurisdiction with respect to
the refugee issue, prior to the Treaty of Amsterdam. Later, the EU
established a tribunal for refugees but still it did not treat the cases of
refugees like other the EU cases. The EU henceforth restricts the protection
provided to asylum seekers or refugees under the Convention of 1959. The
European Union sparingly issues humanitarian visas; there is no EU scheme
for issuing these visas and the provisions in EU visa code are very
ambiguous. ECHR does provide international security to individuals of the
member states, but when it comes to individuals outside the union, they do
not enjoy the same security net.27

27 Geoff Gilbert, “Is Europe Living Up to its Obligations to Refugees,” The

European Journal of International Law, 2004, [Link]
15/5/[Link].
48 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

In the current gloomy economic climate, where many Europeans

are unemployed, there is a divide amongst member states on the issue of
how to share the refugee burden. The burden sharing has emerged as a big
issue within Union. The refugee burden is shared unequally by member
states. Moreover, if we take into account the refugees absorption capacities
of the member states and compare it with the refugee influx in EU states,
we will find it disproportionate and highly unjust. The comprehensive
burden sharing approach will benefit both the member states and refugees
as well. The policy harmonization28 and quota-based approach can give
satisfactory results.29 One of the major hurdles and flaws in pursuing an
effective refugee policy is that the member states of the European Union
view every matter with a nationalist lens.
Though the EU claims liberal policies and it has moved on from the
traditional model of nation state, but it still has not been able to escape
from the pressures of nation states. Europe has become more sensitive and
concerned about the influx of foreigners. That’s why non-European
migrants and refugees face restrictions from entering the EU and enjoying
the same rights.
The EU members’ interior ministers have failed to bring all member
states to common agenda, regarding the distribution of refugees. Thus, the
EU is still at odds over the quota of refugees. Some countries are planning
to fence their borders against refugees. The demand to shut doors on
refugees is inhumane. The EU member states are pursuing individual
actions, such as erecting fences along borders. At first, such countries were
criticized for imposing border control but later other countries also
followed suit. The European Union should rethink its policies for refugees,
however, the political leaders of the member states of the EU have
continued to adopt a hard-line approach when it comes to asylum policy.
There are not enough provisions in the EU to accept and receive refugees
on an immediate basis. There is also a lack of awareness among the EU
public about the necessity to take in refugees.
Thus, the EU faces many problems such as reception and
distribution of refugees, division of funds and many more.30 In initial
phases the EU made effort to focus on asylum seekers inside the EU, the

28 With regards to European Union, Policy Harmonization is to create similar

and common standards across the whole market.
29 Eiko R. Thielemann, Towards A Common EU Asylum Policy: The Political
Economy of Refugee Burden-Sharing (California: University of California, San
Diego, 2004), [Link]
[Link]?_ga=2.23274172.744726270.1541399870-
1856485809.1541399870.
30 Jochen Oltmer, “EU needs to rethink its refugee policy," DW, last modified
2014, [Link]
17188912.
UN, EU and the Syrian Refugee Crisis 49

focus of attention has now shifted to a default position where efforts are
directed at discouraging people from entering the EU, and the EU started
deporting people who do not have a legal asylum status.31 The heads of EU
states and governments discussed this issue but talks proved to be
unproductive. It seems that overcoming differences among member states
and achieving a consensus in views has become difficult in the EU. The
asymmetrical impact of this refugee crisis on member states of EU is itself a
big hurdle in achieving a coherent and collective response. It is clear from
the recent refugee influx from the Middle East and Africa to European
states, that the European Union made very little effort for asylum seekers. A
great number of casualties occurred as a result of European refusal to
receive refugees. It is politically a very sensitive issue and the EU failure to
handle the situation may further exacerbate the influx of refugees in the
coming years. Currently, the EU is in dire need of a comprehensive solution.

Conclusion
The Syrian civil war indeed represents the worst humanitarian
refugee crisis and requires a common EU and UN response. The United
Nations and the EU member states need to work in close collaboration in
order to protect the rights of refugees and every state should prioritize
assisting their basic needs especially for the resettlement programs so that
they would not feel alienated in the host country. This can only be done if a
non-discriminatory approach is followed in providing education,
employment and health facilities to the refugees, without any delay or
restrictions. There is also a need to develop a standardized legal
framework, which can permit them to work freely and to move freely on
the occasions of reunion.
The United Nations and the European Union should utilize this
opportunity to create an all-inclusive and harmonious legislation for
refugees. Many Middle Eastern states have been ravaged by war since
2011 resulting in a massive influx of refugees seeking asylum in the
European continent. The EU states initially committed to address this
refugee crisis and pledged to work for achieving a common asylum policy.
In view of a massive refugee influx, they struggled to give an effective and
coordinated response. There is no doubt that EU has generously spent on
the refugee but there are still many gaps in the system. Countries like
Germany, France and Sweden opened their borders for refugees;
contrarily, Britain and Hungary refused to welcome any refugees.
Similarly, states like Ukraine and Slovakia did not openly welcome all the
refugees; they just allowed entry to Christian refugees. Thus, we see that

31 Stefan Lehne, "How the Refugee Crisis Will Reshape the EU," Carnegie Europe,
2016, [Link]
reshape-eu-pub-62650.
50 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

due to political divisions and internal dynamics, the EU and its member
states have struggled to find a solution to this grave crisis.
The policies adopted in response seem unclear. Although, the EU
portrays its liberal policies and claims that it has evolved from the
traditional model of nation states, yet it couldn’t escapes from pressures of
nation state and Europe has become even more sensitive and concerned
about the influx of refugees. European Union harbors some concerns
regarding the Syrian refugees such as radicalization and a threat to the
socio-political fabric of Europe. The current debate in the western public
sphere shows that stereotypical perceptions of Muslims are still pervasive
in Europe. The crisis calls for a coordinated global response and
contribution. The basic question is what action should be taken to protect
human lives? To answer this question, all states must join hands, find out
the root causes of the crisis, solve the issues, which led to immigrants’
influx and states must take off their nationalist lens. This is about
formulating a genuine policy to address the very causes of population
movements, displacements. It is about resolving crises and ensuring
development.

Recommendations
There should be a continuous evaluation of the frameworks for the
protection of refugees, which will maintain regulatory procedures for
ensuring proper assistance to the refugees. This can happen through
friendly collaboration with the help of host government and other
organized programs introduced by UNICEF (United Nations Children’s
Emergency Fund) and WFP (World Food Program) for achieving shared
goals.
The UN agencies should maintain a systematic communication
channel with the refugees so that there would be no room for
misunderstandings while ensuring the rights of refugees and their future.
There should be an effective dialogue with the refugees in order to better
understand their problems and provide improved solutions.
Apart from the solution of Cluster Approach, there is another
concept known as ‘One United Nations concept’, which should be
implemented effectively. According to this concept, the United Nations is
liable to work in a more cohesive manner at the individual, regional and
global level with a standard assistance framework. According to the
Amnesty International conference proceedings, there should be a
paradigm of protection for the refugees including actions and
implementations by the developed countries. The role of the international
society in sharing the responsibility of helping the increasing number of
refugees is essential.
The foremost concern is the ratification of the present conventions
regarding refugees, as there is insufficient aid, especially for the asylum
UN, EU and the Syrian Refugee Crisis 51

seekers. There is a need for states to develop impartial domestic measures

in order to provide refugees with fundamental rights and long-term
settlement commitments. States should also offer protection to refugees
who are victims of human trafficking and ensure their appropriate legal
status as well. States should not penalize the asylum seeker for their
domestic economic or social problems. In order to cope with this situation,
they should develop rehabilitation programs and a separate financial
framework for long-term humanitarian relief.
Moreover, the EU should ensure effective protection of the asylum
seekers, guarantee respect for the rights of refugee on the EU territory and
border. There is a need for a quota system among members to share the
financial burden of refugees equally, as coherent policies and stronger
institutions demand additional finance. Efforts should be made to
normalize the conditions for refugees in their home states, and they
should be sent back with the proper arrangements for their protection.
In this regard, intensive engagement and collaboration is needed
with the transit countries to ensure the safe arrival of asylum seekers and
to control the inflow of migrants. For the sake of harmonized migration
policies, there is a need for well-resourced institutions. EU should grant
freedom of travel and open well-managed channels to ensure legal
migration of refugees and develop some more robust policies in order to
counter illegal migration. To overcome xenophobic and more extreme
nationalist tendencies, a very sensitive and cautious approach is needed
and for this, political leadership should play their part.
To respond to the migration challenge, there is a need to develop a
credible strategy, mobilize necessary resources, and create appropriate
instruments and all this demands resolute political will and continued
efforts. The EU must ensure efficient asylum-seeking procedure and
guarantee adequate conditions for reception. The asylum laws must be
strictly followed and must be supervised by European Court of Justice
(ECJ). Lives should be saved through rescue and search operations along
the transit route, measures should be adopted for transparent proceedings
and backlogs prevented as well as the delays in the relocation or
rehabilitation mechanism for refugees. The EU must encourage increased
refugee resettlement, family reunification and provide safe channels to
discourage dangerous and illegal routes. Cooperation should be
strengthened with security, police force and other governments too, to
avoid any kind of mishap or human rights violation. Humanitarian visas
must be issued on an urgent basis to individuals whose lives are at stake
or vulnerable. Foremost attention must be given to tackle the root causes,
which have forced the migration or seeking asylum. If these suggestions
are followed then these combined efforts could give impetus to the UN and
the EU for securing the lives of Syrian refugees.
52 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

DIGITAL PAYMENTS: PROSPECTS FOR

SOUTH ASIA AND PAKISTAN
Dr. Muhammad Zia-Ur-Rehman
& Umara Afzal*

Abstract
The study focuses on the prevailing digital payment patterns
across South Asia and the trends and challenges emerging in
Pakistan. Some of the crucial digital payment instruments and
devices in relation to the e-commerce, m-commerce environment
are analysed. The ways in which South Asian businesspersons,
customers and employers are replacing hard cash with digital
payments are examined. Based on such analysis of trends and
patterns widespread in today’s world, the article also discusses the
advantages of various devices of digital payments. The paper
underscores the prospects and policy recommendations of digital
payment trends in Pakistan.

Key Words: Digital Payments, Mobile Payments, QR Codes, Point

of Sales, NFC, South Asian Trends

Introduction

I
n early 2000s, digital payments became a global phenomenon. In
developing countries of South Asia digital payments within the realm
of Mobile Banking has recently caught more attention.1 With the help
of digital payments, consumers pay bills for products and enterprises
operate with them at the core of their business models, utilizing various
smart phones, gadgets and tablets. The benefits of digital payments are

* Dr. Muhammad Zia-ur-Rehman is Assitant Prof. at Department of Leadership

and Management Studies, National Defence University.
Umara Afzal is a former [Link] Scholar of Department of Leadership and
Management Studies, National Defence University.
1 Tomi Dahlberg, Niina Mallat, and Anssi Öörni, Trust Enhanced Technology
Acceptance Model-Consumer Acceptance of Mobile Payment Solutions, the
Stockholm Mobility Roundtable 2003 (Finland, 2003),
[Link]
[Link].
Digital Payments Prospects in South Asia 53

vast, when businesses and governments currently pay the cost of cash
management; the benefits of going digital could save costs. A tremendous
scope is seen for digital payments with the introduction of smart phones
especially when taping into the youth’s consumption patterns,
phenomenon such as online buying patterns: ringtones, logos, news,
music, recreational endeavours, gigs flight tickets, travel expenses. In
mobile payments, the gadget executes verification, approval and
affirmation procedure to complete an entire transaction where two parties
are involved.2
In the world, the payments landscape has changed vastly and we
are looking at many more companies providing various modes of digital
payments. At the same time the consumers now expect fast and secure
payments, no risk and no charges.
This new payments landscape has been driven by e-commerce and
m-commerce, of which most retailers have been a part. PayPal and digital
wallets are the most obvious developments here, spawning a whole range
of copycat services, and generally opened people’s eyes to alternative
payment methods.3 Digital payment is a payment which is made through
digital modes. In digital payments, payer and payee both use digital modes
to send and receive money. No hard cash is involved in the digital
payments. It is an instant and convenient way to make payments. With
cash payments, you have to first withdraw cash from your account. Then
you use this cash to pay at shops. Shopkeeper goes to the bank to deposit
the cash which he got from you. This process is time-consuming for both
parties. But in digital payments, the money transfers from the account to
the shopkeeper’s account are immediate. Hence the future is with digital
payments.
Among the many instruments of digital payments we have Apple
Pay in 2014; it is integrated into the new era of iPhone. Google Wallet as a
versatile alternative accompanies it.4 There are other contending methods
such as the trending app ‘Venmo’ introduced in 2009. The idea of Venmo
came from an incident when one consumer forgot his wallet at home and
thought why not transfer money through his mobile phone as a substitute
of money, cash, or a cheque and establishing the market for paperless

2 Antovski, and M. Gusev, "M-payments," Proceedings of the 25th International

Conference on Information Technology Interfaces, [Link]
xpl/[Link]?punumber=8683&filter%3DAND%28p_IS_Number%
3A27508%29&pageNumber=4.
3 Richard Loh, “Digital Payments and the Retailer,” Mobile Payments Today,
[Link]
retailer/.
4 Press Release, “Apple Announces Apple Pay” Apple, September 9, 2014.
54 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

transactions.5 In 2014, there were around 4.23 billion cell phone buyers in
the world, and roughly 80 percent of the people will rely upon their cell
phones by 2020.6 In the United States, 87 percent population utilizes cell
phones and 71 percent of these cell phones are Smartphones. Asia is a
massive cell phone market with 2.5 billion customers in 2013.7 Among
Asian nations, China has the biggest number of cell phone dissemination
with around 1.29 billion proprietors in 2016,8 and 1 billion cell phone
clients in India.
Pakistan has also put forth its first major digital policy aimed
towards creating more job opportunities and accelerating economic
growth, as predicted by Visa’s study of ‘cashless cities’. As smartphone
penetration in Pakistan increases and e-commerce is projected to be
worth $ 1 billion by 2020, the role of digital payment methods is expected
to increase immensely.9

Understanding Digital Payments

Digital or electronic payments both are generally used to mean the
same thing transfers of value, which are initiated and/or received using
electronic devices and channels to transmit the instructions. Digital
payments are not one instrument but rather an umbrella term applied to a
range of different instruments used in different ways. With digital
payments, there are two key dimensions of categorization that are most
important: firstly, through which means—paper or digital—are the
payment instructions carried; and secondly, whether the payer, payee, or
both use an electronic medium in a payment transaction.10
The most common digital payment instruments are credit
transfers which may also be called internet or wire transfers or SMS

5 Felix Gillette, “Cash is for Losers!,” Bloomberg, [Link]

bw/articles/2014-11-20/mobilepayment-startup-venmo-is-killing-cash.
6 "Number of Mobile Payment Users from 2009 to 2016 by Region | Statistic,"
Statista, [Link]
payment-users-by-region/.
7 Dave Chaffey, Paul Russell Smith, EMarketing Excellence : Planning and
Optimizing Your Digital Marketing (London: Routledge, 2013),
[Link]
Dave_Chaffey_PR_Smith_Emarketing_Excellence_Pl.pdf.
8 Albert GZ Hu, Gary H. Jefferson, and Qian Jinchang, “R&D and technology
transfer: firm-level evidence from Chinese industry,” Review of Economics and
Statistics, 87, no. 4 (Beijing, 2005), 780-786.
9 Staff Reporter, “Karachi Offers Huge Potential for Digital Payment Systems:
Study,” Dawn, August 7, 2018.
10 “How to Define Digital Payments?” Better than Cash,
[Link]
measurement/focusing-your-measurement/introduction.
Digital Payments Prospects in South Asia 55

banking, mobile banking. Then there are direct debits, pre-authorized

debit on the payer’s bank account initiated by the payee and are a pull
instrument. Lastly, card payments involving plastic cards which are often
(although not always) branded with the names of the international card
associations such as MasterCard or Visa, as well as the issuing financial
institution. These payments usually involve the payer presenting his card
at a device, such as a point of sale (POS) machine or an ATM, and entering
a PIN number to authorize a payment transaction via that device.11 And
finally e-wallet or mobile wallet is a digital version of your wallet but it far
more functional in today’s world. E-wallets can be used to recharge a
phone, pay at various places and send money to friends. With a
smartphone and a stable internet connection, E-wallets can be used to
make payments. These E-Wallets also give additional cashback offers.
Some of the most used E-wallets are State bank buddy, ICICI Pockets,
Freecharge, Paytm etc.
E-Wallets still have some limitations. These apps are good if you
send money to a wallet to another. These apps are not safe to send money
to a bank account. These apps have a PIN or password. If the phone is
unlocked, anyone can use the money in the wallet.12 Up until this point, all
versatile instalment applications have concentrated on purchaser as
opposed to businesses. Be that as it may, numerous instalment guarantors,
cost administration professional vendors and different organizations that
have some expertise in corporate travel are creating items such as
corporate apps, one example is AirPlus International.
Various studies show that digital payments for business
management and organizational management with mobile phone can be
easier as compared to other tools as even paying off and dealing with
financial transactions.13 For instance, mobile phones are available at
remote areas and be utilized in different types of monetary trade. 14
After gaining an understanding of digital payments, digital
payment device is a device that uses the payment instrument and
information from the recipient to complete a transaction, e.g. point of sale
device, PC and mobile phones. These devices use traditional Electronic
Funds Transfer Point of Sale (EFTPOS) terminal, yet due to the

11 Ibid.
12 Prabhat Panday, “Digital Payments in India 2016-2017: Definition, Types,
Comparison and Apps”, Upi Payments, [Link]
13 Tomi Dahlberg, Niina Mallat, Jan Ondrus, and Agnieszka Zmijewska, "Past, Present
and Future of Mobile Payments Research: A Literature Review," Electronic
Commerce Research and Applications 7, no. 2 (2008): 165-181.
14 Jun Liu, Robert J. Kauffman, and Dan Ma, "Competition, Cooperation, and
Regulation: Understanding the Evolution of the Mobile Payments Technology
Ecosystem," Electronic Commerce Research and Applications 14, no. 5 (2015): 372-
391.
56 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

propagation of QR (Quick Response) codes, taking the China scenario as

proof, and the increasing Indian acceptance points, the latest trends in
digital payments require a technology comparison between the latest two:
NFC (Near Field Communication) and QR (Quick Response). Traditional
terminals will still play a significant part, but the form of payment terminal
will change. Both NFC and QR are the underlying infrastructure on which
contactless payment and QR-code payment are based on, and have a huge
future market potential. Supporters of NFC think it is faster, easier, and
more secure whereas the exponents of QR Code claim it reaches a wider
market since smartphones can read them, far more than NFC readers that
can read NFC tags.
QR code in view of two-dimensional scanner tag, which is right off
the bat, designed for the car business. These codes incorporate
substantially more noteworthy information and it put away a tremendous
measure of information. NFC is considered a digital sort of instalment
without any connection for cell phones utilizing radio signs. By waving a
cell phone over a NFC-good, payment can at the same time be shared and
transmitted one way while information is transmitted to another place.
The required hardware for NFC is an initiator and a target and software to
process the data. While for QR Code, a camera or scanner has to capture
the QR Code image and software decodes it. In terms of reach, NFC users
must have new hardware which supports the tech. While QR users already
have the hardware (smartphone) to support the technology, the ease of
use with NFC requires a wave tag near the reader, and then the tag and
reader communicate with each other. While for the QR code, just open a
scanner app on smartphone, hover over the QR code, and wait for the
phone to analyse it. In relation to security, NFC must use encrypted
connection and Code is threatening on URL addresses. When it comes to
points of acceptance, NFC is a contactless standalone reader or an
embedded contactless reader into existing equipment, such as EFTPOS,
ATM etc.
With QR Code, there are many options: customer scan business
(Push), QR code sticker, smartphone, business scans customer (Pull), POS
with QR Scanner, Electronic Funds Transfer Point Of Sale (EFTPOS) with
QR Scanner (accessory or embedded), Smartphone, and any device with
camera/QR scanner. As regards to the market growth of digital payments
the matured bankcard market NFC will continue strong growth whereas
with QR Codes: the matured Bankcard market will grow moderately along
NFC due to proliferation of new e-wallet schemes by Fintech companies
mushrooming. The future of digital payment suggests a matured Bankcard
market: NFC will grow strong with QR Code nipping away at the
Digital Payments Prospects in South Asia 57

peripherals with Chinese tourist markets and fintech companies launching

new QR Code e-wallets targeting specific vertical markets.15

Digital Payments for South Asia

Asia’s emerging markets, in particular Southeast Asia with its 73
percent unbanked population has an enormous potential for the adoption
of mobile solutions as an alternative to traditional payment options. Based
on an increased ownership of smartphones as well as an improved
internet access, digital payments are growing as shown by one in five
smartphone users in Asia shopping with a digital wallet. Still Asia has
heterogeneity in economic development and infrastructure accessibility,
creating different levels of readiness for the digital payments trend. Where
all these ground realities make a difference to digital payment providers,
sometimes paying attention to cultural inclinations really pays off, best
illustrated by how WeChat Pay became Alipay’s biggest competitor in
China by utilizing a common giving habit in the Chinese society, that of
giving money in red envelopes. And as digital wallets catch on, Chinese
companies are looking to expand to South Asia.16 In Southeast Asia, the
response to digital payments from banks and governments are
encouraging.
India, China and the Philippines are the three largest recipients of
remittances globally, which makes Asia a vast opportunity for payment
solution providers. With policy shifts like Malaysia, Thailand and
Singapore government is supporting e-transaction systems and Thailand
and Singapore also developing systems such as PayNow and PromptPay,
allowing peer-to-peer transfer of funds using only identification numbers
and mobile phone numbers. The number of non-cash transactions in the
region is expected to hit 276.8 billion by 2020, according to the recent
World Payments Report, non-cash transactions in the region are expected
to hit 276.8 billion by 2020 which represents an almost three-fold increase
since 2015, an unprecedented growth in the space of only five years.17
India is one of the biggest markets open for advanced instalments.
With a populace of 1.25 billion, India represents around 18 percent of the
worldwide populace and the Indian digital payment trends are shown
below. 18

15 Alex Tay, “NFC vs QR Code Payment,” LinkedIn, [Link]

pulse/nfc-vs-qr-code-payment-alex-tay.
16 “A fresh look at Asia’s payment landscape,” Payments Cards and Mobile,
[Link]
landscape/.
17 Ibid.
18 “Digital Payments Landscape in India 2017: Trends and Future,” Dehli School of
Internet Marketing, [Link]
payments-landscape-in-india-2017-trends-future/.
58 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

E-Wallets, Paytm, Free charge

 UPI-Unified Interface Apps
 Plastic Money-Debit Card
 Net Banking-Online fund transfer
 Aadhaar Card-Aadhaar Enabled Payment System
 Approximately 88 percent individuals incline toward cashless
instalment over money instalment, with 48 percent utilizing
computerized instalment for over 75 percent of their exchange.19
 50 percent of India's web clients will receive computerized
instalments by 2020, with the main 100 million clients driving 70
percent of the advanced instalments Gross Merchandise esteem
(GMV). 20
 Ease of doing instalment is one of the key variables of clients to
move towards computerized instalment.

Based on the present scenario, it can be expected that there would

be various different digital payment trends in future. Future of Digital
Payments in India is good to go to witness a huge surge in the reception of
advanced instalments in the coming years.
 The accompanying patterns are set to change advanced instalment
scene in the coming years.
 Technology will make advanced instalments simpler.
 Merchant acknowledgment system to advance 10X by 2020.
 Payments will drive utilization, not the different way.
 Merging will drive pervasiveness.
 Modified UPI will be a distinct advantage.
 Digital personality to quicken client securing.
 Cash to Non-money proportion will turn around more than 10
year.

Sri Lanka is one of the important countries and it recently

overcame its peace process. Digital payment systems are considered
significant in this country and people of Sri Lanka are ready to accept new
trends as well. Some of the trends in the market include:

 Sri Lanka Interbank Payment System (SLIPS)

 Payment Cards
 Debit Cards
 Automated Teller Machine (ATM)
 Electronic Fund Transfer at Point of Sale (EFTPOS)
 Phone/Mobile/Tele Banking/Internet Banking

19 Ibid.
20 Ibid.
Digital Payments Prospects in South Asia 59

Recent Developments in Payment & Settlement Systems

 Adoption of Line Encryption technology for payment cards.
 Revising the regulations
 Implementation of the Common ATM Switch
 Facilitating the transport card system

Future Prospects
 Common Card & Payment Switch (CCAPS)
 Lanka Clear (Pvt.) Ltd will be the operator of the switch

Bangladesh is another important country moving towards

digitization and digital payment systems.21 Some of the digital payment
trends prevailing in the country include;
 BKash
 National Payment Switch
 Online or internet banking
 SMS Banking
 E-Wallet

Emerging Digital Payment Trends

and Challenges in Pakistan
It is crucial for Pakistan to have digital payment system with fool
proof security for being in the market of digitization. In this competitive
world of business, the fast as well as secure transactions systems have
become need of the hour. Digital payment trends help the people to buy or
sell or even do transactions through easy, faster, secure and effective ways.
In Pakistan, the mobile technology and its utility emerged and spread
quickly. The first mobile POS (point of sale) was launched with the
collaboration of Habib Bank and Monet. The number of issued debit cards
crossed the 25 million mark in 2014-2015 and this trend continues to be
promising. On the contrary, the number of credit cards stands at just
under 1.5 million. The figure of EFT POS (point of sale) machines has gone
up by 40,000. Interestingly, the volume of paper-based transactions has
dropped by 0.12percent in 2015.22
The use of smartphones in the country is encouraging for the
development of ecommerce and the new mediums of payment. Currently,
80 percent of the Pakistani people own a mobile phone, and the figure is

21 Mohammad Salah Uddin, and Afroza Yesmin Akhi, “E-wallet System for
Bangladesh an Electronic Payment System,” International Journal of Modeling
and Optimization 4, no. 3 2014, [Link]
216.
22 Jamal Ahsan, "Digital Payments in Pakistan,” Keenu, [Link]
Merchant/introduce-digital-payments-in-pakistan.
60 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

rising. The potential of NFC payments and other digital platforms becomes
reliable given the inclination of a contemporary customer towards
smartphones. The immense security, availability on-the-go, and
convenience, makes it fascinating for customers. There is a rise in the
number of customers opting for digital payments, rather than
conventional means, creating a new trend, yet for this effect to be large
scale, implementing it in the right manner will be the game changer. There
are players who intend to deliver comprehensive end-to-end payment
solutions is Keenu. The service is tailored to facilitate connectivity
between stakeholders, such as banks, customers, telcos, and
businessmen.23 Customers do not need paper money every time.24
Pakistan’s ATM cards account for 64percent of entire E-banking
financial transactions, real-time online banking (RTOB) percentage is 24
percent, carried out by the core banking system. The E-banking financial
transactions have seen a considerable rise in the last 5 years, as25 the
volume of e-banking has increased from 22.1 trillion to Rs.35.8 trillion
between 2010 and 2015, according to SBP 2014 and 2015 reports.
The digital finance potential of Pakistan is projected at about $36
billion by 2025; with a 7 percent boost to the GDP, 4 million new jobs and
$263 billion new deposits, according to “How digital finance could boost
growth in emerging economies”, a McKinsey Global Institute report. While
there are immense opportunities for collaboration between e-commerce
players and mobile money providers, the challenges faced by e-commerce
players in the Southeast Asian region are also plenty according to a GSMA
report. In the context of end to end digitization, for Pakistan cash remains
a major hurdle in the marketplace. It is reported that more than 90 per
cent of e-commerce purchases still paid for through cash on delivery
(COD). Cash upon delivery creates a challenge for merchants who struggle
to manage their cash and costs as customers derive more trust and
comfort in paying. At the same time operators are playing a remarkable
role in taking the e-commerce industry forward. Telenor Group’s Telenor
Microfinance Bank, for instance, is already serving more than 20 million
active customers through Easypaisa. Operators are investing in the
infrastructure to make mobile broadband accessible to more than 50 per
cent of the population by 2020.
In 2015, Easypaisa launched its online payment gateway, allowing
e-commerce platforms to accept digital payments and easily integrate with
their systems. In 2016, JazzCash also launched its own payment gateway

23 Ibid.
24 "Digital Payments, Cashless, Secure, Cashbacks, Rewards, Retail, Food & Online
Offers,” Keenu, [Link]
25 Indrastra, “A Brief note on Digital Payment Systems,” Medium,
[Link]
pakistan-1959dd95a94c.
Digital Payments Prospects in South Asia 61

with innovative features and ensured a smooth, secure and expedited on-
boarding experience for the merchants. These ways improve the value
proposition for merchant’s acceptance of online payments, and create a
new business line, wallet offerings. On the market level, this curbs the
culture of COD, as providers are providing multiple options to customers
to settle their online purchase.
To address the inherent lack of trust in online payments, mobile
operators have introduced purchase protection programs for customers
whereby a buyer is guaranteed a refund if their merchant fails to deliver
the goods. Easypaisa was the first in the market to provide ‘Buyer
Protection’. JazzCash also followed. Such steps aim build safety and trust in
the customer, encouraging them to transact online.26
Now a day's, three instalment techniques are utilized as a part of
Pakistan, for example, money, charge/Visa, and digital payments
framework. Advanced instalment strategy is the most protected and
constructive techniques in which the client turns out to be more secure. In
hard cash, there is likewise a risk of fake or produced cash. Credit/Debit
card may lessen this risk. An NFC charge card is more secure than these
two cards.
Another captivating improvement is the likes of PayPal and AliPay
by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). PayPal speaks to 16 percent of all
overall electronic trades. In 2014, PayPal moved $228 billion across more
than 190 countries. AliPay spoke to appropriate around half of all China
based trades, signifying nearly $300 billion. A captivating component
about AliPay is that they don't charge a trade cost. Between these two
phases Pakistan's online business has had a good response for online
customers. Similarly, Bitcoins are highly developed monetary standards
that are not on paper, are increasingly being utilized by organizations and
individuals, and are decentralized, which implies that no foundation
controls it. It was made by a product designer Satoshi Nakamoto who built
up an electronic instalment framework in view of numerical confirmation.
The thought was to create money sovereign of any specialist, transferable
electronically and with low exchange charges. The way that it can be
stimulated right away is an immensely imperative feature of Bitcoins.
Another is Blockchain which is a constantly rising shabby of records,
called squares which are connected and secured utilizing cryptography.
Each square is connected to the past piece, has timestamp and exchange
information. It can be seen as an arrangement of code that conveys
information in squares (characterized amounts) that are then put away in
a succession called the blockchain on an appropriated set of worldwide
PCs.

26 Jan Stryjak, “Unlocking digital potential Pakistan’s e commerce industry,”

Gsma, [Link]
money/unlocking-digital-potential-pakistans-e-commerce-industry/.
62 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

Then comes Google Wallet which is essentially Google's option of

PayPal, complete with money trades and a Google Wallet Card. Google
moreover announced a physical card related to customers' records so they
can utilize Google Wallet at retail associations. Then there is Amazon
Payments which is a protected, easy and supportive method for customers
to get money by using Amazon's API. Then QR Code based instalment is
anticipation for the business. After the We-Chat instalments in view of QR
code in China and Paytm achievement in India, the Pakistani business is
making its wager on QR to lead approach to truly necessary leap forward
in advanced instalments.
With all these progressive avenues come a couple of challenges
that need to be sorted out first before we start seeing results. Firstly taxes:
Merchants are incredibly scared of falling into the documented banking
net. That's because the Government will come knocking to collect taxes.
We must delve into the reasons as to why every merchant accepts cash
readily. The only solution to this problem is for the policy makers to
realize that they have to start collecting taxes in ways that don’t scare
people away from digital money. Unless we have laws (and the
implementation of those laws) that encourage merchants to start
accepting digital payments, we will see limited progress.
Secondly, opening an account; State Bank wants every Payment
Merchant to open a Bank Account, which means tons of documentation.
Not only does the Merchant get scared, it easily takes days to collect all the
documents, before the Merchant can even do their first transaction. All
types of Merchants need to be able to sign up quickly, seamlessly to accept
digital payments.
Thirdly interoperability; a merchant will only change the
particular payment method, if every customer walking in can be served
with that payment method. A merchant doesn't want to accept digital
payments from a small segment of customers only. Well, there is a
Functional Banking Switch (1-Link), but even 1-Link has its problems.
Slow development, extremely bureaucratic, and governed by some of the
Banks who are completely complacent and happy with their handful of
card customers. The only good thing in1-Link in the past 5 years is the
domestic payment scheme-PayPak. Issuers shall no longer be dependent
on expensive International Payment schemes like Visa and MasterCard.
We all need to understand the benefits of Digital Payments in
Pakistan. Digital Payments would lead to more money in the formal
banking system, convenient, secure and fast, documented transactions for
customers, and a faster cash flow for merchants to make B2B payments for
their business. More taxes for the Government, better documentation of
the economy, less cash outside the formal banking system.
E-commerce in Pakistan is on the right path yet it still requires
meaningful collaborations to hit the milestone by 2020. The players and
Digital Payments Prospects in South Asia 63

mobile money operators together should develop an ecosystem to propel

the growth of e-commerce while being mutually beneficial.
By 2021 for example e-wallets will become the top payment
method globally with a usage rate of 46 percent as informed by the Global
Payments Report by payment technology provider Worldpay by 2021 as in
the Asia Pacific; it is expected to reach 51 percent. Earlier this year, Alipay
launched its smartphone-based QR-code payment service in Japan, and
WeChat Pay made its foray into Singapore. So in the future more countries
and companies will opt for QR code payment and so should Pakistan.
The QR code could help developing countries skip over the credit
cards and cheques and enter the era of mobile payments—similar to the
phenomenon experienced by Chinese consumers a few years ago.
Nevertheless, it will take time for some markets to catch up. Based on the
above analytical scenarios, it’s concluded that advancement in the digital
trends in payment is the need of the hour and Pakistan already is lacking
behind in the trend but after the initiation of China Pakistan Economic
Corridor (CPEC), it has become crucial need of the hour to adapt and adopt
secure digital payment systems.

Future Prospects
With the advent of mobile broadband technology, Pakistan has had
an increase in the digital adoption with a number of ecommerce
businesses as well as online methods of payments leading to immense
benefit. In an otherwise cash-based society internet and mobile banking
emerged on the horizon while ATM machines remained king of the ring.
To conclude up the present situation and future bearings about
digital payments it is seen that the trends seem to shift towards digital
globe based transactions. For digital payments, some instruments remain
attractive as NFC, QR-code, and Online Bank. With NFC which requires a
technical device that corresponds within 4 inches to complete a
transaction. The QR-code contains more critical information than the past
customary scanner labels. And both contend for reigning as the leading
device. QR codes are seeing rising popularity in Southeast Asia because it
is relatively cheap and easy to adopt comparing to NFC-based Apply Pay,
Android Pay or Samsung Pay. Plus it does not require an internet
connection to work. E-cash is a newer trend, and endeavours to copy the
traits of the trade for online trading.
The future of business is based on digital, mobile and online
payment processes. The advantages of this trend are vast and
compounding. With digital payments, the pros and cons and the benefits of
going cashless can be summarized plenty. There is less chance of fraud and
robbery, as no cash held on the premise. It requires no cash handling fees
from the bank, no trips to the bank to pay it in. Hence, quicker
transactions, better for the retailer and the customer, shorter queues,
64 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

better marketing opportunities by collecting customer data for future use.

And lastly the average spend tends to increase when cards or contactless
are used.27
Being mobile comes in many different forms. It can be people
shopping from their mobile devices, checking and comparing product
details while out and about. It can be paying from a digital wallet (for
example, settling the bill in a restaurant), in-app or social media payments,
or can be mobile POS, taking the till in the form of a tablet or smartphone
to the customer for customer assisted selling.
As the innovation continues, contactless payments are now
evolving thanks to NFC enabled smartphones and the digitizing of cards.
Physical contactless cards are no longer needed. This is significant for a
few reasons for retailers. The customer has the mobile phone which
provides additional authentication via fingerprint or other verification/
biometric method, so the risk to the card issuer is much lower. As this
becomes more commonly known, so transactions values and volumes are
likely to increase even further.
Another important benefit of mobile digital payments is the ability
to collect customer data, for marketing use, and to send online receipts.
This enables retailers to build a relationship with the customer after they
have left the store or made their online purchase. Digital payments need to
sit alongside loyalty and reward programs in order to drive customer
acquisition and retention.
Prepaid and gift cards are also an alternative to cash that continue
to gain in popularity. These are used online as well as in-store and are
available in digital format as well as plastic cards. Digitization can unlock
huge social and economic benefits for Asian countries and help our
government in particular tackle some of the challenges. Therefore the
importance of Pakistan’s Vision 2025 aims to create a globally competitive
and prosperous country. The mobile industry can support objectives
outlined in the Vision: both those that are specifically focused on
Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) policy and those
related to wider economic and social developments. The Pakistani
government has demonstrated its commitment to revolutionizing ICT
usage across the country. In particular, it aims to complete Pakistan’s
transition to a knowledge-based economy through innovation, education
and value addition, while promoting efficient, sustainable and effective ICT
initiatives through the development of both industrial and academic
resources. The government has also recognized the importance of young
people in facilitating further uptake of ICT and in fostering innovation and
entrepreneurship within the sector.

27 “Digital Payments and the Retailer,” Mobile Payments Today,

[Link]
retailer/.
Digital Payments Prospects in South Asia 65

Conclusion
Businesses and consumers are interested in faster, safer, and more
convenient payment methods. Mobile and social payment options could be
the future of digital-driven purchasing. The QR, SMS and NFC payment
methods are possible, but soon enough the growing demands of
millennials for an easier, faster, and safer way to pay via mobile will
prevail. Opening up smartphones as a POS method of payment; a mobile
device being a smartphone credit card reader would enable anyone with a
smartphone to complete transactions. Many consumers are turning
towards these methods as each transaction has its own unique code hence
is quicker and easier than waiting in lines. Users can simply pay for items
found in the physical store via apps on their mobile phones. Digital
currencies will become more popular to buy all commodities that virtual
money offers. Digital currencies are instantaneous and border-less nature
of the transactions, a payment method that can be used anywhere, and
isn’t regulated yet.
Most people these days connect to companies through a social
media network, and also take their friends’ recommendations as the most
reliable accreditation. Social payments are of two categories: on-site
purchases and peer-to-peer money transfer services. SnapChat released
SnapCash, a quick money transfer channel that lets users exchange cash
from one account holder to another instantly. Pinterest utilizes “Action
buttons” within their platform to allow users to add items to their Amazon
Wish List or to complete a purchase directly. In conclusion, progress on
digital tools is needed, to help regulators do their job. Pakistan should
move forward with several specific aims to promote the adoption of these
technologies: increase the flow of knowledge and ideas through wider
broadband internet access, particularly through 3G and 4G/LTE networks.
It should introduce m-education, m-commerce, m-health and m-
government, aimed to increase the adoption and promotion of technology
in the public sector. Pakistan should reduce tariffs and taxes on R&D
equipment, fostering innovation in new technologies. And also improve
the flow of knowledge across sectors, with a particular aim of improving
agricultural productivity.
As digital innovation is redefining what it is to be a service
provider, financial regulators have to take a more proactive, data-driven
approach to engagement with the industry. Indeed supervising digital
financial service providers calls for more sophisticated and automated
systems which provide real-time monitoring and analysis. Promoting
interoperable, open technology platforms for digital financial services will
help establish a broad-based ecosystem for private and Government
entities. As digital identity forms an important foundation of public digital
infrastructure and opens the door for access to services across the
66 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

economy – the government needs to prioritize availability of robust and

easily verifiable digital IDs, to facilitate access to digital financial services.
Burhanisation of Social Media in Kashmir 67

BURHANISATION OF SOCIAL MEDIA AND THE

RESISTANCE MOVEMENT IN KASHMIR
Sheikh Gh. Waleed Rasool
& Ameer Abdullah Khan 

Abstract
This study is an impact assessment of Burhan Wani, a freedom
fighter from Kashmir who was killed by Indian security forces in
July 2016. Wani, through use of social media, gave a new outlook to
the Kashmiri struggle for freedom, which is completely indigenous
and involves new generation of Kashmiri youth. The soft images
diluted the negative image created by state controlled Indian
media about Kashmiri struggle and gave birth to a new
phenomenon i.e. interplay of message, images and sentiment called
“Burhanisation.” These images did not pass through routine media
gate-keeping; therefore, they triggered a mass resistance against
the Indian rule in occupied Kashmir and Burhan Wani was
glorified as a freedom fighter. The study explores how these images
through the use of social media promote a soft image of resistance
by giving it an indigenous outlook which is more effective than the
symbol of ‘Kalashnikov’ in catching the attention of the
international community.

Key Words: Social media, Kashmir, Kalashnikov, Burhanisation,

Conflict, Mass-uprising, AFSPA, POTA

Introduction

K
ashmiris started their freedom struggle in the 1930s when this
region was a part of the British Indian empire. Following the
partition of the sub-continent and the emergence of Pakistan and
India as independent states, Kashmir went through a de facto partition
with India occupying a major chunk of the Muslim majority areas against
the aspirations of the people. This movement went through several


Sheikh Gh. Waleed Rasool is PhD Scholar at the Department of International
Relations (IR), International Islamic University, Islamabad (IIUI). Ameer
Abdullah Khan is lecturer, Department of International Relations (IR), National
Defence University, (NDU) Islamabad.
68 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

phases, where the latest phase started in 2016 after the killing of a young
freedom fighter, Burhan Wani, at the hands of Indian security forces.
Burhan Wani was a young Kashmiri who joined the resistance against
Indian occupation at the age of 15 after being beaten up along with his
brother at a military check post by Indian army men. However, contrary to
the previous trends in Kashmiri freedom struggle, this time use of modern
communication technologies ensured that the narrative of liberation from
illegal occupation of Kashmir by Indian forces would reach to the
maximum number of people. Burhan Wani, ‘the Poster Boy’ of Hizbul
Mujahidin, became a social media sensation of his own kind. He started
uploading his selfies and video messages on the famous social media
platform Facebook, which were shared and liked by thousands. In his
messages, he would criticize the Indian government for their unlawful
occupation of Kashmir. He also targeted the Indian army and the local
police for committing atrocities in Kashmir. After the killing of Burhan, a
reaction erupted which was probably not anticipated by the Indian
government. The protests spread across Kashmir, where most of the
participants were young boys and girls. It forced the Indian authorities to
impose a two months long curfew, stop the publication of newspapers,
close down schools and suspend internet and telephone services. 1 When
the images of Burhan’s dead body were shared on social media, the
reaction became severe. Kashmiris flooded the roads and their protests
were met with the use of brute force by the Indian authorities. Over 30
people were killed and hundreds were injured in mere three days
following Burhan’s killing.2 The role played by Burhan Wani and the
impact of his killing is a unique episode in the history of Kashmiri freedom
struggle. Burhan never travelled outside of India and had no linkage with
any foreign element, thus reflecting a purely indigenous struggle against
the Indian occupation. Secondly, he used an innovative tool to spread his
message to the people of Kashmir and his charisma helped his message
being widely accepted. Collectively, these impacts can be called
Burhanisation a phenomenon created through the interplay of images and
sentiments.

Genesis of the Kashmir Struggle

Kashmiris started their freedom struggle when the people of the
sub-continent were struggling to get independence from British

1 “Why Kashmiri Youth Supported Militant Burhan Wani”, BBC News, July 28,
2016, [Link]
kashmiri-youth-supported-militant-burhan-wani.
2 Riaz Masroor, “‫ یک ش یدگ م یں ک شم یر‬،‫ ت عداد ک ی ہ الک توں ب رق رار‬30 ‫”ہ وگ ئی‬,
BBC News, July 11, 2016.
[Link]
tesnse_death_toll_rise_mb.
Burhanisation of Social Media in Kashmir 69

colonialism. As the region was ruled by a Hindu Maharaja, a gulf between

the Muslim majority and the ruler became visible in the 1930s, following a
series of events sparked by interference by the government in religious
affair of the people.3 In the days to come, All India Muslim League and
Indian National Congress created their separate areas of influence in the
region. However, a majority of the Muslim population was more inclined
towards the narrative of All India Muslim League, owing to close religious,
cultural, historical and geographical connections with the envisioned state
of Pakistan. However, the boundary award announced by the commission
led by Cyril John Radcliffe contentiously divided the Gurdaspur district of
Punjab between two new states of the sub-continent; providing India
geographical connectivity with the valley of Kashmir.4 Meanwhile, the
Kashmiris started resisting against Maharaja’s autocratic and repressive
rule.`
The situation became grim when the newly independent states got
engaged in hostilities and fought a war in 1948. At the end of the war,
Kashmiris found themselves divided between two states. During the war,
Kashmir’s Hindu ruler signed a controversial instrument of accession with
India. The war ended with a UN Security Council Resolution promising the
right of self-determination for Kashmiris, though later developments
proved that India never wanted to give Kashmiris their legitimate rights.
Earlier, the Indian religious and political leader M. K. C. Gandhi, while
visiting Srinagar, declared the will of Kashmiris as the supreme law in
Jammu and Kashmir.5 Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in his
parliamentary speeches, letters and telegrams also repeatedly avowed
about Kashmiris’ right of self-determination and showed willingness to
solve the Kashmir dispute as per the will and aspirations of the Kashmiri
people.6 India accorded a special status to Kashmir under Article 370 of its
Constitution but gradually many of its clauses were amended. In the
coming years, India and Pakistan fought two more wars and engaged in
several limited conflicts but the status quo over Kashmir remained intact.
After Indo-Pak war in 1971 Indira Gandhi and Sheikh Abdullah signed an
accord in 1974. Though, the Indian government had already made several
amendments in the Constitution to fully integrate Kashmir into the Indian
Union, this accord further enabled India to erode the special status of
Kashmir under Indian constitution.7

3 G. M. Lone, “13 July 1931: A Chapter of Kashmir,” Kashmir Life, July 13, 2014,
[Link]
4 Stanley Wolpert, Shameful Flight (Karachi: Oxford, 2009), 157.
5 A. G. Noorani, The Kashmir Dispute 1947-2012 (New Delhi: Oxford, 2014), 227.
6 Arundhati Roy, “Nehru on Kashmir” MR Online, November 29, 2010,
[Link]
7 Sumantra Bose, Kashmir: Roots of Conflict, Paths to Peace (Harvard University
Press: 2009), 88.
70 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

1987 elections proved hollow for Kashmir and turned out to be a

mockery of democracy, which triggered an armed resistance against India.
The leaders who are leading the present uprising contested 1987
assembly elections from the platform of Muslim United Front (MUF).8 Syed
Salahuddin, the Supreme Commander of Hizbul Mujahideen (HM)9 and
Chairman of United Jihad Council (UJC),10 contested from Amira Kadal
constituency of Srinagar. He is considered a top ranking “terrorist” by
India now. The MUF leadership comprised of peaceful actors of democracy
who were disheartened by the manipulation of 1987 elections results by
the Indian establishment. This paved the way for armed struggle in
Kashmir which continued throughout the 1990s in which Kalashnikov
became symbol of resistance. 9/11 adversely affected the resistance
movement and forced the freedom aspirants to opt for political struggle.
However, by 2007-2008 a strong wave of protests emerged in Kashmir
over the ‘Amarnath Yatra land controversy generated by the Indian
government’s decision to transfer 800 kanals forest land to Shri Amarnath
Shrine Board.11 The latest wave of resistance was triggered in the wake of
brutal extra-judicial killing of Burhan Wani by the Indian security forces.

Traditional Media and the Kashmir Resistance Movement

The Kashmir resistance is an indigenous political movement to
liberate the people from an illegal Indian occupation. The killings and the
mass uprising in Kashmir are not objectively reported by the traditional
Indian media. The Kashmiris have kept the political movement alive;
initially, the medium of communication available to freedom leaders was
speeches during small meetings and gatherings, mosques and public
places, educational institutions. In addition, wall chalking, pamphlets and
then print media such as the “Azaan”, a prominent weekly published by an
official organ of Jamaati Islaami, were other tools used by the leaders of
the movement. The Azaan was later banned permanently in 1987 by the
Indian government. Robbing the pro-freedom Kashmiri leaders of their

8 Muslim United Front was amalgamation of seven parties of Jammu and

Kashmir which contested election against National Conference and Congress in
1987. Syed Ali Geelani, APHC Chairman, Syed Salahudin Chief Commander HM
, Yaseen Malik, Chairman Liberation Front, Prof. A.G Butt, Abbas Ansari etc
were part of the elections.
9 Hizbul Mujahedeen is the largest indigenous militant organization having a
fighting cadre. Burhan Muzaffar Wani was District Commander of HM from
South Kashmir district of Islamabad.
10 UJC is amalgamation of various militant outfits who are involved in armed
struggle against Indian rule in Kashmir.
11 “Chronology of Amarnath Agitation in J&K,” Hindustan Times, August 31, 2008.
[Link]
in-j-k/[Link].
Burhanisation of Social Media in Kashmir 71

mandate in the 1987 elections triggered the armed resistance against

India yet again. Syed Salahuddin Chairman United Jihad Council (MJC) and
All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) leaders Syed Ali Geelani,
Mohammad Yaseen Malik, Abbas Ansari, Prof. A. G. Bhat were the first
causalities of the Indian media and its negative framing.
Radio Kashmir was another main propagating tool, controlled by
the All India Radio and it remained a mouthpiece of the establishment
promoting only one-sided framing. Hence, BBC Radio was more popular
than other media in the region. However, due to its own limitations, it
could not serve the purpose of spreading the message of freedom to the
people of Kashmir. Radio Darjeeling (RD) and the Voice of America (VOA)
also had a presence. As far as Television is concerned, there was only one
Indian TV channel, “Doordarshan” available in Kashmir up till 2002.
As analyzed by Teresa Joseph, the coverage of the news by Indian
newspapers dominated the media narrative of the state.12 Sreedharan
concludes on the basis of content analysis that the press and electronic
media in Indian occupied Kashmir is “vigorously government-led” and
intensively “negative”.13 The coverage given to Kashmiri freedom struggle
was “ethnocentric” and mostly relied on Government sources. Tavleen
Sigh, in her book, Tragedy of Errors, says that it is misguided patriotism.14
The coverage of Kashmir by Indian media has been merely sensational and
antagonistic in nature. The sufferings of Kashmiris and their struggle gets
distorted coverage in the Indian media. The journalists reporting on
Kashmir have always relied on biased reporting.15 The quantitative
analysis conducted by Akshay Tarfe holds that 78 percent of news across
mediums belongs to the Indian military.16 The prime-time news channels
are projecting lies about Kashmir to the rest of India. It was the impact of
this inability of Indian media to give due coverage to the Kashmiri struggle
that led to the emergence of social media as an actor in 2016 after the
killing of Burhan Wani.
Conventional media in Indian occupied Kashmir (IOK) is controlled
and used to project Indian stance in the name of national interest. The

12 Teresa Joseph, “Kashmir, Human Rights and the Indian Press,” Contemporary
South Asia, 9:1, 2000, 41-55.
13 Chindu Sreedharan , Reporting Kashmir: An Analysis of the Conflict Coverage in
Indian and Pakistani Newspapers (Bournemouth University,2009).
14 Talveen Singh, “Kashmir: A Tragedy of Errors,” (New Delhi: Penguin Books,
1996), 39.
15 Raqib Hameed Naik, “Biased coverage of Kashmir unrest in mainstream
media leading to attacks on local journalists in Valley,” [Link], August
1, 2016, [Link] [Link].
16 Akshay Tarfe, “A Content Analysis of news related to Jammu and Kashmir,”
Academia,[Link]
Related_to_Jammu_and_Kashmir_in_The_National_Newspaper_Daily.
72 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

local media of Kashmir is forced to comply with the rules and regulations
laid down by Delhi which also controls accreditation, resources and
advertisements that ensures the survival of any publication. This control is
also used by the Indian government to keep media in Kashmir under tight
control. Freedom of the press is always supressed and every piece of
information has to pass through stringent censoring according to the
benchmarks set by the Indian authorities. If there is any news story
against the role of the armed forces or any analysis that questions the role
of the armed forces, it cannot pass through the spokesperson of the 15th
corps stationed in Srinagar.
Private media channels and newspapers based in IOK are under
severe stress. The writers and journalists who dare to write against the
government face grave consequences. Ghulam Mohammad Lone, a
freelance print reporter, who also wrote for the English newspaper
Greater Kashmir, was killed by unidentified gunmen at his residence in
August 1994. 17 Ghulam Rasool Sheikh, the editor of Urdu daily Rehnuma-e-
Kashmir was killed by Indian security forces in April 1996. 18 Javed Ahmed
Mir working for Channel 9 was killed by security forces in April 2008
while on assignment to cover a protest in Srinagar. 19 There is a controlled
presence of international media in Kashmir; however, some media houses
are still present there with their offices outside the Kashmir region. BBC
and Voice of America (VOA) have extended their bureau offices to Kashmir
but remain threatened by both the security forces and the militants. The
international media also has little access to the areas which are in turmoil
so correspondents avoid covering a story on the spot. Rather, they often
rely on government news agencies or press releases issued by resistance
groups. Pakistani press or electronic media has neither direct access to
Indian occupied Kashmir nor has any correspondent there.

Evolution of Social Media in Kashmir

Unlike people in many other parts of the world, Kashmiris were
deprived of the privilege of using internet and social media by the Indian
government until 2014. Initially, people were able to have a limited access
to social media sites in 2014 through official internet. It was only after the
introduction of 3G and 4G cellular networks in Kashmir in 2015 that social
media started acting as a catalyst for the cultural connectivity.20 Masses,
17
Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), [Link]
muhammad-lone/[Link].
18
Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), [Link]
sheikh/.
19
Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), [Link]
mir/[Link].
20 Caleb Chen, “It’s been over a Month Since the Indian Government Shut Down
Internet Access in Jammu and Kashmir,” August 10, 2016.
Burhanisation of Social Media in Kashmir 73

who were isolated by the prejudices of mainstream media, resorted to the

use of social media to communicate with each other. This communication
also included messages against the atrocities being committed by Indian
forces in Kashmir and the illegal occupation of Kashmir by India.
Earlier, Indian military stationed in Kashmir robbed the state
assembly elections of 1987, strictly controlling the information in and out
from Kashmir. Radio Kashmir was used as the primary weapon for
information management purposes. Radio Kashmir announced the results
of assembly elections against the winning candidates of Muslim United
Front (MUF). This was followed by the arrest of the MUF candidates and
the counting agents directly from counting halls. The announcement of the
results against the MUF was the time when the democratic and political
struggle finally changed into an armed resistance within two years. This
not only depleted Kashmiri confidence in Indian state institutions but also
dashed any hopes of truthful coverage by Indian media. With the negative
role being played by Indian media at the occasion and in the following
years, a vacuum was created and the voice of Kashmiris remained
suppressed. For next two and a half decades, the Kashmiris had only
pamphlets, small journals and magazines to spread their message.
However, this void was filled by the emergence of social media in Kashmir
which proved to be oxygen for the victimized after the journalistic
apartheid.
Thus, with the spread of 3G and 4G technologies, social media
provided a platform for the provision of information to and from the IOK
and filled the vacuum. This further contributed to the emergence of
another wave of agitation against Indian occupation of Kashmir. Social
media also provided the much-needed home-grown outlook to the
Kashmiri struggle and effectively undermined Indian portrayal of the
movement as being sponsored by Pakistan. As the youngsters are the
primary users of social media, so it revolutionized the whole landscape of
the society. To gauge the control of Indian army on the news coming out
from Kashmir, one can refer to a report by Khalid Waseem written in the
wake of floods in Kashmir. The report shows how mainstream Indian
national media always propagates the Indian military’s narrative on IOK
and demeans freedom struggle of Kashmir.21 In these circumstances of
extreme censorship and suppression of truth, social media becomes the
only space available to bring out sentiments in the open. The content
analysis of two major dailies of the Indian press carried out by Danish Nabi

[Link]
government-shut-internet-access-jammu-kashmir/.
21 Waseem Khaild, “Media Propaganda and the Kashmir Dispute: A Case Study of
the Kashmir Floods,” Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, August 2016.
[Link]
74 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

Gadda22 concludes that the Indian media ignores the voice of dissent in
Kashmir and mostly favours Indian nationalistic narrative and official
policy.
Aspirations of the common masses of IOK have been a victim of
partial, distorted and controlled journalism by the self-proclaimed liberal
press of India since 1947. Social media not only proved to be an
alternative and filled the gap, but also brought the suffering of Kashmiris
to the forefront. Thus, the popularity of social media increased multi-folds
as an alternative to represent the aspirations of the majority. Social media
gave a public face to those far-flung areas which were never covered by
conventional media.
In view of the qualitative and quantitative analysis of media
content published in India and abroad, it is concluded that Kashmiris are
becoming increasingly dependent on social media because conventional
media in IOK is marginalised while mainstream Indian media has been
discredited. In 2016, there were 22 reported instances of internet
shutdown in India that were mainly imposed to suppress the resistance
movement in Kashmir.23 Internet shutdowns in India occurred more than
those in Syria, Turkey and Iraq. Social media has greatly influenced the
Kashmir conflict and made people aware of the ground situation there.
Social media is a game changer as it has brought about a paradigm shift in
narrative about the Kashmir conflict because ‘offline democracy’ did not
work. Choking social media hatches rumours and it has not helped the
Indians while the mainstream media is highly discredited. Amnesty
International too, in a report in 2016 expressed serious reservations over
blockade of internet in Indian Occupied Kashmir.24

Burhanisation of Social Media

As a picture speaks a thousand words, so did the images of
atrocities committed by Indian forces in Kashmir when they were
uploaded on social media. These images represented a scenario contrary
to the one portrayed by the Indian media through edited pictures and
manipulated information. Timing is also a decisive factor for the
consumption of the content to affect a group’s thinking. Social media

22 D. N. Gadda, “ ‘Partial Journalism’—A study of national media of India and

Kashmir conflict, ” Trends in Information Management, March 2014. 10 (1) 13-
23. [Link]
Journalism'-A_study_of_national_media_of_India_and_Kashmir_conflict.
23
Devanik Saha, “India Faces Greatest Global Loss From Internet Shutdowns,”
October 26, 2016, [Link]
global-loss-from-internet-shutdowns-93575.
24 Amnesty International Report 2015/16, [Link]
content/uploads/2016/09/Amnesty_International__Australia_Report_2015_1
[Link].
Burhanisation of Social Media in Kashmir 75

helped its Kashmiri users to convey their message promptly as it is free

from the barriers of gatekeeping and editing. Imaging and framing through
social media is cheap, instant and readily available to freedom aspirant
Kashmiris. The time constraint also does not provide room to edit the
images before sharing on social media. It also made it possible for the
content to reach to various viewers from remote areas where conventional
media has little reach, or where access of conventional media has been
deliberately choked or where the content had to pass through gate-
keeping of regulatory authorities. The self-loaded images of 22 years old
young, unmasked, smiling, Burhan Wani, on social media posing with a
Kalashnikov has introduced a unique phenomenon in the resistance
against India. It created a mass following of Burhan Wani on social media
and most of those following him were young educated Kashmiris. It
provided a boost to Kashmiris freedom movement.
The killing of freedom fighters by the Indian forces in disputed
area is a routine practice in Kashmir, licensed by Armed Forces Special
Powers Ac.25 Indian troops in Kashmir use the sub-conventional
operations tactics with an aim to neutralise all the opposing elements in
the conflict zone that can transform the will and attitudes of the people.26
However, the assassination of Burhan Wani gave birth to a mega cycle of
locally-driven resistance. Images of his dead body shattered the
conventional framing of Indian media and gave birth to a new
phenomenon i.e. the interplay of images and sentiments called
Burhanisation. Pictures of the bullet-ridden perforated body of Burhan
Wani were uploaded on Facebook by villagers from the vicinity on the site
of the targeted killing, creating a “magic bullet” effect among the social
media users of Kashmir. Indian media, backed by the military
establishment, geared all its resources to sell the routine cover-up stories
to the Kashmiris, Indian civil society and the international community that
the young man killed was a “wanted terrorist”, therefore his killing was
justified. However, this time, the Kashmiris were not ready to accept any
story broadcasted by mainstream Indian media and pro-freedom narrative
widely prevailed. The message and ideology of Burhan Wani spread to the
Kashmiri people through social media, who hailed him as a hero.
Meanwhile, this Burhanisation made it difficult for Indian media to
mislead Indian civil society and international community.

25
Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) that gives special powers to
IndianArmed forces is applied in IoK since 1990, Human Rights Watch, 16th
March 2015.
26 “Alleged Perpetrators - Stories of Impunity in Jammu and Kashmir,”
International Peoples‘ Tribunal for Human Rights and Justice in Indian-
Administered Kashmir, and Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons,
December 2012. [Link] Pdf.
76 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

The routine manoeuvring and managing of content in occupied

Kashmir by Indian mainstream media not only backfired after Wani’s
killing but worked as a catalyst to cement the sentiment of the masses
resisting Indian rule. It also discredited the conventional Indian media and
the mainstream leadership’s efforts to de-escalate the situation. As a
reaction, India choked the social media, cell phone services and local
media and imposed curfew to control the damage done by the unjustified
killing of Burhan Wani. Though Indian army has killed tens of thousands of
people since 1989, but after the killing of Burhan Wani, the protests
triggered a long cycle of resistance, which beats all records of previous
shutter-down strikes and human and property losses. Kashmiri masses
rejected Indian media’s framing of Wani as a terrorist and made it clear
that killing of freedom fighters can no more be justified by simply tagging
them as ‘terrorists’.
Burhanization of Kashmir struggle internationalised the Kashmir
issue in favour of Kashmiris to utter disdain of India. Social media has now
emerged as a vibrant tool in the Kashmir conflict in both the presence or
absence of conventional media. Burhanization triggered mass mobilization
against the Indian atrocities, though there were certain other factors too
that contributed to the intensification of the resistance. These included the
extreme right-wing politics of BJP government and its attempts to
undermine article 370 of the Indian Constitution that gives special status
to Jammu & Kashmir, the lethal use of force in post-Wani protests and
economic decline of Kashmir.

Social Media: Catalyst for the Kashmiri Resistance

Social Media is a modern platform of communication and poses a
mega challenge to some conventional theories about the role of print and
electronic media during a conflict. Social media proved to be more reliable
in the conflict ridden IOK. The authenticity of content being shared by the
government controlled electronic media is challenged easily by the social
media users. The state usually justifies the killings of its opponents by
manipulating the media content so as to control the masses. Social media
has emerged as a major actor both in presence and in absence of
conventional media, and is used as an effective tool of communication.
Killing of Burhan Wani, ’the poster boy of Kashmir struggle’ created a
unique impact. It has been observed that Facebook pictures uploaded by
Burhan Wani constructed his soft image in the people even though he was
posing with a Kalashnikov. When he was killed by the Indian army, the
masses of Kashmir rejected every manipulation by India to tag him as a
terrorist and justify his killing. The killing of Wani brought the masses out
on the roads and to control the mob, the military killed more than 101
people, blinding another 550 by indiscriminate showering of pellets
Burhanisation of Social Media in Kashmir 77

through animal hunting guns. India locked down the social media and
imposed curfew which continued for three months.
Burhan was educated young Kashmiri boy who was fond of using
internet, social media through his cell phone. He was keen to use social
media to fight against Indian occupation of Kashmir and never crossed
over to Azad Jammu & Kashmir. Before the emergence of Burhan Wani and
his use of social media, the Indian conventional media used to label
indigenous Kashmiri freedom movement as Pakistan sponsored terrorism.
This manipulation of facts was neutralized in the wake of Burhanisation of
social media. This change has not only had a local impact but also a global
one. Social media has emerged as a potent instrument of press as a two-
sided persuasion tool. Anyone possessing a cell phone and having access
to telecommunication networks can share one’s messages in multimedia
formats. The power of social media is its availability and accessibility to
every individual, as conventional media does not have that level of
outreach to remote areas.
The statement of Omar Abdullah27 is an eye opener when he said,
“Mark my words - Burhan's ability to recruit in to militancy from the grave
far outstrips anything he could have done on social media”. This statement
of the ex-Chief minister accepts that the political system had failed and the
youth was inclined towards antagonism. He confessed to the failure of
Indian policies in Kashmir by saying, the killing of Burhan Wani had
revived and legitimized the armed struggle. Similarly, the Lt. Gen of 15th
Corps Satish Dua stationed in Srinagar says that 60 percent of the
population of the valley is below 30 years of age and admits, “We have to
ensure engagement with the youth. The youth is hypersensitive on social
media. The youth is brave not to conceal their identity.”28 The
Superintendent of Police of district Pulwama, the place where Burhan
Wani’s village is located, said, “The videos uploaded on Facebook have
affected the psychology of youth. He is considered as a role model.29 These
confessions support the argument that social media has had an influence
in presenting the real story of Kashmir to the world. Ironically, many
hurdles have been put in place by Delhi such as blocking the internet and
social media services to keep the outside world in the dark about the
reality in Kashmir.

27 Omar Abdullah is former Chief Minister of IoK and fomer Minister for State on
External Affairs of India, twitter, July 9, 2016 @abdullah_omar.
28 Harinder Baweja, “Kashmir's Disturbing New Reality”, Hindustan Times,
[Link]
29 “Facebook for Search Burhan Wani”, [Link]
78 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

Social Media and Kashmiri Sentiments

Indian government has been providing the legal cover to the
killings by Indian army in Kashmir through various laws which are in
conflict with global human right values. Thousands of young and educated
Kashmiris have been killed in the name of terrorism since 1990. However,
in case of Burhan Wani, Indian narrative was completely rejected by the
Kashmiris and world at large. It gave a new outlook and lease of life to the
Kashmir resistance. The images uploaded by Burhan Wani were available
on his Facebook page and were overwhelmingly liked by the Kashmiri
youth. His image was uploaded by 1,300 Facebook friends and shared by
83,892 ID’s within three days after his killing and before the suspension of
communication services by Indian establishment controlling Kashmir.30
Facebook authorities blocked dozens of accounts, pages and posts
carrying the image of Burhan Wani,31 apparently on the request of Indian
army. The images shared by Burhan Wani penetrated the minds of youth
who were emotionally connected and ideologically associated with him.
Social media eroded the agenda setting of mainstream Indian
media therefore bringing the resistance at an all-time high despite lock-
down of the Indian occupied Kashmir’s mainstream media for three
months. The impact of social media proved more potent than the
conventional weapon Kalashnikov that was allegedly recovered from
Burhani Wani by the Indian army (RR) contingent who raided his hide out
at midnight and killed him on the spot. Social media in the conflict zone of
IOK transcended the physical and psychological hurdles laid by powerful
state controlled media and Indian military.
Indian military establishment failed to sustain its interpretation
and to push Indian agenda on the psychological warfare front in IOK.
Excessive use of force by Indian security forces backfired and triggered a
mass resistance led by Kashmiri youth in IOK. Indian propaganda failed to
portray Burhan Wani negatively and justify his murder which has had
remained a general practice of the Indian war machine since 1990.

Breaking the Myth

Burhan Wani represents the fifth generation of Kashmiris but the
first one to start using Facebook influencing the opinions, emotions,
attitudes and behaviours of the Kashmiri people. A prompt impact of the
use of Facebook after the killing of Wani was to challenge the findings of
various theories of conventional media. The manipulation of Indian media
to frame the freedom fighters as terrorists utterly failed to sell

30
Compiled by Sheikh G Rasool, one of the author of this article.
31
The Guardian, Facebook Under Fire for 'Censoring' Kashmir-related Posts and
Accounts, [Link]
fire-censoring-kashmir-posts-accounts.
Burhanisation of Social Media in Kashmir 79

domestically or globally. The collapse of propaganda war machinery

diluted other prominent negative projections created by Indian media,
which include:

 Kashmir’s freedom struggle is foreign sponsored rebellion

 Resistance doesn’t enjoy the support of the masses
 Freedom camp voice is fractured
 Resistance leadership are not on the same page
 Kashmiris have accepted the Indian role after mass participation in
assembly elections of 2013
 Elected candidates are representatives of the disputed state of
Jammu and Kashmir
 Killing thousands of Kashmiris and use of military might have
crushed the resistance
 People are tired and only a small percent of the masses are
demanding the right to self-determination.

The Indian media failed to apply the tactic of propaganda warfare

to further the efforts of political, economic and military actions. Innocent
killings backfired in the shape of massive mass resistance against India.
The death of Burhan Wani proved costlier for Indian establishment in
suppressing the right to self-determination than armed Burhan Wani.
Social media furthered the agenda of the masses of Kashmir more
effectively than lethal weapons. Social media challenged the negative
projections of the conventional media and turned out to be more credible
in the given condition. The Indian civil society was evoked for the first
time in favour of the right to self-determination and generated a debate on
Kashmir at various forums, civil society organizations, Indian mainstream
political parties and universities among which Jawahar Lal University
(JNU) in New-Delhi played a vital role.
Social media is a force multiplier. Generally, a single Facebook ID
can keep 5,000 people connected. It simply means that one can send a
message and an image or both, with a single click to 5000 people at a time.
It is a two-way means of persuasion as one can receive feedback, which
was not possible in the realm of print or electronic media. One can choose,
select and delete the persons of one’s choice and remain connected with
them round the clock. A person can tag a huge number of individuals at a
time and the message can reach a multitude of people with a single click.
The social networking platform has the capacity to reach an entire state
population that has access to cell phone, with a mere click.

Conclusion
The multiplication of the message of resistance reached the masses
of Kashmir through Burhan could not have predicted his social media
80 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

campaign working more after his death. The images uploaded by the
masses reached the target, even the remote ones and gave birth to a new
phenomenon i.e. the renewed sentiment which was dormant triggered
after the killing by the Indian forces and gave birth to the longest cycle of
the resistance. The circulation of his images multiplied after his death
through social media neutralized the negative projections of the Indian
state media during conflict. The internationalization of the issue was due
to the images of those pellets, which were showered by occupational
forces to halt Burhanisation with little success. Those images reached
some sections of the Indian civil society and across the borders via
conventional media of Pakistan.
Burhanisation has raised the level of resistance and sensitised but
world community about the plight of the Kashmiris. Social media is an
alternative means to raise one’s voice more effectively than lethal
weapons, but it needs the partnership of conventional media which can
use the information of social media as primary content. Social media has
significance in conflict zones but it is effective locally, until and unless it is
not integrated with conventional media as an indigenous content. The
mode and method of the resistance can be transformed accordingly in the
era of globalization where borders cannot cease the flow of information.
Book Reviews 81

Book Reviews
Title: The Third Option for the South China Sea: The Political
Economy of Regional Conflict and Cooperation
Author: David Jay Green
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan: Austin, USA, 2016, 138.

T
he book under review, “The Third Option for the South China Sea: The
Political Economy of Regional Conflict and Cooperation” (2016) by David
Jay Green, is a remarkable piece of literature that primarily addresses
the behaviour of states in South China Sea area. Green a banker by profession
and served, along with Arjun Thapan, in the Asian Development Bank for
almost twenty years. It is obvious that due to his career in banking, he
understands the monetary system and the importance of currency; however, it
is hard for a banker to explicate the connection of economy with that of
politics.
Green opens his book by introducing the South China Sea and the
stakes of countries like Brunei, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines,
Taiwan and Vietnam in the South China Sea. The author takes an early position
that all the parties involved primarily sought mineral and hydrocarbon
resources that turned the sea into a military hotspot. The second chapter “Low-
Level Simmering Disputes” mainly discusses little disputes in the South China
Sea, including the building of naval assets and naval platforms in the region.
The author discusses the role of Vietnam, Malaysia, China and Philippines and
their respective aggressive behaviours. The third chapter “A Model from Game
Theory” employs the perspective of economics drawing upon the author’s
experience in the banking profession. Green discusses the ‘Chicken Dilemma’
faced by China in the following words: “But I can't back down now because I
pushed the other guys too far,” (p. 30) which refers to political face-saving.
The fourth chapter “The Economic Context: Costs and Vulnerability to
Conflict” sheds light on the cost of the conflict. Green asserts that the price of
these conflicts in the South China Sea is beyond the perceptions of the
policymakers and decision makers. The fifth chapter “Hypothetical Rewards,
Resources in the South China Sea” argues that China and other parties are
misperceiving the amounts of oil and gas reserves present in South China Sea.
Green’s analysis is purely hypothetical since the estimates made by the Chinese
and other parties surpass the estimates made by Green – fundamentally due to
geopolitical and geostrategic grounds.
The sixth chapter, “Broader Issues in the West Pacific”, discusses the
non-traditional threats to security in the Pacific region. Green talks about the
spread of various diseases, piracy and natural disasters and directs criticism on
the policies of countries lying in the Pacific region for not paying much
attention to these threats. Green criticizes these states for neglecting these
imperative security threats. The seventh chapter, “Regional Cooperation as the
Third Option: A Modified Game”, explains the whole scenario through the lens
82 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

of ‘Complex Interdependence’ which may not work as China is engaged in

strategic competition and is building aircraft carriers, its warships armed with
electromagnetic rail-guns and the construction of airstrips in East and South
China Sea. It can be seen that a coalition exists against China when it comes to
South China Sea and in this situation cooperation seems nothing more than a
fairy tale.
The eighth chapter “The Experiences of Existing Regional Cooperation
Initiatives” talks about the regional organizations and institutions, which are
intended to create cooperation among the countries involved in the South
China Sea dispute. These include Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-
Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA), Greater Mekong Sub-
region (GMS), Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT), Pan-
Beibu Gulf Economic Cooperation (PBG), and Singapore-Johor-Riau Growth
Triangle/Indonesia-Malaysia- Singapore Growth Triangle (SIJORI/IMS-GT).
Despite these organizations, the author acknowledges that tensions in the
South China Sea are high. The ninth chapter, “South China Sea Regional
Cooperation: A Tentative Exercise,” provides eight possible options to move
ahead in the South China Sea to minimize hostilities and political tensions. The
eight recommendations, whose linchpin remains cooperation, are mostly based
on idealism. Admittedly, the author, David Green, explains all the eight possible
options and policy recommendations in a brief and precise manner;
nevertheless, the ground realities are quite the contrary. Green’s
recommendations of using international and regional organizations as a means
of creating cooperation is debatable, since Mearsheimer argued that states
tend to use these organizations not for cooperative purposes but to increase,
improve and even enhance their relative power position.
While concluding, David Green admits that the chances of hostile
engagements and conflicts are high in the South China Sea, but the author adds
that these can be contained. It can be said with confidence that the author took
the liberal perspective while conceptualizing this topic. Green’s idealism or
probably utopian assertions regarding South China Sea might not work in the
face of on political realities on ground and the current situation in the region is
solid evidence to that effect.
Apart from the various strengths of the book, it has a number of
weaknesses. Due to the author’s banking profession, his emphasis remains
largely on economics or perhaps geo-economics and he does not pay much
attention to strategic implications of South China Sea conflict. It is ones
understanding that the author does not discuss America’s assertive and
aggressive role in the areas contiguous to China under the pretext of Freedom
of Navigation Operation (FONOP), flanked by Air-Sea Battle Doctrine or Joint
Operational Access Concept (JOAC). China’s actions are essentially reactionary
and it is fearful of America and its allies in the region. Chinese anti-access and
area denial (A2/AD) capabilities, with artificial and natural islands as military
bases for power projection - the latter was referred to as “giant aircraft
carriers” by Mearsheimer - are adding impetus to existing hostilities.
Book Reviews 83

Geopolitics is now and has always been the driving force in international
relations – ostensibly, Green missed this very notion in his analysis. Quite
interestingly, what Green refers to as “small rocky outcroppings”, are perceived
by Mearsheimer as “giant aircraft carriers” for power projection.
Green talks about the possible role of international organizations in
relation to South China Sea; nevertheless, realists believe that international
organizations are the instruments by which states increase, improve and
sometimes maintain their relative power position in the international system.
The author, perhaps due to his profession, is forgetting one basic thing that
states do everything they can do to augment and retain their power and
prestige in the international relations. Sometimes price and cost do not matter
when it comes to power and prestige. It is pretty much understandable that
states intend to pursue cooperation or move towards conflict in order to
achieve their desired objectives. The history of the world is a witness to the
fact that states are inherently rational and take calculated decisions based
upon cost and benefit analysis. In the presence of advanced and sophisticated
weapons and weapon delivery platforms on both sides, with new modes of
warfare to paralyze the enemy using non-kinetic means of cyber and
electronic– and most importantly, synergy-oriented war waging doctrines with
clear intentions of a military response, it is hard to imagine peace. A hostile or
at least stressful future is more probable.

Reviewed by Muhammad Ali Baig, [Link] Scholar at the Department of IR,

NDU, Islamabad.
84 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

Title: Counter Insurgency and Counter Terrorism: A Prism of

Stabilization and Peace Building Efforts

Authors: Beenish Sultan and Gareth Boyd

Publisher: NDU Islamabad and British High Commission: Islamabad,
2017. 244.

T
he book evokes particular interest as a compilation of various
intellectual accounts from Islamabad and London on the
contemporary counter radicalization drive. It is a dedicated effort
and a brilliant expose of the underlying issues by Beenish Sultan and
Gareth Boyd. Book is one of the finest works brought out by the National
Defence University, Islamabad and the intellectual wing of the Royal
British Forces through the British mission in Islamabad. It is indeed an
impressive addition in the politico-military literature in the contemporary
arena and a reference book for researchers taking up more specialized
studies in this field.
The researchers, Gareth Boyd and Beenish Sultan, have attained a
high graph of engagement in research on the non-traditional challenges to
social stabilization. Gareth Boyd is a Lieutenant Colonel in the Royal
Regiment of Fusilier, having the exposure to security-specific studies in a
variety of settings abroad. Beenish Sultan, a Research Associate at the
Institute for Strategic Studies, Research and Analysis, has a wide-ranging
expertise on strategic studies, both region-specific and related to the
global commons.
The study is structured around three thematic referral points: the
counterinsurgency and counterterrorism experiences of UK and Pakistan
armies’ the stabilization efforts of both in their respective settings’ and the
interconnected challenges such as the refugee crisis and border
management from a politico-legal prism.
Theme one is critical in character, as it defines the concept of
enemy for both the armies and illustrates the subsequent methods
adopted to counter them. For the UK, the recent challenge was to fight a
war in Afghanistan on a foreign land with a coalition of forces against a
local enemy. However, it maintains a critical difference between classical
COIN and stabilization operations. In the UK post-WWII COIN ops’ of
Malaya, Kenya and Cyprus are good examples, political primacy was
acknowledged and which governance in place was based upon British
colonial rule. In other words, these were not failed states. Interventions in
the 21st century, from the Balkans to Iraq and Afghanistan were not the
same. The UK was faced with an intervention where a political
infrastructure did not exist in any form that could support development in
citizen-state relations. Understanding the paradigm shift from post-
colonial era COIN to interventions in failed states is hence paramount to
understanding the differences between COIN and stabilization.
Book Reviews 85

For Pakistan, the challenge was to win a ‘crucial’ war against

militants and terrorist factions on its own soil alongside the brunt of a
major war across the border in Afghanistan within the ambit of the ‘Global
War on Terror’. At the tactical level, Pakistan’s struggle, on one hand was a
kinetic endeavour to pacify ‘militancy’ generating violent opposition to the
State through terrorism; while on the other hand, there was also an
urgency to bring back the conflict-prone areas to normalcy. In other
words, the aim was swiftly streamlining these two efforts for achieving
successes in the overall ‘counter-militancy cum terrorism’ campaign under
the ambit of sub-conventional warfare. Generally, the idea has rested on
the notion of launching stabilization efforts sometimes even amid a
military operation. Like in the New World Alliance (NWA), sequencing of
operations was done as part of strategy, which included the clearing-up of
periphery areas first and gradually moving towards the core; while as part
of the stabilization efforts, capacity building of civilian institutions was the
priority.
The second theme is reflective of stabilization efforts employed by
both the UK and Pakistan armies in conflict-prone areas in their own
settings. The UK approach to stabilization is show-cased via the NATO
campaign in Kosovo from June 1999 and the UK’s role within it,
specifically from a military perspective. It illustrates that there are key
differences between COIN and stabilization as two approaches to conflict
resolution. It suggests that the military is but one element of the process
and military action is not an end in itself. A military action can create a
short-term period of security to enable other actors — be that political,
humanitarian or judicial — to deliver results as part of an overall
approach that is underpinned by the need for an enduring political
settlement.
For Pakistan, each kinetic operation brought with it challenges,
particularly for bringing an area, either densely populated or otherwise, to
normalcy. Pakistan has managed to prevail because of deliberating upon
the stabilization methods before the initiation of the kinetic operation,
especially in South and North Waziristan. In this regard, the three most
critical endeavours were: first, crafting the usually termed ‘World’s most
dangerous place’ into the ‘safest place’, through both kinetic operations
and peace building efforts. Second, revitalizing the administrative setup of
FATA by bringing back the law and order of political machinery — of
which FATA reforms is a glaring example and reinstating the Temporarily
Displaced People (TDPs) for which there is no precedent in the world.
Third, the swift and extraordinary development in FATA.
The third main theme, discusses the issue of border management
and refugee crisis in conflict prone areas, particularly through the legal
and political prism. For Pakistan, managing the Pak-Afghan border is a
complex phenomenon, given the nature of its terrain and the influx of
Afghan refugees. Recently, Pakistan has started working on the plan to
86 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

fence up most of the frontier. However, the complexities that lie ahead
with respect to movement across the border may not be denied. This is
true because in the legal domain, intricacies of the Pak- Afghan border are
immense. It is not as simple as people crossing border every day.
Meanwhile, the issue of refugees remains on the forefront and their
repatriation is questioned. As per international law, when the danger or
instability in the country of origin minimizes, refugees are to be
repatriated from the host country as its obligation ends. However, in the
situation where the refugees prolong their stay and engage in economic
ventures is the host state, then visa and immigration laws are applicable as
they acquire the status of an economic migrant.
In addition, the management of the Pak-Afghan international
border and reflections of the British army depicts complexity of the terrain
that challenges surveillance, and a resource intensive politically complex
scenario. In Northern Ireland, the continued presence of British Army in
border areas was a cause of great resentment within the nationalist
communities of the area. In the case of the Pak-Afghan border, the need for
exploring technical solutions was felt, which would not totally replace the
military, but reduce its number in the region. This is also where cross-
border cooperation and trust-building in the local community becomes
inevitable.
In our appraisal of the joint research work, we understand that
while exposed to diverse experiences, the true states continue to learn
from their diverse settings and thus refine their response to the
challenges. No doubt; militancy, terrorism and insurgency have
transgressed international borders. Similarly, lessons learnt in campaigns
by individual states to confront these challenges and later on employment
of stabilization efforts, also have an international character. Hence, in
order to examine evolution establishment sustainable peace in a conflict-
prone environment, we need to develop personal relationships. This is
what the UK learnt in both its classic and recent COIN and stabilization
efforts, and also what Pakistan inferred from its ‘counter militancy cum
terrorism’ campaign alongside the stabilization processes.
To recall, the UK COIN doctrine has evolved over the past 70 years
by considering varying intervening factors. It is a decades old doctrine
with evolution in strategy and tactic through of various case studies
including Malaya, Cyprus and most recently, Afghanistan. It has been
learned that COIN and stabilization are two distinct yet intertwined
processes. On the other hand, Pakistan’s counter terrorism experiences
are reflected in a war on its own soil, instigated by backlash of instability
in the neighbourhood, particularly Afghanistan. As a result, the campaign
initially established security centric approach with primacy of stabilization
efforts focused on political well-being.
There is a noticeable difference between the British and Pakistani
approaches to the matter at hand: Pakistan defines its on-going operations
Book Reviews 87

as counter-terrorism/counter–militancy operations, an element of which

is stabilization. The focus of these operations was, by their nature, military
centred and aimed to eliminate elements of instability while concurrently
providing space to stabilization; the challenge has been to ensure security
simultaneously. Although now, with the FATA Reforms Package approved,
there is clearly a political emphasis brought forward. On the other hand,
both Malaya and Cyprus were ultimately successful examples of post
WWII British COIN operations. Critical to each was the identification of the
root causes of the insurgency and the means of addressing these
politically. The military was needed throughout the campaigns to
engender an environment through which the political end state could be
achieved; ultimately, it was primarily the political and not the military
means through which success was delivered. Perhaps the clearest example
of this in British COIN history is Op BANNER in Northern Ireland.
Lastly, stabilization is indeed a means of establishing enduring
legitimate political authority. Contrary to popular belief, it is not a series of
activities with a set template. It is different from stability, which is a
transitional process and is threatened by conflicting interests of various
actors. At the local level, stabilization is a problem solving and community
driven approach’ embedded in a strategic context of the society. Hence, it
should be dynamic and adaptive to expectations of the local populace.
Nonetheless, understanding such elements and defining them
based on their intricacies is a considerable challenge in itself. Where one
man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter, bifurcations based on
motives, means and methods adopted by such entities pose a serious
question on their nature as a militant, insurgent or terrorist.
Simultaneously, the issues of countering these entities, reducing their
impact and restricting them from widely spreading their tentacles remain
pertinent. The core issue is ensuring sustained stability which later on
facilitates the stabilization efforts of a government and military in a
conflict-prone area.
The way forward rests in understanding that it is our duty as
countries engrossed in dealing with a menace that transgresses borders, to
shun differences and build on the similarities. This research based
publication is an illustration of how much room is available for joint,
brainstorming on issues of critical nature to the peace and stability of not
only individual countries, but also to the region and the globe at large and
in that process we should not fear to fail but fear not to try again!

Reviewed by Ambassador (rtd) Arif Kamal based in Islamabad.

88 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

DOCUMENTS
Document: 1

President Donald J. Trump’s Inaugural Address, January 20, 2017.

Washington, D.C.
Issued on: January 20, 2017

C
hief Justice Roberts, President Carter, President Clinton, President
Bush, President Obama, fellow Americans and people of the world,
thank you.
We, the citizens of America, are now joined in a great national
effort to rebuild our country and restore its promise for all of our people.
Together, we will determine the course of America and the world
for many, many years to come. We will face challenges. We will confront
hardships. But we will get the job done.
Every four years we gather on these steps to carry out the orderly
and peaceful transfer of power.
And we are grateful to President Obama and first lady Michelle
Obama for their gracious aid throughout this transition.
They have been magnificent.
Thank you.
Today's ceremony, however, has a very special meaning because
today we are not merely transferring power from one administration to
another or from one party to another, but we are transferring power from
Washington, D.C., and giving it back to you, the people.
For too long, a small group in our nation's capital has reaped the
rewards of government while the people have borne the cost. Washington
flourished, but the people did not share in its wealth. Politicians prospered
but the jobs left and the factories closed.
The establishment protected itself, but not the citizens of our
country. Their victories have not been your victories. Their triumphs have
not been your triumphs. And while they celebrated in our nation's capital,
there was little to celebrate for struggling families all across our land.
That all changes starting right here and right now, because this
moment is your moment.
It belongs to you.
It belongs to everyone gathered here today and everyone watching
all across America.
This is your day.
This is your celebration.
And this, the United States of America, is your country.
What truly matters is not which party controls our government,
but whether our government is controlled by the people.
January 20th, 2017, will be remembered as the day the people
became the rulers of this nation again.
Documents 89

The forgotten men and women of our country will be forgotten no

longer. Everyone is listening to you now. You came by the tens of millions
to become part of a historic movement, the likes of which the world has
never seen before.
At the center of this movement is a crucial conviction that a nation
exists to serve its citizens. Americans want great schools for their children,
safe neighborhoods for their families and good jobs for themselves.
These are just and reasonable demands of righteous people and a
righteous public.
But for too many of our citizens, a different reality exists.
Mothers and children trapped in poverty in our inner cities, rusted
out factories scattered like tombstones across the landscape of our nation.
An education system flush with cash but which leaves our young
and beautiful students deprived of all knowledge.
And the crime and the gangs and the drugs that have stolen too
many lives and robbed our country of so much unrealized potential. This
American carnage stops right here and stops right now.
We are one nation, and their pain is our pain.
Their dreams are our dreams, and their success will be our
success. We share one heart, one home and one glorious destiny.
The oath of office I take today is an oath of allegiance to all
Americans.
For many decades we've enriched foreign industry at the expense
of American industry, subsidized the armies of other countries while
allowing for the very sad depletion of our military.
We've defended other nations' borders while refusing to defend
our own. And we've spent trillions and trillions of dollars overseas while
America's infrastructure has fallen into disrepair and decay.
We've made other countries rich while the wealth, strength and
confidence of our country has dissipated over the horizon.
One by one, the factories shuttered and left our shores with not
even a thought about the millions and millions of American workers that
were left behind.
The wealth of our middle class has been ripped from their homes
and then redistributed all across the world. But that is the past, and now
we are looking only to the future.
We assembled here today are issuing a new decree to be heard in
every city, in every foreign capital and in every hall of power. From this
day forward, a new vision will govern our land.
From this day forward, it's going to be only America first, America
first. Every decision on trade, on taxes, on immigration, on foreign affairs
will be made to benefit American workers and American families. We must
protect our borders from the ravages of other countries making our
product, stealing our companies and destroying our jobs.
90 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

Protection will lead to great prosperity and strength. I will fight for
you with every breath in my body, and I will never ever let you down.
America will start winning again, winning like never before.
We will bring back our jobs.
We will bring back our borders.
We will bring back our wealth, and we will bring back our dreams.
We will build new roads and highways and bridges and airports
and tunnels and railways all across our wonderful nation.
We will get our people off of welfare and back to work, rebuilding
our country with American hands and American labor.
We will follow two simple rules: Buy American and hire American.
We will seek friendship and goodwill with the nations of the world,
but we do so with the understanding that it is the right of all nations to put
their own interests first.
We do not seek to impose our way of life on anyone, but rather to
let it shine as an example.
We will shine for everyone to follow.
We will re-enforce old alliances and form new ones and unite the
civilized world against radical Islamic terrorism, which we will eradicate
completely from the face of the earth.
At the bedrock of our politics will be a total allegiance to the United
States of America, and through our loyalty to our country we will
rediscover our loyalty to each other.
When you open your heart to patriotism, there is no room for
prejudice.
The Bible tells us how good and pleasant it is when God's people
live together in unity. We must speak our minds openly, debate our
disagreements honestly, but always pursue solidarity. When America is
united, America is totally unstoppable. There should be no fear. We are
protected and we will always be protected. We will be protected by the
great men and women of our military and law enforcement. And most
importantly, we will be protected by God.
Finally, we must think big and dream even bigger. In America, we
understand that a nation is only living as long as it is striving. We will no
longer accept politicians who are all talk and no action, constantly
complaining but never doing anything about it.
The time for empty talk is over. Now arrives the hour of action.
Do not allow anyone to tell you that it cannot be done. No
challenge can match the heart and fight and spirit of America. We will not
fail. Our country will thrive and prosper again.
We stand at the birth of a new millennium, ready to unlock the
mysteries of space, to free the earth from the miseries of disease, and to
harness the energies, industries and technologies of tomorrow.
A new national pride will stir ourselves, lift our sights and heal our
divisions. It's time to remember that old wisdom our soldiers will never
Documents 91

forget, that whether we are black or brown or white, we all bleed the same
red blood of patriots.
We all enjoy the same glorious freedoms and we all salute the
same great American flag.
And whether a child is born in the urban sprawl of Detroit or the
windswept plains of Nebraska, they look up at the same night sky, they fill
their heart with the same dreams and they are infused with the breath of
life by the same almighty creator.
So to all Americans in every city near and far, small and large, from
mountain to mountain, from ocean to ocean, hear these words: You will
never be ignored again. Your voice, your hopes and your dreams will
define our American destiny. And your courage and goodness and love will
forever guide us along the way.
Together we will make America strong again, we will make
America wealthy again, we will make America proud again, we will make
America safe again.
And, yes, together we will make America great again.
Thank you.
God bless you.
And God bless America."
[Link]
address/
92 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

Document: 2

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s Address at the 53rd Munich Security

Conference, February 18, 2017.

Ladies and gentlemen,

T
en years ago, President of Russia Vladimir Putin addressed this
conference with a speech that many in the West saw as a challenge
and even a threat, although what his message emphasised above all
was the need to renounce unilateral action in favour of honest cooperation
based on mutual respect, international law, joint assessment of global
problems and collective decision-making. Unfortunately, the warnings he
sounded then about the negative consequences of attempting to obstruct
the emergence of a multipolar world have become reality.
Humanity stands at a crossroads today. The historic era that could
be called the post-Cold War order has come to an end. Its main result, as
we see it, was the complete failure of the Cold War institutions to adapt to
new realities. The world has become neither ‘Western-centric’, nor a safer
and more stable place. This is evident in the results of ‘democratisation’ in
the Middle East and North Africa, and in other places too.
NATO expansion has created a level of tension in Europe unseen in
the last thirty years. Yet this year marks the 20th anniversary of the signing
of the Russia-NATO Founding Act in Paris, and 15 years since the Rome
Declaration on a new quality of Russia-NATO relations was adopted. These
documents’ basic premise was that Russia and the West took on a joint
commitment to guarantee security on the basis of respect for each other’s
interests, to strengthen mutual trust, prevent a Euro-Atlantic split and
erase dividing lines. This did not happen, above all because NATO
remained a Cold War institution. It is said that wars start in people’s
heads, but according to this logic, it is also in people’s heads that they
should end. This is not the case yet with the Cold War. Some statements by
politicians in Europe and the United States seem to confirm this
particularly clearly, including statements made here yesterday and today
during this conference.
I mentioned NATO expansion just now. We categorically reject the
allegations of those who accuse Russia and the new centres of global
influence of attempting to undermine the so-called ‘liberal world order’.
This global model was pre-programmed for crisis right from the time
when this vision of economic and political globalisation was conceived
primarily as an instrument for ensuring the growth of an elite club of
countries and its domination over everyone else. It is clear that such a
system could not last forever. Leaders with a sense of responsibility must
now make their choice. I hope that this choice will be made in favour of
building a democratic and fair world order, a post-West world order, if you
will, in which each country develops its own sovereignty within the
Documents 93

framework of international law, and will strive to balance their own

national interests with those of their partners, with respect for each
country’s cultural, historical and civilisational identity.
Russia has never hidden its views, and has always been sincere in
advocating work based on equal footing in order to create a common
space of security, good-neighbourliness and development from Vancouver
to Vladivostok. The tensions of recent years between North America,
Europe and Russia are unnatural; I would even say they go against nature.
Russia is a Eurasian state with a variety of cultures and ethnicities.
Predictability and goodwill in relations with all countries, primarily, its
neighbours, have always been inherent to our policies. This line of
thinking underlies our close work within the CIS, the Eurasian Economic
Union, the CSTO, the SCO, and BRICS.
Good-neighbourliness and mutual benefits underlie our relations
with Europe as well. We are part of the same continent, we wrote our
history together, and we were successful when we worked hand-in-hand
to achieve prosperity for our peoples.
Many millions of Soviet people gave up their lives for the freedom
of Europe. We want to see Europe strong, independent in international
affairs and taking good care of our common past and future, while staying
open to the world around it. We are appalled by the fact that the EU is
unable to muster enough strength and give up its Russian policy based on
the least denominator principle where fundamental and pragmatic
interests of its member states are being sacrificed to Russophobic
speculations out of sheer "solidarity." We look forward to seeing common
sense take the upper hand.
What kind of relationship do we want to establish with the United
States? We want relations based on pragmatism, mutual respect, and
understanding of our special responsibility for global stability. Our two
countries have never been in direct confrontation with each other. Our
history is steeped in friendliness more than confrontation. Russia did a lot
to support the independence of the United States as it proceeded to
become a united powerful state. Constructive Russia-US relations are in
our common interest. Moreover, America is our close neighbour, just like
the European Union. We are divided by just 4 km of the Bering Strait. The
potential of our cooperation in politics, the economy, and the
humanitarian sphere is enormous. But, of course, it has to be tapped. We
are willing to go ahead and do so inasmuch as the United States is
prepared to do so on its part.
Today there is no shortage in evaluations of the genesis of global
challenges such as terrorism, drug trafficking, or the crises that engulfed
territories from Libya to Afghanistan, leaving countries such as Syria, Iraq,
Libya and Yemen bleeding. Certainly, the Munich debate will provide an
opportunity to review in detail all these issues, as well as the continuing
94 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

conflicts in Europe. Most importantly, a settlement cannot be achieved by

military means.
This fully applies to the internal Ukrainian conflict. There’s no
alternative to complying with the Minsk Package of Measures through a
direct dialogue between Kiev, Donetsk and Lugansk. This is a firm position
adopted by Russia, the West and the UN Security Council. Importantly, the
Kiev authorities should embark on that path and honour their obligations.
Today, more than ever, we need a dialogue on all complex issues in
order to find mutually acceptable compromises. Actions based on
confrontation and the zero-sum-game approach will not cut any ice. Russia
is not looking for conflicts with anyone, but it will always be in a position
to uphold its interests.
Our absolute priority is to use dialogue to achieve our goals and
mutually beneficial consensus. It is appropriate to quote a directive which
Chancellor Gorchakov, back in the times of imperial Russia, sent to Russian
Envoy in the United States Eduard von Stoeckle in July 1861: "there are no
such divergent interests that cannot be reconciled through zealous and
hard work ... in the spirit of fairness and moderation."
If everyone could subscribe to such an approach, we’d be able to
quickly overcome the post-truth period, to reject hysterical information
wars imposed on the international community and to proceed to keep up
the honest work without being distracted by lies and falsehoods. Let this
be a post-fake era.
Thank you.

Question: I have a concrete question about military exercises. Why

are Russian military exercises held without prior announcement, and why
are they so non-transparent? This year you will hold the largest Zapad
(West) exercises in 20 years, which have alarmed your neighbours. What
should be done to build up confidence regarding this issue?
Sergey Lavrov: As you know, Russia-NATO relations and the
Russia-NATO Council have been suspended at the bloc’s initiative,
although after the 2008 Caucasus crisis our American colleagues, including
then US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, admitted that the suspension
of the Russia-NATO Council was a mistake and that it should be more
active especially in times of trouble. However, they continue to step on the
same rake. NATO has decided to suspend all practical contacts with Russia,
as NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told me yesterday. He said
they would maintain contact at the level of ambassadors at the Russia-
NATO Council and between himself and me, but that they had curtailed all
practical contacts.
At some stage, Sauli Niinisto, the President of Finland which is not
a NATO member, expressed concern that not just Russian aircraft but also
the planes of NATO states fly over the Baltic with their transponders
switched off. He mentioned his concern at a meeting with President Putin
Documents 95

during his visit to Russia. Following that, President Putin instructed the
Russian military to prepare proposals to settle the issues of transponders
and aviation security over the Baltic. Our military experts brought detailed
proposals to Brussels in July 2016, when the Russia-NATO Council held a
meeting there. We believed that these concrete proposals would prompt a
response, and that experts would get together to coordinate security
enhancement methods. This did not happen. We still cannot start working
on this issue. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told me yesterday
that an expert meeting might hopefully convene in March. It is taking too
long, of course, but we are not to blame for the delay.
He also mentioned the issue of military exercises yesterday and
expressed satisfaction that the Russian military held a briefing on the
exercises held last autumn. He also expressed hope that special briefings
would be held on the exercises we plan for this year.
As for the surprise factor, I am not a military man, but I know that
military attachés working in Moscow, including from NATO countries, are
invited to such military exercises. But the best answer to this question, as I
told Mr Stoltenberg yesterday, is that we should resume military
cooperation to remove all these concerns and suspicions. The NATO
Secretary General, who was accompanied by his deputies, could not say
that NATO is ready to do this, which is a pity, because without military
cooperation our diplomats’ meetings will be of little importance for
security issues.
As for our relations with NATO, we proposed resuming them long
ago. Instead of accusing each other and discussing and implementing plans
to deploy NATO combat capabilities on the border with Russia for the first
time in a decade, we should sit down to discuss the situation. We proposed
looking at the maps to see how many weapons and military personnel
NATO and Russia have, and where. After we collect this data, we will be
able to gauge the real measures of military security in Europe. And then
we will be able to use this information to consider arms control
agreements and additional security measures.
Once again, it was not Russia who suspended practical cooperation
in the framework of the Russia-NATO Council.
Question: Russia has submitted the first three provisions of
Minsk-2 for discussion by the UN Security Council: the cease-fire, the
withdrawal of heavy weapons and admission of the OSCE observers to all
the Ukrainian regions. Why doesn’t Russia find it possible to meet these
obligations and thereby send a message about an increased level of
confidence and improved overall situation?
Closer to the end of your remarks, you mentioned the post-fake
era. Russia’s interference in the US election campaign was mentioned
while it was underway. An election campaign is underway in France, and
one of the candidates complained of Russia’s interference as well. French
96 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

President Hollande even convened an extraordinary meeting of the

Security Council to discuss this.
Sergey Lavrov: Regarding your first question, I’m pleased that you
are familiar with the Minsk agreements, though it’s a pity you didn’t read
them to the end, apparently. Indeed, the first item is the withdrawal of
heavy weapons, but then it says that on the 30th day after the start of such
withdrawal, which began in April 2014, the Kiev authorities will prepare a
draft law on elections and begin consultations thereon with Donetsk and
Lugansk. You can ask all kinds of questions about the timeframe of a
particular item in the Minsk arrangements - they don’t always offer fixed
dates. However, this date is specified and it’s 30 days. The withdrawal has
begun. The beginning of consultations with Donetsk and Lugansk did not
hinge on the completion of this process. As you may be aware, a lot has
changed since then: the weapons were first withdrawn and then
disappeared from the warehouses. The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission,
which worked in very difficult conditions - and whose work we highly
appreciate and hope that the mission will represent more OSCE members,
not just NATO and EU member countries - repeatedly noted violations on
both sides with regard to the ceasefire, and the presence of heavy weapons
in the security zone. However, the Ukrainian armed forces have always
been the champion when it came to heavy weapons missing from
warehouses. Again, other kinds of violations happen on both sides.
There have been repeated accusations (interviews with several
Ukrainian political pundits have been published recently) that President
Putin uses women and children in Donbass as human shields and tries to
convince the Ukrainians living to the left of the contact line that people in
Donbass hate them, while people in Donbass are being told that the
Ukrainian government wants to destroy them. These arguments are false
and hold no water. They also wrote that Donbass self-defense forces and
unnamed Russian troops shell Donetsk in order to blame everything on
Ukraine.
Getting back to your question, I have many times mentioned how
to make a ceasefire stick. No matter what you think about the Russian
media, we can see our reporters doing their jobs along the contact line in
Donetsk and Lugansk on a daily basis. They run their stories live showing
us destroyed residential areas and social infrastructure buildings,
including children's homes, schools, outpatient clinics, and civilian
casualties. I became interested in what’s happening to the west of the
contact line and started watching CNN, Fox News, Euronews, and BBC. I
haven’t seen anything like that done by Western reporters on the western
side of the contact line. They don’t run live reports, which our reporters
do, risking their lives and getting wounded and even killed in the process. I
asked my Western colleagues whether Western reporters are instructed to
stay away from the other side of the contact line for security reasons.
There’s no answer. Then we asked the OSCE SMM to focus, in their reports,
Documents 97

on the destruction of civilian infrastructure to the left and to the right of

the contact line. So far, we haven’t received exhaustive information. This
may give an idea of why Western reporters, who are so bent on bringing
the truth about the events in Ukraine to the world, do not show what’s
happening in the areas to the west of the contact line, which are controlled
by the armed forces of Ukraine. Are they discouraged from going there for
safety reasons or are they doing some self-censorship? I would like to
figure that out.
Our stats show that there are many times more destroyed social
infrastructure buildings on the side controlled by Donbass as compared
with the situation on the left side of the contact line. In most cases, fire is
aimed at the positions controlled by the Ukrainian armed forces.
Nonetheless, some members of the media make it into the war zone.
Not long ago, I saw a report by the Washington office of the
International Institute for Strategic Studies and Washington Post articles
by journalists who have been on the line of contact. They wrote that
volunteer battalions are the ones provoking violence in Donbass. These
forces do not obey anyone, they do not take orders from Ukraine’s Armed
Forces and act solely at their own discretion. The journalists wrote that
thousands of ultra-nationalists from the Right Sector are fighting there and
are not controlled by Kiev in any way whatsoever. The reporters
concluded that Kiev may be interested in armed and angry radicals staying
on the line of contact in Donbass instead of staging another Maidan
uprising in the capital. These articles also mentioned neo-Nazi foreigners
who are fighting in Donbass, while others tend to turn a blind eye to their
presence there.
We discuss these issues in the Normandy format. Today, a meeting
of French, German, Ukrainian and Russian foreign ministers will take
place. The question remains: why is there so little information about what
is going on to the west of the line of contact? It is key to answering your
question about why so little progress has been achieved in terms of
security. However, making progress on security issues is not a goal in
itself. Our common aim is to ensure full implementation of the Minsk
agreements that provide for security on the line of contact (and I
mentioned why it has not been achieved so far), constitutional reform to
introduce a constitutional provision on the special status, amnesty for all
who took part in hostilities in Donbass (just as all those who took part in
what happened during Maidan uprisings benefited from amnesty), and the
holding of elections. Under the Minsk agreements, the Ukrainian
government can restore full control of the border with the Russian
Federation only when these provisions are implemented. As I have already
said, we are not there yet.
As for what our European partners are saying regarding sanctions,
I have already commented on the illogical and artificial nature of the
formula whereby the EU lifts sanctions once Russia implements the Minsk
98 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

agreements. Russia also wants the Minsk agreements to be implemented,

and will not lift its sanctions against the European Union until the Minsk
agreements are implemented. There has to be clarity on this issue. Paris,
Berlin and hopefully Washington and other capitals, including NATO
headquarters, know all too well what is really happening in Ukraine and
why the Minsk agreements are not working properly. But they are unable
to recognise it in public due to a distorted sense of solidarity with those
who decided to bring freedom and European values to Ukraine. When our
good friend, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security
Federica Mogherini says that sanctions are a tool for ensuring
implementation of the second Minsk agreements, I see this as a way to use
sanctions for regulating the crisis in Ukraine, since sanctions
unambiguously shift the blame on Russia. As Federica Mogherini said,
maybe it was a Freudian slip, ‘We will wait until Russia concedes and
departs from Minsk-2 by undertaking something unilaterally and forcing
Donbass fighters to take unilateral action.’ The hidden message behind this
position is that there is no need to work with Kiev, Kiev is doing
everything right. That said, I strongly believe that the key capitals know
the truth. I do hope that they send signals to this effect to the Ukrainian
government during their contacts, if not publicly. Not only do I hope but I
know that this is the case. It is hard to tell whether these signals come
across.
Regarding the second question, on Russia’s alleged interference in
election campaigns and other events in countries abroad, if you recall,
when Donald Trump said that the election was not very honest and that
the Democrats got votes from ‘dead souls’, the Democratic Party
demanded to see the facts, but for some reason, when it comes to us, no
one demands to see the facts. I have not seen any evidence regarding our
alleged hacking of Democratic Party sites, or of whatever we are alleged to
have done in France, Germany or Italy. We know that there were facts
several years ago in Germany, when the eavesdropping on the entire
German senior leadership was revealed. Leaks emerged a few days ago,
suggesting that the CIA engaged in cyber-espionage throughout the
entirety of France’s 2012 presidential race. A CIA representative told a
journalist today that he had no comment on this subject. But my good
friend, French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, speaking in parliament
after the information came out about suspicions that the CIA had meddled
in the 2012 election (though, as I understand it, there are not just
suspicions but also concrete facts), said that they oppose all cyber-
espionage, no matter whether it comes from Russia or any other country.
Modesty is always a fine thing, of course, but in this case, once again, I ask
to see the evidence.
Let me remind you that Russia was the first country to initiate
work in the UN many years ago on coordinating our positions on
international information and cyber-security. Our Western partners
Documents 99

evaded tackling these issues for a very long time. Finally, a couple of years
ago, we adopted a resolution by consensus and a group of government
experts was established, which produced a good report, which formed the
foundation for a new resolution. Another expert group has been set up and
will continue working on this matter now. We proposed long ago that our
colleagues work more actively on the professional, technical and
technology aspects of cyber-security issues. When the USA, during Barack
Obama’s presidency, started hunting down our citizens in violation of the
agreement our countries have, and did not inform us that they were
catching these people on suspicion that they were involved in cybercrime,
we proposed that both sides sit down together and settle all these issues.
We have absolutely no desire to see our citizens involved in these illegal
cyber activities. In November 2015, we proposed to the Obama
administration that we meet and begin bilateral work on cyber-espionage,
cyber-security and other cyber-related areas. A year went by without a
response, even though I mentioned the matter to John Kerry every time we
met. In the end, they proposed meeting in December 2016, but then said
that everything would have to be postponed because of the new
administration coming in.
Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel, when she spoke about cyber-
security today, put forward the interesting idea that the Russia-NATO
Council should address this issue. Let me return to my answer to the first
question. We always wanted to see the Russia-NATO Council work on real
substantive issues. We were not the ones who broke off practical
cooperation. If the Federal Chancellor of Germany, one of the main NATO
member countries, wants the Russia-NATO Council to work on cyber-
security, we see this as a signal that Berlin, at least, wants the Russia-
NATO Council to resume real work and not just limit itself to discussions.

[Link]
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100 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

Document: 3

Prime Minister Modi’s Address to the Nation from the ramparts of

Red Fort on 70th Independence Day
15 August 2016

M
y beloved countrymen, on this auspicious occasion of our festival
of freedom; I extend lots of greetings to the one hundred and
twenty five crores fellow nationals and also to entire Indian
diaspora spread all over the world, from this rampart of the Red Fort. This
festival of our freedom, these 70 years of our Independence, is the festival
for our resolution to take the nation to new heights with a new resolve and
a new fervour and new energy. We are able to breathe in a free air as the
result of the sacrifices, renunciation and penance of our millions of great
forefathers. We are also reminded of the youths who kissed the gallows.
We also remember Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Patel, Pandit Nehru and
countless great persons, who fought ceaselessly for the freedom of our
nation. It is the result of their struggles that we are now fortunate enough
to breathe as a free citizen. India is a very ancient nation. We have a
history of thousands of years and our cultural heritage is also millennia
old. Right from the Vedas to Vivekananda, from the Upanishads to the
satellites, the Sudarshan Chakradhari Mohan to Charkhadhari Mohan,
from the Bhim of Mahabharat to the Bhimrao; we have a long historical
journey and heritage. Our land has seen many historical ups and downs
and our generations have waged many struggles and observed penance to
bequeath great values to the humanity. India’s age is not just seventy
years. But having won freedom after a period of subjugation; we have
made efforts to take the nation forward in this journey of seventy years.
Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel united the nation. Now, it is the responsibility of
all of us to make this nation better. We all have to work ceaselessly for the
realization of the dream of ‘One India, great India’. (Ek Bharat, Shreshtha
Bharat).
Brothers and Sisters, We have not attained freedom for free of cost.
Innumerable were the atrocities, but undeterred were our resolves also.
Every Indian was a soldier in the battle for freedom. Each one of them
dreamt of an independent India. May be every one of them was not
fortunate enough to sacrifice, may be each of them was not fortunate
enough to go to prison; but every Indian had a resolve and the leadership
of Mahatma ji and also the inspiration of countless revolutionaries who
had sacrificed everything. All these movements contributed to our
attainment of Independence. But, now we have to convert this freedom
into ‘the real freedom’. Now, this is the resolve of the one hundred and
twenty five crores of Indians. So, just as we did not attain our freedom
without sacrifices; we would not be able to attain ‘the real freedom’
without renunciation, without human endeavour (Purusharth), without
Documents 101

bravery, without dedication and discipline. So, in order to take ahead this
resolution of one hundred and twenty five crore Indians; all of us will have
to move ahead with our specific responsibilities in a most committed
manner. Be it a Panchayat or the Parliament, be it a village headman or the
Prime minister; every one of us as well as every democratic institution will
have to shoulder their responsibilities completely and perfectly. Only then
we will be able to realize the dream of our the real freedom as soon as
possible. This is correct to say that our nation is beset with many problems
now- a- days. But, we should never forget that if we have the problems,
then we also have all the capacities to solve them. So, if we move ahead
with all our capabilities, we will find the ways and mean to solve all these
problems. So, brothers and Sisters, if we have lakhs of problems, then we
also have one hundred and twenty five crore brains also which are all
capable to solve these problems.
Dear Brothers & Sisters, there was a time when Government used
to be surrounded by aspersions. But now time has changed. At present, no
aspersions are being levelled on the Government. Rather, people have
great expectations from it. When the Government is engulfed in
expectations then it signifies hope and trust, which in turn generates those
expectations. Expectations give pace towards good governance,
invigorates and so the pledges are implemented ad continuum. My
Brothers & Sisters, today when I am addressing you from the rampart of
the Red Fort, it is, therefore, but natural that we should discuss the journey
of good governance, the work done by the Government and work being
done and should be done for the country. I can present before you a very
detailed account of work done and also multiple issues regarding the
performance of the Government. During the tenure of two years, the
Government has taken innumerable initiatives and multiple tasks have
been done. If I start giving details about them, I am afraid I will have to talk
about it for a week from this very rampart of the Red Fort. So instead of
that temptation, I would like to draw your attention towards the work
culture of the Government. Sometimes, it is easier to present the account
of work done. But, it is not easy for a common man to comprehend,
understand and identify the work culture without dwelling deep into the
work culture. My Brothers & Sisters, My Countrymen, I would not talk
solely about the policy, but also the intention and decisions of the
Government.
Dear brothers & sisters, it is just not an issue of direction and
outline, rather it is about holistic approach and a resolve for
transformation. It is confluence of trinity of expectation of people,
democracy and support of people. It is both wisdom and consent. It is also
pace and realisation of progress. Therefore, My Countrymen, when I talk
about the Good Governance, it does imply bringing in transformation in
the life of common man of my country. Good governance means that the
government should be sensitive, responsive and dedicated to the common
102 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

man. Then only good governance gets the emphasis. Responsibility and
accountability should be at the root of it and it should draw its vital energy
from there only for the government to be sensitive, dear Brothers and
Sisters. We remember the days when there used to be a very long wait to
go to any big hospital. People used to come to AIIMS, spend two three days
and then only it would be decided what diagnostic tests were to be done.
Now we have been able to change this system. Registration is done online
and the doctor’s appointment is also given online. The processes start on
arrival of the patient at the appointed hour itself. Not only this but all his
medical records are also available online. And we wish to develop it as a
countywide culture in the field of medical treatment. Today this system
has been put in place in 40 big hospitals of the country. Its basic premise is
that the government has to be sensitive.
Dear brothers and sisters, the government should be accountable.
If it be not so then the problems of the common man are kept pending for
solutions. How does the change come? Now technology is there, but there
was a time when the railway ticket in the railways, concerning the
common man and the poor was available only two thousand tickets per
minute. Those who might have seen it, would know how the buffering
used to be there, nobody knew when the website would be operational
again, but today I have to say with satisfaction that now it is possible to
have fifteen thousand tickets per minute. The government should be
accountable, it should take steps according to the necessities and
expectations of the people. There is a class across the country, particularly
the middle class, higher middle class whom you see troubled more at the
hands of the income tax officials rather than the police at times. I have to
change the situation and I am trying and I will certainly change it.
There was a time when a common and honest citizen used to give
two rupees extra as a measure of caution at the time of paying his income
tax. He used to think that he might not be harassed, but once the money
was deposited to the government exchequer, he had to run from pillar to
post and seek recommendations for getting the refund. It took months
together before the rightful money of the citizen was returned to him from
the government exchequer. Today, we have made a system of issuing
online refund. Today, refunds are given in one, two say or three weeks.
Those who are hearing me today on TV, they would also be realising that
they had not given any application, yet they had got refund directly into
their account. So, this responsibility and accountability are the results of
these efforts.
It is equally important to lay emphasis on the transparency for
good governance. You know that a global relationship has already started
to become a common thing in the society today. A middle class man wants
to have his passport- there was a time when about 40 lakh, 50lakh
applications were received for getting passport. Today, approximately 2
crore people apply for the passport. Brothers and Sisters, earlier 4-6
Documents 103

months were taken for scrutiny of applications if one did not have
recommendations. We changed that situation and today, I can say with
pride that passports are issued to the citizens with all genuine details, in
about one or two weeks and there is transparency no recommendation is
required and there is no dilly-dallying. Today, I can say, we have issued
1.75 crores passports (in 2015-16 itself.)
In Surajya there must be efficiency in governance and therefore,
earlier, if a company had to set up a factory or desiring to do business in
our country, applications were submitted. There was a task of registration
only, one wanted to do something for the country, but almost 6 months
passed in normal course. Brothers and Sisters, if efficiency is brought, then
the same government, same rules, same officials have got geared up to
perform the same task of company registration within 24 hours and they
are virtually doing it. In the last July itself, they performed the task of more
than 900 such registrations.
Brothers and Sisters, good governance is also necessary for Surajya
and the steps we have taken towards this good governance are that, as I
had said last year from the Red Fort that we would exempt group ‘C’ and
group ‘D’ posts from interviews, they might get job on the basis of merit.
We have detected almost 9,000 posts for which thousands and lakhs of
people need to be recruited. Now, there would not be any interview
process for these 9,000 posts, my young men would not need to spend any
money for interviews. Recommendations would not be needed, roads for
corruption and agents will be shut and this work has been implemented.
Brothers and Sisters, there was a time when a common man got
satisfied if the government announced any plan or merely announced that
this would be done, he used to think that something concrete would
happen now. Then, a time came when people asked for the plan unless the
drawing of the plan came. Then, there was a time when people asked for
the budget. Today, the mood of the country has changed in 70 years. It
does not get satisfied with the announcement, it is not satisfied by seeing
the plan, if a budget provision is made, it is not ready to accept this. It is
accepted when things get implemented on ground and we cannot bring
things on ground with the old pace. We have to speed up our work,
increase the pace further and then we can say that we have done
something.
Rural roads are a perpetual issue in our country. Each rural citizen
craves for pakka roads. It’s a huge task. Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ji took this
task specifically. Even succeeding governments continued this and the
work continued. We have made efforts to fast track it. Earlier 70-75 Km of
rural roads were completed in a day. Now we have increased that pace up
to 100KM a day. This pace will fulfil the aspirations of common man in the
days to come.
We have aid emphasis on energy, specifically renewable energy in
our country. That was a time, when after so many years of independence,
104 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

we started working on wind energy. Within a period of last one year, we

have increased it up to 40%. So, this is the scale of up acceleration. Whole
world is focussing on solar energy. We have increased it approximately
116%-118%. This is not only a substantial incremental change; it’s a huge
leap forward. We intend to enhance the things in quantum way.
In our country, even before forming of our government, we had the
power production. But to reach the power, you need transmission lines
and the good transmission infrastructure. Two years preceding the
formation of our government, 30-35 thousand kilometres of transmission
lines were being laid annually. Today I wish to submit this with
satisfaction that we have raised this to 50,000 Kilometres. So we have
increased the pace here. If we take the commissioning of railway lines in
previous 10 years, where commissioning means capacity to ply the trains
and to finish all the trials, so earlier it was at the rate of 1500 kilometre in
10 years . But we have made it up to 3500 kilometre in last 2 years. We are
to increase this pace even further.
Brothers and sisters, now we are connecting government schemes
to Aadhaar Card, focussing on stopping the leakages through direct benefit
transfer. Previous government had connected four crore people to
government schemes via Aadhaar Card. Today I can say this with
satisfaction that in place of that work of four crore, we have completed the
task of connecting 70 crore people to government schemes via Aadhaar
card. The remaining will also be taken into the fold.
Today, for middle class or for common people the ownership of a
car is a matter of pride. There was a time when gas stove at home was
deemed as a standard and as a symbol of social status. During the last 60
years of independence, 14 crore LPG gas connections were given. Brothers
and Sisters, it is a great satisfaction to me that on one side, 14 crore gas
connections were given in 60 years, while on the other side, we have given
4 crore gas connections in just 60 weeks. Please compare the two figures –
14 crore in 60 years and 4 crore in 60 weeks. This is the speed, by which a
change has become possible in the quality of life of common men. We have
also started the task of eradicating obsolete laws. The burden of
unnecessary laws has been creating hindrance in the functioning of the
government, the judiciary and the public. We have identified 1700 such
laws, out of which 1175 laws have already been repealed by the
Parliament and several other such laws are in the process of repealing.
Brothers and Sisters, it had become a tendency among the people
to say that certain work can be done and certain other work cannot be
done, certain work cannot be done now and certain work cannot be done
ever. A kind of negativity was prevalent in the minds of people. Now, a
clear break through is visible in the mind-set, a new synergy is seen in the
functioning of the government. When an accomplishment is achieved, it
stimulates dynamism, which sharpens our determination and then, the
end result is not far away.
Documents 105

Brothers and Sisters, when we had launched “Prime Minister Jan-

Dhan Yojana”, it was almost an impossible task. There were banks and the
governments, nationalisation had already taken place, but the common
man of the country was not able to be a part of the mainstream of national
economy.
Brothers and Sisters, we have attained this impossible task
through inclusion of 21 crore persons under “Jan-Dhan Yojana”. This is not
a matter of taking credit by the Government, it is really an achievement of
125 crore countrymen of the country, for which I salute them. The
campaign for women pride in villages of the country is an important issue
of today. The practice of open defecation should be stopped; toilets should
be built in villages. When I had got the first opportunity to address from
the ramparts of the Red Fort, I had expressed my feelings about it. Now, I
can claim that more than 2 crore toilets have already been built in villages
of the country within such a short period. More than 70 thousand villages
are now free from the practice of open defecation. We are working
towards bringing change in the lives of common man.
I had earlier announced from the ramparts of the Red Fort that we
would electrify those 18 thousand villages, which are still without
electricity. We are going to complete 70 years of independence, but they
had not seen electricity. They were forced to live in the 18th century. We
undertook this task of making possible the impossible and today I am glad
to say that, though we have not been able to complete even half the task
within a thousand days, we are still away from the half-mark, out of the 18
thousand, electricity has reached ten thousand villages. I have been told
that there are many among those villages who are watching Independence
Day celebrations for the first time today on television in their homes.
Today, from here I extend special greetings to those villages.
Brothers and sisters, you will be surprised to know that at merely
three hours journey from Delhi, there is a village called Nagla Fatela in
Hathras region. It takes only three hours to reach this Nagla Fatela. But it
took 70 years for electricity to reach there. 70 years, my brothers and
sisters! Therefore, I am introducing you to the work culture that we are
following.
Brothers and Sisters, the LED bulbs were developed by the science
and the researchers for welfare of every citizen. But in India it used to cost
350 Rupees. Who would buy it? And even the government would think,
“It’s alright. The work is done. Someone must be using it.” But this should
not be the attitude. If LED bulbs can bring about a change in the life of a
common man, if it can ameliorate the environment, if it can improve
India’s economy, then the government must make efforts in this direction.
It is the nature of the government that it intervenes where it is not
required and shies away from intervening where it is needed. We tried to
change this situation, this work culture. And therefore, the bulb which
used to be sold at 350 Rupees, it is now being sold at 50 Rupees because of
106 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

governmental intervention. See the difference! 350 Rupees on one hand

and 50 Rupees on the other. I do not want to ask where all this money
used to go, however, thirteen crore bulbs have been distributed till date.
The politics of our country has become populist; the economic
policies have become populist. If three hundred Rupees subsidy for each
bulb had been given from public exchequer, the Prime Minister would
have been applauded for doling out five hundred crore to the people. But
we have ensured that they save thousands of crores by providing bulbs at
only fifty Rupees. We have already distributed thirteen crore bulbs and we
have resolved to distribute 77 crores and I would like to appeal to my
countrymen to use LED bulbs in their homes and save 200, 300, 500
Rupees in a year and save energy and save our environment. The day we
achieve the target of 77 crore bulbs, we would be saving 20 thousand
Mega Watt of electricity. When we save 20000 Megawatt electricity, it
means we save around 125000 crores rupees. Brothers and Sisters, you
can save 125000 crore rupees of the country by using a LED bulb at your
home. We can fight against global warming by saving 20000 Megawatt
electricity and contribute a lot towards the efforts aimed at the protection
of environment and a common man can also contribute to it. So, brothers
and Sisters, we have worked in that direction, making the impossible
possible.
You know that we depend on other countries of the world for
energy and petroleum products and for that we have signed long term
agreements with them so that we could get these products at fixed prices
for a long period. We have entered into an agreement with Qatar for
buying gas till 2024 but the prices are so high that it is costly for our
economy. It was a result of our foreign policy relationship that we were
able to renegotiate with Qatar, and the agreement which was the right of
Qatar, and we were bound to buy gas from it till 2024, we negotiated with
them and today, I can say with satisfaction that we made an impossible
task possible, they renegotiated their prices and it will save 2000 crore
rupees of the exchequer of India. They were entitled to get these 20000
crore rupees but the nature of relationship that we have with them and
our policies have made it possible. The negotiations have been going on
during the tenure of all the Governments and efforts were also made for
Chabahar Port, which is an important link for connecting us with Central
Asia, but today I feel satisfied to see an impossible task becoming possible.
When Iran, Afghanistan and India collectively march ahead in a planned
way for the construction of Chabahar Port, an impossible task becomes
possible.
My brothers and sisters, one thing, I want to talk about and which
concerns the common man is inflation. It is true that the inflation rate had
crossed 10% mark during the tenure of previous government. Due to our
sustained efforts we were able to keep it below 6 percent. Not only this, we
have, recently, made an agreement with the Reserve Bank of India that the
Documents 107

RBI should take steps to control the inflation at the level of 4 percent with
allowance of plus minus 2. We should leave behind the talks of balance
between inflation and growth and work for moving ahead. But the country
witnessed drought during last two years and the effect of drought are
readily seen on the prices of vegetables and the outcomes of sluggishness
of market have resulted in some problems. The decline in the production
of pulses due to drought during last two years was also a cause of concern.
But, Brothers and Sisters, if the inflation would have increased at the same
pace as it had previously increased, I don’t know how the poor of my
country would have survived? We have tried our best to keep it under
check, but still people have lot of expectations from this government and
dear countrymen your expectations are natural and I will not leave no
stone unturned in achieving them. Whatever best I can do, I shall do that
and keep the price of poor man’s meal under check.
My dear Brothers and Sisters, country is going to celebrate the
350th anniversary of Guru Gobind Singhji. How can the country forget the
saga of sacrifice, which has been the tradition of Sikh Gurus? Today, when
we are celebrating the 350th anniversary of Guru Gobind Singhji, I recall
one best thought expressed by Guruji. Guru Gobind Singhji use to say, how
can I consider those hands pure which have not done any service, hands
which have not strengthened by labour and have not developed any
blisters by toiling hard? Guru Gobind Singhji use to say this. Today, when
we are celebrating the 350th anniversary of Guru Gobind Singhji I
remember our farmers. Whose hands are more pure than theirs? Whose
hearts are more pious than their? Whose intentions can be more pure than
theirs? I thanks our farmers that despite two years of drought, they
consistently endeavoured to fill our granaries, I greet them for this.
Drought situation has changed and this time we are witnessing good
monsoon. Heavy rains have also created problems at some places.
Government of India stood with those states and citizen who suffered due
to heavy rains. Today, I specially want to thank our farmers, because,
when we are facing shortage of pulses and our farmers have shifted to
other crops, and rise in demand of pulses by common man, I have to say
this with content that this time our farmers have increased the sowing by
one and half times. I want to thank our farmers because they have come
forward to solve the problem of the crisis of pulses and find its solution.
We have decided the MSP for pulses and declared a bonus on it. We have
streamlined the process of purchase of pulses and promoting the farmers
for cultivation of pulses. This will benefit us in a big way.
Brothers and Sisters, when I was talking about work culture, one
thing was clear that I do not look at the issues in isolation but as a whole.
Let us see it as integrated and just take agriculture under integrated
things, we have developed such work culture with lot of hard work, the
complete chain of which can produce a great result. First of all we focussed
upon- the wellness of this soil, wellness of this land, soil health card,
108 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

macro-nutrition, concern for micro-nutrition and made the farmers

understand that this is lacuna in your soil, these are the good qualities,
your soil is good for this crop, this is not suitable for this crop and
gradually the farmers started their planning according to this soil health
card. The people, who have planned, tell me, sir our expenditure has been
reduced up to 25 percent and 30 percent increase is being visible our
production. This number is less at present, but in future as soon as this
may pass on, this concept will gain momentum. The farmers have land and
if they get water, then the farmer of my country has the power to produce
gold out of the soil. The farmer of my country has this power and that is
why we have emphasized upon water-management, emphasized upon
water-irrigation, emphasized upon water-conservation. We are
emphasizing upon how every drop of water may be utilised by the farmer,
how to increase the importance of water, and get per drop more crop,
micro irrigation. More than 90 percent irrigation projects were lying
incomplete and stalled. We have taken up the responsibility to complete
those projects first of all and will work in the direction that lakh of
hectares of land may get the benefit of irrigation. We have taken a big leap
towards solar pump so that the input cost of the farmers may be lessened
because nowadays the farmers require electricity also, they require water,
they need electricity, and electricity costs dearer. On account of it, the
input cost of the farmer is going to be less, the recurring expenditure is
going to be less and due to owning solar pump at home will result in
owning electricity, owning the sun, owning the field, owing the barn and
thus our farmer would be happy. We have succeeded in distributing 77
thousands solar pumps till now.
Brothers and Sisters, I would like to congratulate the scientists of
our country. Good quality seeds are also required along with soil, water
and solar pumps. The scientists of our country have developed more than
131 new farmable seeds compatible to the climate and nature of India,
which have the capacity to enhance our per hectare production. The values
they retain are also being increased. I heartily congratulate these scientists
also. The farmers require urea as well as fertilisers. There was time when
black marketing was in practice to get the fertilisers, there was time when
the police had to lathi-charge for fertilisers. There was time when the
farmer used to watch his crop being damaged in the absence of fertilisers
before his very eyes. Brothers and Sisters, Fertiliser shortages are a thing
of the past; they are now history. We have recorded the highest-ever
production of fertilisers. This is likely to ensure timely availability of
fertilisers to farmers.
Similarly, we conceptualized “Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana”.
Its insurance cover includes maximum protection to farmer’s land and his
agro-produce at a comparatively much lower premium, and that too with a
guaranteed cover. We have constructed new warehouses to preserve 15
lakhs tons of food grains. Our country’s farmers will benefit only when we
Documents 109

move towards value addition, and for this We have laid special emphasis
on food processing for the first time. We have encouraged cent percent
Foreign Direct Investment which would augment agro-based industries,
and Consequentially, my brothers and Sisters, I believe it would help me
and our farmers realize our dream of doubling latter’s income by 2022.
These efforts would make it possible and for realizing the same, We have
taken steps one after another.
Brothers and Sisters, Our country has a fancy for a trend. And the
Governments, with an aim to leave an impression, have done a lot, and to
fill the bill in this country, People go for some populist things and empty
the exchequer. Governments have a trend of establishing an identity.
Brothers and Sisters, I have tried my best to stay away from this
allurement, and while doing so, I have tried to do several things in every
range with the mantra of Total transformation, Transformation with
transparency, Reform, Perform and Transform.
Brothers and Sisters, We are far more committed to build the
image of Hindustan than that of our Government. Regardless of party’s
identity, the Country’s identity holds primacy. For, If the Country moves
on, it will yield dividends for the coming generations, for centuries, and
exactly, for this reason, We have accorded primacy to the country’s
identity and not to our party. Now a days, You must have observed the
scope of our work in Railways. While we are talking about having Bio-
toilets in train, we also cherish the dream of Bullet train. While We talk
about “Soil Health Card” for farmers, we also want to march ahead in the
direction of satellite and space technology. While talking about “Stand-Up
India”, we are also taking steps towards “Start-Up India”. We are laying
emphasis on Substance than on Symbolism. We are stressing on integrated
development than on isolated development. Leaving aside entitlement, we
are focused and emphatic on Empowerment because an empowering
country, my brothers and Sisters, provides an identity to the Government
through the prism of the newly declared schemes. But sometimes the old
schemes just tumble down. Nevertheless, the government is a continuity. If
the earlier governments have done some work; then it is in the national
interest that the next Government rectifies their shortcomings and gives a
go ahead to these schemes. The arrogance that this was the work of your
Government and this is my government; hence we would not do this work;
is not in the fitness of the things in a democracy. This is why, with all
humility, we have given similar importance to the schemes of the previous
governments. This is the hallmark of our work culture as our nation is a
continuous and a ceaseless system and we wish to retain that system. This
is why, I have a project called PRAGATI. Under this project, every month, I
myself sit and review all the on-going projects. You would be amazed to
know that almost 119 projects worth Rs. seven and a half lakh crores
started by various previous Governments were lying pending. I got all of
them going. I said, so much of money have been spent on them, so, all
110 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

these projects should be completed. Now they are all on the way to
completion. We created a project-monitoring group. I asked them to look
into all such projects and find out as to when were they started. I came to
know that some of them were started 20 years ago, the other were started
somewhere between twenty five to thirty, to fifteen years earlier. The
people living in the areas of these projects know all. We identified such
two hundred and seventy projects worth Rs. 10 Lakhs crores which were
inaugurated by some earlier governments and some crores of rupees were
spent on all of them; but all that money was going down the drain. We
started all such stuck up projects once again. Brothers and sisters, such
holding up and delaying of the schemes after having spent crores of rupees
on them is a criminal negligence and we have tried to tide over such
things.
Brothers and sisters, earlier railway projects took at least two
years in getting sanctions. A train is passing from somewhere, road have
also been made on the both side; a rail over bridge is to be constructed.
But the approval took two years. We have speeded up the approval
process and have been able to shorten the approval time to three or four
months, or maximum to six months.
Brothers and sisters, however fast we may work, whatsoever may
be the number of the schemes started by us; the touchstone of good
administration of any Government lies in the last man delivery or the
benefits accrued to that person. So, this has to be taken care off. Brothers
and Sisters, when policies are clear, intentions are clear; then the
sentiments behind the decisions are also a class apart and the decisions
can be taken unhesitantly. So, due to the correct policies and the correct
intentions our Government is taking unhesitant decisions and giving
emphasis on the last man delivery.
We have seen and if you also go through the newspapers of Uttar
Pradesh, every year there were stories about the outstanding balance of
Sugar Cane farmers. Every year, there was news that this is not being done
by the sugar mill owners, that was not being done by the state Govt, that
sugar cane farmers are in distress. Thousands of crores of the rupees was
outstanding. So, we made schemes in this regard and tired to ensure the
last man delivery and also ensured that the amount should reach to the
farmers. Brothers and Sisters, out of the total old outstanding balance of
the thousands of crores of rupees, I would like to inform you with a lot of
satisfaction that almost 99.5% has been settled. It has happened for the
first time after many years. I can point out in solace that all the sugarcane
which was procured and which came for marketing this time for that
almost 95 per cent of farmers have got the price of sugarcane produced
and I am sure and I believe that the remaining 5 percent of farmers will
also be paid in the coming days.
Brothers & sisters, we have initiated a mission to provide LPG
Connections to the poor families. We have launched a dynamic mission
Documents 111

under “Ujawala” scheme to get rid of smokes emanating from chulha for
my poor mothers. A target has been laid down to provide gas connections
to 5 crores poor families within 3 years. Efforts are in progress and we
have already provided gas connections to around 50 lakhs and that also
have been done merely within the last hundred days – you can imagine –
that it may be possible to achieve the said target even before three years.
We intend to emphasis upon Last Mile Delivery in this mission.
Post has steadily become irrelevant due to our Post Offices going
online, Information Technology, Whatsapp, messages, e-mail. Our country
is known as the chains of Post Offices and we have revamped these post
offices. Post Offices are linked with poor and marginalised people.
Postman is the only representative of the Government who is linked with
the feelings and affections of the common man. We have never
safeguarded the interests of the Post Man who has always got the
affections of everyone and the postman always cares for common people.
We have taken measures to convert our post office into a Payment Bank.
By setting of these Payment Banks, a network of Banks will be set up
across the villages in the country. People will get the benefits of Jan-Dhan
account. The funds of MGNREGA for the common man is now being
transferred into their respective accounts through ‘AADHAAR’, the cases of
corruption are decreasing. Everyone will be benefitted through the
mission of converting the Post Office into a Payment Bank.
Brothers & sisters, PSUs in our country are merely set up for loss-
making units or for turning into sick units slowly and steadily or for
disinvestment. This has been the common practice in the past. We have
strived to launch a new work-culture. Today, I can point out in satisfaction
that we have succeeded to turn the operation of so called notorious Air
India into an operational profit-making undertaking during the last year. It
is a fact that which all the Telecom companies of the world are profit-
making units, the BSNL was turning into a heavy loss-making undertaking.
We have succeeded in bringing BSNL to operational profit for the first
time. Nobody believed that the Shipping Corporation of India could also
rake in profit, now it is bringing profit. There was a time when it was
apprehended that how would a power factory last for a week. Whether we
would be able to get coal for them or not. It also used to be reported that
power factories have been shut down for want of coal. Now, we have
sufficient stock of coal at the threshold of the power factories. It could be
used for months by them. Dear brothers & sisters, we have achieved it.
Often, you must have seen that there is huge talk of corruption in
our country. I have observed it myself that how corruption has looked the
poor people from the lowest strata of the society and how huge amount of
money is being wasted. We have linked AADHAAR Card and AADHAAR
Number with the Government Policies. Dear brothers & sisters, earlier
there was a system under which funds used to be released from public
exchequer for widow pension, scholarship, persons with disabilities and
112 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

minorities and also we used to receive list of beneficiaries. We looked into

it deeply and found that even unborn children are also listed in it and
getting benefit out of such schemes. These middlemen used to siphon off
billions of rupees from it and nobody even took notice of it. But under the
AADHAAR System, we have removed all these middlemen from the list of
beneficiaries and directly transferred the amount to the beneficiaries and
found that these are millions of such ghost beneficiaries who do not exist
at all and used to receive billions of rupees from it. Now that has been
checked. We saved lot of amount. We decided to find out the needy
persons who were excluded from that list so that the amount of money
saved from it should invariably be deposited into the accounts of those
persons who want to fight for their rights. We have worked in that
direction to deliver it to the last man delivery and we have made it to
reach it to them.
All of us are aware of the Coal Scam. Today there is no accusation
on the coal auction. No stigma is attached to it. The states which excavate
coal in India, will continuously earn millions of rupees in the near future.
There was a time when the auction of spectrum was surrounded by
allegations. We auctioned it online and that has filled the coffers of the
country, bringing about healthy competition and also fetching benefits for
the nation.
Dear Brothers and Sisters, today the world is passing through an
era of global economy. Every country today is inter-connected and inter-
dependent. Economically, the whole world is somehow inter-connected in
one way or other. However much we may progress in our country, we’ll
have to keep the global economy, global arena in view; come up to the
global standards, match it also to stay relevant, and contribute, and also
lead the global economy when the time comes. Therefore, we’ll have to be
alert all the time. We’ll have to comply with the global standards to make
ourselves up to date. Recently, you must have seen how the World Bank,
I.M.F., World Economic Forum, credit rating agencies and such other
agencies in the world have all appreciated the progress of India. The world
is constantly watching these things due to the decisions taken one after
another by India in respect of legal reforms, improvement in system and
changes in approach. We have very speedily improved our ranking in `ease
of doing business’ ratings. In terms of foreign investment, with regard to
foreign direct investment our country happens to be the most favourite
destination in the world today. We have left behind even the big
economies of the world in matters of growth rate and GDP.
Dear brothers and Sisters, do you know what an U.N. institute has
estimated about India for the next two years? They have estimated that in
two years India will come up to the third spot in the economic sphere in
place of its present level at number ten. Brothers and Sisters, logistic
support, infrastructure, all these things are taken into account in global
standards, comparisons are made with rich countries of the world.
Documents 113

Brothers and Sisters, while making analysis regarding this logistic support
and infrastructure of India, the World Economic Forum has said that India
has reached above 19 ranks as compared to earlier positions and India is
moving up and marching ahead rapidly. Brothers and Sisters, the way we
are marching ahead with a dynamic and predictable economy in our
country and also in global reference- the recently passed GST law, is also
an empowering step towards it and all those parties deserve appreciations
for this.
Brothers and Sisters, I had talked about a campaign from the same
place- “Beti Bachao-Beti Padhao”. We do not do any work in piecemeal. We
have an integrated approach and I still need the cooperation of the society
in the initiatives which we have taken in “Beti Bachao-Beti Padhao”. Every
single parent need to be aware. We should honour the daughters, protect
them and give them the benefit of government’s schemes. We have
covered millions of families under “Sukanya Samridhi Yojna” which
guarantees benefits for the daughters when she grows up. We have given
greatest importance to the insurance schemes in which women are
benefitted. They are going to reap its benefits. We have “Indradhanush
Tikakaran Yojna”- because if we ensure two things for our mothers and
sisters i.e. economic empowerment and empowerment against health
problems and we educate them, you can take it as an assurance that if even
a single woman is educated in the family, if she is strong physically and
independent economically, she has power to pull the poorest of the poor
family out of poverty and therefore we are working with emphasis on
empowerment of women, health of women, economic prosperity of
women, physical empowerment of women in our fight against poverty.
Therefore, my brothers and sisters, “Mudra Yojna”- I am happy
that more than three and half crore families reaped the benefits of
MudraYojna. In it, most of the people who reached to the door of banks
were first timers. Even out of these almost 80 percent people were from
SC/ST/OBC. Out of these too, 80 percent are women who took loans from
banks, Mudra bank. This is to be considered that how will these
womenfolk will contribute in economic development. Brothers and sisters!
last week we decided that our mothers and Sisters who have become the
participants in the growth story, need leave after child birth. Earlier that
leave was shorter but now we have increased this to 26 weeks, enabling
the new mother to take care of her infant. Our weavers and the people
working in textile, who make yarn and yarn rolls, used to get Rs.100. We
have increased that to Rs.190 so as to strengthen the hands of my yarn
producing mothers and Sisters. Our mothers, Sisters and weavers who are
engaged in silk production will now receive Rs.50 more per meter of
production. This has also been decided that this Rs.50 per meter will not
go either to the trader or to the middleman or to the dealer. Instead this
Rs.50 per meter will go via Aadhaar directly to the account of the weaver
114 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

who has produced it. This will empower the weavers. We have started
schemes with this intention and effect is now visible.
My dear countrymen! When we visualize railway and post office
then we are able to see the unity of India. More we increase the
institutions connecting India, our setup will change and that will enforce
the unity of the country. So in the same tune we have started a new market
scheme for farmers with the name ‘E-NAM’. Today farmers can sell their
produce online in any of the markets of the country. Now he is not
constrained to compulsively sell his produce in the market which is 10
Kilometres from his field. Neither to sell at low prices which is not
remunerative for his hard work. Now a uniform sort of market network is
establishing throughout the country with ‘E-NAM’. GST is soon to result in
uniform taxation system and a unitary arrangement thus achieved will
unite India as well. You will be amazed to know that earlier a zone was to
have surplus energy and there were no takers. Another zone used to be in
dire need of electricity, had to remain in dark and factories used to be shut.
To effect a change in this scenario, we earned a great success with the ‘One
nation, One grid, One price’. Earlier it used to be Rs.10 per unit in summers
but I went to Telangana few days back to find it to be one rupee ten paise
per unit instead of that age old Rs. 10. This is the result of one-price
system, which can connect the whole country.
A worker of our county has to change his place of work after every
one or two years. But, his amount, deducted under EPF, is not transferred.
You will be surprised to know that when I took the charge of the
Government, Rs. 27,000 crore were lying under EPF, which belonged to
the workers. Workers were not able to claim their amount, as they were
ignorant of the relevant process. To solve this problem, we have issued a
universal account number to each worker, which would enable easy
transfer of fund to his new place of work. Now, the worker would get his
amount after retirement and it would no more be lying dormant in a
government treasury.
We have strengthened various initiatives such as Bharat-Mala,
Setu-Bharatam, and Bharat-Net etc. We are working towards connecting
the whole country and towards economic development of the country
through all these initiatives.
Brothers and Sisters, this year is important due to various reasons.
The country is celebrating 1000th birth anniversary of Saint Sri Ramanuja
Acharyaji. The country is celebrating 150th birth anniversary of Shrimad
Rajchandra Ji, the Guru of Mahatma Gandhi. The country is celebrating
350th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh ji. The country is also
celebrating centenary birth celebrations of Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya
ji. While remembering Sri Ramanuja Acharya ji today, I wish to underline
his message to the country. He used to say that we should serve all the
devotees of the Lord, irrespective of their caste and class. He had said that
we should never humiliate anyone and should give respect to all, without
Documents 115

any discrimination on the basis of age and caste. The issue that was given
importance by Gandhi, Ambedkar, Ramanujacharya, Lord Buddha, our
scriptures and by our all-spiritual gurus too is the issue of ‘our social
unity’.
If the society disintegrates, the empire straggles, is divided into the
highs and the lows, the touchables and the untouchables, then brothers
and Sisters, that society cannot sustain. There are social evils, centuries old
social evils, but if the social evils have become chronic, they need a bit
harsh and yet sensitive treatment. The lackadaisical attitude will not solve
the social problems and this is the responsibility of 125 crore citizens. The
government and the society together will have to steer through the social
conflicts. Brothers and Sisters, all of us will have to fight against the social
evils. We all will have to rise above social evils in our own behaviour. Each
and every citizen will have to rise above them and then only we can build a
strong India. Without empowering our society, we cannot make India
strong. Mere economic progress does not guarantee a strong India, the
guarantee of a strong India lies in a strong society. And a strong society is
built at the edifice of social justice. A strong society is built only on the
edifice of social justice. Therefore, it is our duty to lay emphasis on social
justice. Whether they be Dalits, the downtrodden, the exploited, the
deprived, my Adivasi brothers, the rural population, the urban population,
the literate or the illiterate, the small or the big- the 125 crore of our fellow
countrymen constitute our family. We together have to take forward our
country and we all have to work in the same direction.
Brothers and Sisters, today the entire world acknowledges the fact
that India is a country of youths. What cannot be achieved by a country
through its youth power whose 65 percent population, about 800 Million
people, is below the age of 35 years? Therefore, my brothers and sisters, it
is the need of the hour that the youth get opportunity and employment.
Today we are heading towards the birth centenary of Pandit Deen Dayal
Upadhyaya. Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya spoke of welfare of the last
human being which was even the view of Mahatma Gandhi. Pandit Deen
Dayal Upadhyaya believed in the philosophy of ‘Antyodaya’. Welfare of the
poorest and the weakest was the central theme of the political philosophy
of Pt. Deendayal Upadhyayji. He used to say that every youth should get
education, every youth should be skilled and every youth should get the
opportunity to realise his dreams. We have taken many initiatives to
realise those dreams of Pt. Deendayalji and to fulfil the hopes and
aspirations of 800 million youths of the country. The way the road
network in the country is expanding, the largest number of vehicles are
being manufactured in the country, the country is becoming the largest
exporter of softwares, more than 50 new mobile factories have been set up
in the country, all these things have created opportunities for the youths. If
two crore door toilets have been constructed, it has provided employment
to someone, cement has been procured from somewhere, iron has been
116 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

purchased from some other person, and the wooden work has been got
done from somewhere else. As the scope of work expands, the possibilities
of employment generation also increase. Today, we have stressed in that
direction.
Similarly, we are working on ‘skill development’ as a mission so
that crores of youth could acquire skills. We have changed a law, though it
seems very small, and this law is ‘Model Shop and Establishment Act’. We
have sent an advisory to states to give reasons why the big malls are
allowed to open 365 days and up to 12 in the night but a small shopkeeper
in the village has to shut his shop after sunset. Even a poor should get the
opportunity to keep his shop open for 365 days. Why should our Sisters
not get the opportunity to work in night? We have made legal provisions
so that our Sisters could go to work in night also. There should be
arrangements for their safety and other requirements but they must get
the opportunity to work. These are the things which increase employment.
Brothers and Sisters, we are working in that direction and we are ready to
do it.
Brothers and Sisters, this is the government, we are the persons
who don’t believe in delaying the things, we know how to fight not how to
delay, so unless we deal with the problems head-on, it is not going to
happen. Today when we are celebrating our freedom in the country,
someone among the army jawans, who live and die for the country, would
be ready for taking the bullets on the border, someone will be sitting in
bunker and some other one would not be fortunate enough to meet his
sister on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan. How many jawans are working
in armed forces? More than 33000 police personnel have got martyrdom
since we got our independence. Why should we forget them and how can
we? These are the people due to whom we can live a life of peace and
happiness. The issue of “One Rank One Pension” was pending for many
years. We do not keep the issues pending but we face them. We have
fulfilled our promise of “One Rank One Pension” and have spread
happiness in the home of every Indian soldier. We did this work.
It was the feeling of our countrymen that the files pertaining to
Netaji Subhash Babu should be declassified. Today, I bow my head and say
that without caring for the result we have decided to declassify these files;
a task which was impossible and kept pending since long. We invited
Netaji’s family members and shown them the files and this process of
declassifying will continue. I requested the other countries of the world to
declassify the files held by them and hand them over to India because
Indians have full right to know about Subhash Babu and history of India.
We have worked in that direction.
Bangladesh — When partition of India took place, a boundary
dispute existed since then. A boundary dispute prevailed since the
formation of Bangladesh. Many decades passed. Brothers and Sisters, all
Documents 117

parties have together solved the Indo-Bangladesh border dispute and we

have amended the constitution also.
Brothers and sisters, a middle class person wants to construct his
own house, wants to buy a flat. Builders lobby shows him a beautifully
printed booklet and the helpless soul falls prey to it. He is not having any
technical knowledge, he pays the installments but he is not getting the
promised house in time. A middle class makes one house in his whole life
and in it he invests all his capital. Brothers and sisters, we have put a check
by passing the “Real Estate Bill”, so that a middle class should not face any
problem if he wishes to own a house. We have worked for this.
Brothers and Sisters, I have already said that this year is the 150th
anniversary of Shrimad Rajchandra Ji, the guru of Mahatma Gandhi. When
Gandhiji was staying at South Africa, then also he was having
correspondence with Shrimad Rajchandra Ji. In one of his letter, Shrimad
Rajchandra Ji discussed violence and non-violence. In that letter,
Rajchandra Ji writes, when violence came in to existence from same time
the principle of non-violence also born. The important thing in both is that
which we prefer or which is being used in the interest of mankind.
Brothers and sisters, the discussion of violence and non-violence is
very inherent in our country. Humanity is in our blood. We are the people
of a great, colossal culture. This country is full of diversity, colours and
beauty. This is such a bouquet of mother India wherein all type of
fragrances, all type of colours and all type of dreams exist. Brothers and
Sisters, the unity of diversity is our biggest strength. The mantra of unity is
connected to our roots.
Brothers and sisters, a country having more than hundred
languages, hundreds of dialects, innumerable attires, innumerable life
styles, despite that this country remained united- its main reason is our
cultural heritage. We know how to respect, we know hospitality, we know
how to assimilate, we have carried this great tradition and that is why
there is no room for violence and atrocity in our country. If the democracy
of India is to be strengthened, the dreams of India are to be fulfilled then
the path of violence would never bring success for us. Nowadays a game of
killing the innocents is being played on the pretext of Maoism in forests, on
the pretext of extremism at border, on the pretext of terrorism at hilly
areas by carrying guns on shoulders. Forty years have passed, this mother
soil has grown blood stained but the persons on the path of terrorism have
not achieved anything. I would like to remind those youth that this country
will never tolerate violence nor would it ever put up with terrorism. Nor
would it bow down to terrorism. It will never succumb to Maoism. But I
exhort them and say that you still have time-return to the mainstream. Just
think about your parents’ dream; just reflect on the hopes and
expectations of your parents; return back to the mainstream; live a happy
and peaceful life, for, the path of violence never fetches benefit to anybody.
118 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

Brothers and sister, we talk about foreign policy. I don’t want to go

into details. We had invited the leaders of SAARC Countries on the day we
took oath at the Centre. Our message was clear that we all, neighbouring
countries, have a common problem, and that common challenge is poverty.
Let us fight this poverty together, by fighting one-another, we are left
shattered but if we fight this poverty, we will walk towards prosperity. So,
I exhort all neighbouring countries to join us in this fight against poverty.
No freedom can be much bigger than the freedom of our citizens from
poverty; freedom of our country’s citizen from poverty. No liberation is
more liberating than the freedom from poverty. Whenever a citizen from
the neighbouring countries would get freedom from poverty, we will feel
elated regardless of the fact whether the poor belongs to us or our
neighbouring country.
Brothers and sisters, what kind of people are those who got drive
from humanity and, what is the kind of those who reward terrorism? I
want to place two pictures before this world, and I say to the world, I say
to those who believe in humanity that just weigh out the attack, when
terrorists brutally killed innocent children in a school at Peshawar. The
attack take place in Peshawar, and was a terrorist incident. The innocent
children became victim of the bloodbath; the temple of learning had blood
stream all around; innocent children were slaughtered. Hindustan, the
Parliament had tears in its eyes; Every Indian school was in tears; every
child of India felt the trauma of the deaths of children in Peshawar. His
tears had become unstoppable. Every child, who was killed in Peshawar in
the terrorist attack, ached our heart too. This is the drive of our nurtured
culture of humanity; this is our humanity, but if you look around, you will
find a more to glorify terrorists.
Where innocent people are killed in terrorist attack, and they
celebrate, what type of terrorism inspired life it is, what type of these
creations of the terrorism inspired governments are? The world will
understand these two differences properly, this is sufficient for me. Today
I want to specially honour and thank to some people from the ramparts of
Red Fort. For the past few days the people of Baluchistan, the people of
Gilgit, the people of Pakistan occupied Kashmir, the way their citizens have
heartily thanked me, the way they have acknowledged me, the goodwill
they have shown towards me, the people settled far across, the land which
I have not seen, the people I have not met ever, but people settled at far
across acknowledge the Prime Minister of India, they honour him, so it is
an honour of my 125 crores countrymen, it is respect of my 125 crores
countrymen and that is why owing to the feeling of this honour, I want to
heartily thank the people of Baluchistan, the people of Gilgit, the people of
Pakistan occupied Kashmir for having an expression of thankfulness.
Brothers and sisters, today when we are celebrating the seventy
years of Independence, then there is a big contribution of freedom soldiers
for the country. When there is a contribution of these freedom soldiers,
Documents 119

then the Government is deciding to increase 20 percent in the honouring

amount being received, pension being received by the all these honourable
freedom soldiers family members. The freedom fighters who earlier used
to get 25000 rupees, will now get 30000 rupees. It is my small effort to pay
my respects to the sacrifice and oblation of our freedom fighters.
Brothers and Sisters, when we talk about the history of freedom
struggle of our country, some persons are talked about a lot, some are
excessively mentioned but the contribution made by the people living in
jungles, the tribals, in the freedom struggle was unmatched. They used to
live in jungles. We hear the name of Birsa Munda but perhaps there would
be no tribal dominated district where the tribals would not have fought
and given sacrifice since 1857 to the time we got freedom. They proved
through their sacrifice what is freedom, what is struggle against servitude.
But our forthcoming generations are not much aware of this history. The
government desires and plans that in the coming days, in the states where
these freedom fighters, who were tribals, who lived in jungles, fought
against the British, who were not ready to succumb. The Government
would work towards building permanent museums in various states
dedicated to tribal brave freedom fighters, wherever land would be
available for the purpose, where their contributions and memoirs would
be displayed, so that coming generations could be able to know about their
sacrifices for the country.
Brothers and Sisters, in the midst of the debate on inflation, we are
realising one fact that the entire economy of a poor household is affected if
somebody falls ill. The wedding of their daughters gets stalled, the
education of children gets stalled and sometimes even food is not available
in the evening. Healthcare is getting costlier and that is why, I am
announcing an important scheme from the ramparts of the Red Fort for
the healthcare of BPL families. Under this scheme, in the coming days, if
such poor families have to take medical facilities, the government will bear
expenditure upto Rs.1 lakh per year, so that my poor brothers are not
deprived of healthcare facilities and their dreams are not shattered.
My dear Brothers and Sisters, let us proceed forward with a new
determination, new energy, new enthusiasm by getting inspiration from
those great persons who scarified their lives for our freedom. We did not
get an opportunity to die for the country but we have the opportunity to
live for the country. We should dedicate our life to the nation. We should
achieve something of substance for the nation. We should fulfill our
responsibilities and also inspire others to accomplish their
responsibilities. We should stride forward for building of one society, one
dream, one resolution, one direction and one destination. With this very
pious feeling, I once again bow my head before the great personalities of
the country, the soldiers who risk their lives for our security on water,
land and air fields and also those 33 thousands martyrs who sacrificed
their lives for us. So, I, hereby, dedicate myself to dream about the future
120 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

of the country and call on all of you from the rampart of the Red Fort to
speak with your full might : Bharat Mata Ki Jay! Let the voice reach to
every corner of the world.
Bharat Mata Ki Jay! Bharat Mata Ki Jay! Bharat Mata Ki Jay!
Vandematram! Vandematram! Vandematram !
Jay Hind! Jay Hind! Jay Hind!
Thank you.

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Documents 121

Document: 4

Statement by Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, Prime Minister of the Islamic

Republic of Pakistan, at the 71st Session of the UN General Assembly,
21 September 2016.

Mr. President,
Excellencies,
Distinguished delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen.

W e congratulate Mr. Peter Thomson on his election as President of

the 71st Session of the General Assembly. We agree that
implementation of the Sustainable Development Agenda should
be the focus of this Session.

We also pay tribute to Mr. Mogens Lykketoft for his capable stewardship of
the 70th Session.

Mr. President,

Today, three decades after the end of the Cold War, our multipolar world
is more free and vibrant, yet still chaotic and turbulent; more
interdependent, but more unequal; more prosperous, yet still afflicted
with poverty.

We see spectacular progress, but also unprecedented human suffering.

The world is at a historic inflection point.

The international order established after the Second World War is passing
away, but a new order has yet to emerge.

Competition between the major powers is becoming more confrontational.

This can pose serious threats to peace across Asia.

A new Cold War threatens to engulf Europe. The momentum there

towards "greater union" has already reversed. Barricades and walls are
going up, especially against the tide of misery flowing out of a turbulent
Middle East. In many countries, intolerance has revived the ghosts of
xenophobia and Islamophobia.

Turmoil is intensifying in the Middle East. International efforts to defeat

Daesh are therefore urgent. For this, it is essential to reconcile the
divergent objectives and priorities of regional and external powers.
122 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

Peace cannot be built when injustice prevails. The long festering tragedy of
Palestine demands determined action by the international community.

Mr. President,

After decades of strong growth, the world economy has reached a plateau.

Despite this adverse international economic environment, my government

has, in three short years, moved the country towards robust growth.

We have fully integrated the 2030 Development Agenda into our own
economic and social strategy.

This rests on our conviction that people are the true wealth of our nation
and that it is human development, which will determine our future
destiny.

Mr. President,

Our priority goal of economic development requires internal peace and

stability. My country has been the principal victim of terrorism including
that supported, sponsored and financed from abroad.

We will not allow externally sponsored terrorism and threats of

destabilization to cause turbulence in Pakistan.

Tens of thousands of our citizens and thousands of our security personnel

have been killed or injured in terrorist attacks.

This has only reinforced our resolve to eliminate the scourge of terrorism.
Our comprehensive strategy of law enforcement and targeted military
operations has produced remarkable results and enabled Pakistan to turn
the tide against terrorism.

Pakistan’s Zarb-e-Azb Operation is the largest, most robust and most

successful anti-terrorism campaign anywhere in the world, deploying
200,000 of our security forces.

Our comprehensive National Action Plan has the complete endorsement of

our people and our Parliament as well as our security forces, all of whom
have made heroic sacrifices to defeat terrorism.

Mr. President,
Documents 123

Terrorism, however, is now a global phenomenon, which must be

addressed comprehensively and in all its forms, including State terrorism.

The international community must coordinate its efforts to accomplish

this. These efforts should be taken collectively and not unilaterally by the
passage of any laws with extra-territorial application targeted against
certain countries.

We will not win the fight against terrorism and violent extremism so long
as we do not address their root causes. These lie in poverty and ignorance,
political and social injustice and oppression, foreign intervention and
occupation and denial of the legitimate rights of peoples and nations,
especially the right to self-determination.

Until these underlying causes are addressed, it will be difficult to counter

the twisted narrative of violent extremists and terrorists.

Mr. President,

After 15 years of the current war in Afghanistan, the international

community agrees that the only road to a lasting peace in that country is
through a dialogue between the Government in Kabul and the Afghan
Taliban.

Pakistan has long proposed this as the most viable course to end decades
of conflict and suffering in Afghanistan.

Based on this belief in a negotiated peace, and in response to requests

from President Ashraf Ghani, we have been facilitating the process of
reconciliation in Afghanistan.

There have been setbacks. That, however, is not a sufficient reason to

abandon the path of peace and rely on the military option, which has
failed, for the past decade and a half, to stabilize Afghanistan.

Progress will be assured only when the Afghan parties themselves

conclude that there is no military solution to the Afghan war, and work
assiduously, through a meaningful dialogue process, for achieving
reconciliation and peace at home.
124 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

Mr. President,

Over three and a half decades of conflict and chaos in Afghanistan has had
grave security and economic consequences for Pakistan. Almost three
million Afghan refugees, to whom we opened our homes and hearts,
remain in Pakistan.

We hope to see them return to Afghanistan, voluntarily and with dignity.

Until they do, the international community must shoulder its

responsibilities to sustain them.

Mr. President,

Confrontation should not be our destiny in South Asia. Pakistan wants

peace with India. I have gone the extra mile to achieve this, repeatedly
offering a dialogue to address all outstanding issues.

But India has posed unacceptable preconditions to engage in a dialogue.

Let us be clear: talks are no favor to Pakistan. Talks are in the interest of
both countries. They are essential to resolve our differences, especially the
Jammu and Kashmir dispute, and to avert the danger of any escalation.

Mr. President,

Peace and normalization between Pakistan and India cannot be achieved

without a resolution of the Kashmir dispute. This is an objective
evaluation, not a partisan position.

Our predictions have now been confirmed by events. A new generation of

Kashmiris has risen spontaneously against India’s illegal occupation –
demanding freedom from occupation. Burhan Wani, the young leader
murdered by Indian forces, has emerged as the symbol of the latest
Kashmiri Intifada, a popular and peaceful freedom movement, led by
Kashmiris, young and old, men and women, armed only with an undying
faith in the legitimacy of their cause, and a hunger for freedom in their
hearts.

Mr. President,

This indigenous uprising of the Kashmiris has been met, as usual, with
brutal repression by India’s occupation force of over half a million soldiers.
Over a hundred Kashmiris have been killed, hundreds, including children
and infants, blinded by shotgun pellets and over six thousand unarmed
civilians injured over the past two months.
Documents 125

These Indian brutalities are well documented. I would like to inform the
General Assembly that Pakistan will share with the Secretary General a
dossier containing detailed information and evidence of the gross and
systematic violations of human rights committed by Indian forces in
occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

These brutalities will not suppress the spirit of the Kashmiris; it will only
intensify their anger and fortify their determination to see India end its
occupation of Kashmir. From Srinagar to Sopore, the men, women and
children come out each day, defying curfew, to demand freedom.

Mr. President,

Pakistan fully supports the demand of the Kashmiri people for self-
determination, as promised to them by several Security Council
resolutions. Their struggle is a legitimate one for liberation from alien
occupation.

International law and the declarations of the United Nations on Self

Determination, give the Kashmiri people the right to struggle for their
freedom. Every year, the General Assembly unanimously adopts the
resolution, which reaffirms “the right of all people’s to self-determination”
and calls on the states concerned to immediately end their occupation and
“all acts of repression.”

Mr. President,

On behalf of the Kashmiri people; on behalf of the mothers, wives, sisters,

and fathers of the innocent Kashmiri children, women and men who have
been killed, blinded and injured; on behalf of the Pakistani nation, I
demand an independent inquiry into the extra-judicial killings, and a UN
fact finding mission to investigate brutalities perpetrated by the Indian
occupying forces, so that those guilty of these atrocities are punished.

We demand the immediate release of all Kashmiri political prisoners; an

end to the curfew; freedom for the Kashmiris to demonstrate peacefully;
urgent medical help for the injured and abrogation of India’s draconian
‘laws’.

Mr. President,

The Security Council has called for the exercise of the right to self-
determination by the people of Jammu and Kashmir through a free and fair
plebiscite held under UN auspices. The people of Kashmir have waited 70
126 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

years for implementation of this promise. The Security Council must

honour its commitments by implementing its own decisions. This General
Assembly must demand that India deliver on the commitments its leaders
solemnly made on many occasions.

To this end, steps should be taken by the United Nations to de-militarize

Jammu and Kashmir and undertake consultations with India, Pakistan and
the true representatives of the Kashmiri people to implement the
resolutions of the Security Council. In this context, we welcome the offer of
good offices by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. We will also open
consultations with members of the Security Council to explore the
modalities for implementation of the Security Council resolutions on
Kashmir.

Mr. President,

The international community ignores the danger of rising tensions in

South Asia, at its own peril.

For its part, Pakistan is committed to the establishment of strategic

stability in the region. It neither wants, nor is it engaged in an arms race
with India.

But we cannot ignore our neighbor’s unprecedented arms build up and

will take whatever measures are necessary to maintain credible
deterrence.

We have consistently urged the conclusion of bilateral arms control and

disarmament measures between Pakistan and India to prevent conflict
and avoid wasteful military expenditures.

We are open to discussing all measures of restraint and responsibility with

India, in any forum or format and without any conditions.

We are ready for talks to agree on a bilateral nuclear test ban treaty.

Today, from this rostrum, I would also like to reiterate our offer to India to
enter into a serious and sustained dialogue for the peaceful resolution of
all outstanding disputes, especially Jammu and Kashmir.

Mr. President,

As a responsible nuclear weapon state, Pakistan will continue to cooperate

with all international efforts that seek to promote fair and equitable
solutions to disarmament and non-proliferation challenges.
Documents 127

We have introduced ‘state of the art’ measures to strengthen the safety

and security of our nuclear materials and facilities. We have adopted a
comprehensive export control regime that is fully consistent with
international standards.

Judged on the basis of objective criteria, and without discrimination,

Pakistan is fully eligible for membership of the Nuclear Suppliers' Group.

Mr. President,

In our turbulent and interdependent world, the United Nations remains an

indispensable Organization to restore order and ensure global peace,
stability and prosperity. Its principles remain the crucial pillars of
international legality, the guide for the conduct of Member States and the
guarantor of the legitimate rights of all nations and peoples.

The UN must regain its credibility as the central instrument for the
promotion of peace, prosperity and liberty.

To that end, it should become more representative, transparent and

accountable. A comprehensive and democratic reform of the Security
Council, which Pakistan supports, should enhance its relevance and
representation. Creating new centres of privilege will do the opposite.

Mr. President,

Pakistan's unwavering commitment to the UN is well established. We have

played a pioneering and consistent role in UN Peacekeeping.

Despite our own security requirements, we will remain one of world’s

largest troop contributing countries and maintain our record of success in
multiple UN peacekeeping operations.

Mr. President,

Pakistan has a vital stake in ending conflicts, fostering peace, fighting

terrorism, strengthening democracy, promoting human rights, generating
global growth and overcoming the challenges of environmental
degradation. We can achieve these goals, and create a new and peaceful
world order, only through the United Nations and by strict adherence to
the principles of its Charter.

I thank you, Mr. President.

[Link]
128 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

DOCUMENT: 5

Statement by Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs, Mr.

Sartaj Aziz, at the Sixth Heart of Asia Ministerial Conference held in
Amritsar.
December 4, 2016.
H. E. Mr. Arun Jaitley, Minister of the Finance of Republic of India,

H.E. Mr. Salahuddin Rabbani, Foreign Minister of Afghanistan.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am honoured to attend the Sixth Ministerial Conference of the Heart of

Asia - Istanbul process. I would like to express our appreciation to both co-
hosts, Afghanistan and India, for organizing this important Conference.

My participation in the event, despite escalation on the Line of Control and

the Working Boundary with India, is testimony to Pakistan's unflinching
commitment for lasting peace in Afghanistan and the region. I look
forward to meaningful deliberations today towards this objective.

Pakistan deeply values the Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process. Since 2011, this
forum is making important contribution in the efforts to promote
Afghanistan's connectivity with neighbouring and regional countries for
durable stability in Afghanistan. Pakistan proudly co-hosted this event in
Islamabad last December and we continue to actively participate in
meetings and CBMs of this process.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

We need to make an objective evaluation of our efforts for peace and

stability in Afghanistan. We appreciate progress in many areas under the
leadership of President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Abdullah
Abdullah. Afghan security forces have firmly and bravely stood their
ground in repulsing militant and terrorist attacks. The international
community has reiterated its commitment of support to Afghanistan in the
areas of security and economic development upto 2020. The Government
and people of Pakistan stand in complete solidarity with the elected
government and people of Afghanistan in furthering the objective of peace,
stability and development in Afghanistan. We would do whatever we can
to help achieve this objective.

The Afghan Government has also signed peace agreement with Hizb-i-
Islami Afghanistan (HIA). The implementation of this peace deal can serve
as a model for talks with other insurgent groups in future.
Documents 129

At the same time we are cognizant that Afghanistan continues to face

many serious challenges. The first and foremost in our view is continuing
violence and acts of terrorism claiming scores of human lives. This needs
to be addressed urgently and effectively through collective efforts. The
security situation in Afghanistan is very complex. It is simplistic to blame
only one country for the recent upsurge in violence. We need to have an
objective and holistic view.

Secondly, the peace process for talks between Afghan Government and
Taliban has not yet produced positive results. Pakistan has been making
serious efforts for facilitating the peace talks through the QCG. We believe
that all members of the QCG should continue their respective efforts for
talks between Afghan Government and Taliban. In our view, there is no
military solution to the Afghan conflict and all our efforts should be to
achieve a politically negotiated settlement through an Afghan-led Afghan-
owned process.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Regional connectivity can stimulate economic development. Towards this

end, Pakistan is building its national rail, road and energy transmission
network to meet with the growing regional transport needs. The focus is
on modern, state of the art infrastructure including through the China
Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). There is immense potential for
connecting our transportation and energy infrastructure with Afghanistan,
and other countries of West and Central Asia.

Our two countries are already part of CAREC's planned transport corridors
five and six. At the Global Sustainable Transport Conference in Ashgabat
last week, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif announced Pakistan's decision to
join the Ashgabat Agreement and the Lapiz Lazuli Corridor. We also need
to expedite energy connectivity projects including TAPI and CASA-1000.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Pakistan is committed to enhancing facilitation for transit of Afghan goods

through Pakistan. We believe the two sides need to work together for
extension of and improvements in the Afghanistan Pakistan Transit Trade
Agreement (APTTA). In this context, let me emphasize that peaceful
resolution of outstanding disputes will further improve prospects of
regional cooperation and connectivity.

Pakistan has continued to host millions of Afghan refugees in Pakistan for

the past 3 decades. We are engaged with Afghanistan and UNHCR in the
130 Journal of Contemporary Studies, Vol. V, No.2, Winter 2016

ongoing process of their return to their homeland with honour and

dignity. We are working on plans to extend their stay in Pakistan to 31
December 2017 and keep their voluntary return smooth and orderly. It is
important to focus on the projects for their sustainable reintegration in
Afghanistan.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Regional cooperation plays an important role in ensuring political stability

and promoting and deepening mutually beneficial economic interaction. In
this context, SAARC is an important forum, not only for promoting regional
cooperation but also for the improvement of relations. The postponement
of the SAARC Summit scheduled in Islamabad in November 2016 was a
setback to these efforts and undermined the spirit of regional cooperation.

In conclusion, I hope our deliberations would be constructive and focused

on the efforts for lasting peace and stability in Afghanistan, which is our
shared objective.

Pakistan also welcomes the invitation of Azerbaijan to host the 7th

Ministerial Conference of the Heart of Asia process in 2017 and looks
forward to its active participation in this Conference.

Thank you very much.

[Link]
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