Zubair Faisal Abbasi
zubair@sdpi.org
The issue of identity and conflict is complex and puzzling. What prompts human beings to re-prioritize identities and re-adjust group affiliations, which seek to redress grievances against a distinct other? There may be a diverse range of answers to this question. These answers could emerge from a range of perspectives such as cultural and ideological to political and socio-psychological. In fact, for a comprehensive state of the nation debates, such questions and answers are important. They may not only help identify the reasons behind group conflict, they could also help design policy prescriptions which may need to re-structure the way both poverty/inequality and growth is being governed.
Public policymakers are often simplistic when it comes to believing in the effectiveness of growth and investment as a panacea for social disequilibrium. They are caught in a situation called growth-investment optimism. |
In fact, Pakistan itself is a product of a profound reconstruction of identity, which attempted to create internal socio-political cohesiveness in a group while engaging with the question of grievances and inequality. The colonial regimes were perhaps good for maintenance of peace and production of raw materials but not sufficiently designed towards local development and in particular for technological development (Chang 2003; Khan 1998). Therefore, the grievances emanated from deprivations and a lack of access to opportunities for social and economic well-being. Ironically though, after having an administrative solution carved out of United India, the palaces and places of power in Pakistan progressively became an unwise system of controls, which need to be more sensitive towards inclusive growth and economic development.
With partition of the sub-continent in 1947, dismemberment of Pakistan in 1971 and other geostrategic situations lurking in the background of history, dominant interests have tried to control identity construction with what Amartya Sen calls “singular-affiliation” i.e. a person belongs to only one group (Sen 2007). Paradoxically, however, the search for national security in the context of a singular identity, and disregard and sometimes the suppression/exclusion of other identities, has caused more harm than given stability to national cohesiveness.
In a way, the sought-after singular identity became an act of whistling in the dark in what was East Pakistan. Many analysts argue, albeit with some exaggeration, that a similar situation is seen in other parts of Pakistan including Balochistan. In both cases, the grasshoppers repeating the mantra of national aggregate economic growth were not able to gauge the risks and vulnerabilities, which created a shortage of social capital in multiethnic societies.
Misunderstandings have led to a democratic deficit in development. The deficit indicates gaps in non-discriminatory “development by the people (participation in economic growth), for the people (gains in social welfare through public services) and of the people (increase in capabilities and empowerment)” (Streeten 1994). Literature on inter-group disparities categorizes them as “horizontal inequalities” (Stewart 2000).
Public policymakers are often simplistic when it comes to believing in the effectiveness of growth and investment as a panacea for social disequilibrium. They are caught in a situation called growth-investment optimism. Such optimism cannot generate a critical analysis and is a deficient guide when it comes to a politically viable public policy. It is misleading because the indicators of increase in growth and investment do not reveal inter-group grievances and multidimensional deprivations.
Interestingly, recent research on the geography of poverty especially in Punjab shows that there is a significant differential in sharing the welfare gains of economic growth. For example, it has been demonstrated that poverty is concentrated and severe in the southern and western parts of Punjab and more so in the rural areas of the concerned districts (Cheema et al, 2008). One can understand why southern Punjab, which has a distinct language and culture demands the devolution of not only administrative but also developmental authority in the shape of a Seraiki province. This creates a sense of identity for the people of the area and makes economic sense.
Another example of horizontal inequality that fuels conflict despite an increase in growth and modernization, investment, and job creation can be seen in China. The people, identified as Uighur and Han Chinese in Urumqi, were recently engaged in violence. Many investigative reports show that the Uighur population claims that the lion’s share of development dividends, a consequence of China’s miraculous growth and investment, have been pocketed by the Han Chinese. For the Uighurs, the disparity in developmental gains has created fears of being culturally eliminated and cornered as cultural minors (Economist 2009).
Many investigative reports show that the Uighur population claims that the lion’s share of development
dividends, a consequence of China’s miraculous growth and investment, have been pocketed by the Han
Chinese.
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A question that needs to be answered is why some areas of Pakistan with genuine grievances have only partially succeeded in creating a powerful social and political movement. Literature on horizontal inequalities informs us that social groups, which have grievances against other groups but higher levels of inequalities within the group, cannot easily develop a democratic leadership that could demand equality on behalf of the masses it is meant to represent. Therefore, intra-group inequality becomes a binding constraint on the creation of an internally cohesive social movement that aims to end horizontal inequalities. Is this not the situation in Balochistan and southern Punjab?
Last but not least, it is often emphasized that an increase in investment and witnessing growth in volatile parts of the country does not end political strife. This needs thorough re-examination. A solution depends on the social efficiency and effectiveness of growth and investment, which is accommodative of ethnic dimensions. The prescription is to avoid imposing the ‘singular-affiliation’ idea system and understand that identities are inherently plural, make economic sense, and are not always against the collective and long-term security of the state. In fact, there are examples found in many parts of the world including the EU where diversity is considered a social strength.
Chang, H. J. 2003, Kicking Away the Ladder, Anthem Press, London.
Cheema, A., Khalid, L. & Patnam, M. 2008, The Geography of Poverty: Evidence from the Punjab, The Lahore Journal of Economics, Vol. Special Edition, No. September, pp. 163-188.
Economist. 2009, 'Riots in Xinjinag: Is China Fraying', The Economist, July 9.
Khan, A. H. 1998, Ten Decades of Rural Development: Lessons from India, City Press, Karachi.
Sen, A. 2007, 'Identity and Violence: The Illusion of Destiny', Penguin Books, London.
Stewart, F. 2000, 'Crisis Prevention: Tacking Horizontal Inequalities', Oxford Development Studies, Vol. 28, No. 3, pp. 245-262.
Streeten, P. 1994, Strategies for Human Development: Global Poverty and Unemployment, HandelshØskolens Forlag, Copenhagen
Note: An edited version of this article has also been published by Dawn on 12 August 2009.
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