|
 Since Pakistan's independence, many promises have been
made to develop and improve the education system, and
five-year plans have been formulated since 1960. Few
measures have been implemented for the large part of the
population. More recently, Islamization has become
increasingly important. Next to the public school system
there are Islamic schools (the "madrassah" system).
It is in principle free but not compulsory primary
school. The primary school is 5 years old from the children
is 5 years old. The secondary school is divided into 3 + 4
years. In 2000, 66% of children in the relevant age groups
attended primary school (34% of girls). There is a very high
dropout rate, and just over 50% of children do not finish
primary school. Check topschoolsintheusa for test centers of ACT, SAT, and GRE as well high schools in the country of Pakistan.
Urdu is the national language, but the primary languages
and children's first languages are Panjabi, Sindhi,
Pashto and Baluchi. English is the language of instruction
in colleges and universities. There are 26 public and 11
private universities in the country (2001).
Larger literacy campaigns and a major commitment to the
Allama Iqbal Open University have not solved the problem of
the large proportion of the population who cannot read and
write. According to UNESCO calculations in 2003, approx. 54%
of the adult population is illiterate (70% of women). There
are major regional differences between piggyback and densely
populated areas.
1947 Pakistan is formed
The relationship between Hindus and Muslims was greatly
affected by the tensions between both communities and the
clashes that took place in different parts of India. This
convinced the leaders of the Indian Congress Party - who
primarily represented the nationalists - about the need to
accept Pakistan as the solution to the problems between the
two communities. On June 3, 1947, the divisional plan was
published and it was accepted by both the league and the
Congress party. On August 14, the new state of Pakistan was
born consisting of the provinces of East Punjab, Sind,
Baluchistan, Northeast Frontier Province and East Bengal,
located 1600 km further east.
Both politically and economically, Pakistan's starting
ground was poor. British India's business had been
transformed to serve the interests of the colonial power:
facilitating the export of raw materials and opening up the
market for British industrial goods. In the 1900s, however,
some Indian industry was developed. Like India, Pakistan
started with enormous poverty and a dependent economy.
Pakistan also came to consist of more underdeveloped areas
characterized by commodity production; Among other things.
cotton was grown in West Pakistan and jute in East Pakistan,
but the processing took place at factories in Bombay and
Calcutta, which came to be in India.
During the many different state formations from before
the colonial period, ordinary people had little political
influence. The difference in economic and social status was
immense and often fixed. Then a foreign government (the
English) ruled - exercised through administrative and
military authority. Towards the end of the colonial period,
a form of Indian co-determination developed, but on the
basis of very limited voting rights.
Independent Pakistan's attempt at a Western form of
political governance failed. After the first military coup
in 1958, the country was led by General Ayub Khan. The board
gradually gained a more civil appearance, but was strongly
centralized.
Despite strong economic growth in the 1960s, there was
widespread dissatisfaction with the distribution of output.
East Pakistan found it unfair that the region with over half
the population and a large contribution to foreign exchange
income through jute exports received only about one third of
the investment.
Agriculture employed over half of the country's
population, but the land was very unevenly distributed from
the start. Large farmers and landowners - who make up about
10% of the landowners - in 1972 controlled over half the
agricultural land. Most of those who work in agriculture
were and are either landless land workers or they lease land
against making a large portion of the proceeds or pay taxes.
The first modest land reform came under Ayub's military
rule, but its land restriction was often bypassed. The green
revolution increased agricultural production from the
mid-1960s, but it was in particular the larger farms that
benefited from it. They had the capital and knowledge to
introduce irrigation, fertilizers and insecticides.
Moreover, employment among the rural workers was reduced due
to increased mechanization. The Green Revolution thus
reinforced the social inequalities in rural areas and
increased the differences between the districts.
In March 1969, Ayub Khan was forced to step down, and the
power went a second time to the military commander-in-chief,
General Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan, who, however, was soon
preparing to transition to civilian rule. The first direct
election to the National Assembly in Pakistan was held in
October 1970. The Awamiliga won almost all the East Pakistan
seats, and thus a majority in the National Assembly on its
program of extensive autonomy for East Pakistan. Election
winner in West Pakistan and leader of Pakistani People's
Party (PPP) Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, perceived the claim as
incompatible with preservation of Pakistani state.
Negotiations for a solution broke down and in March 1971
East Pakistan set up its own government in Dacca. By order
of President Yahya Khan, the Pakistan Army - where the West
Pakistanis dominated - sought to defeat the uprising. The
Awamiliga was banned and its leader, Sheik Mujibur Rahman
sent to prison. However, after attacks by Indian troops in
December 1971, the Pakistani military forces had to
surrender and East Pakistan became an independent state
under the name Bangladesh.
|
