Pakistan

Between Afghanistan and Pakistan there are probably a record number of organizations dedicated to terrorist activities, some hundreds if even the smallest ones are counted. In practice, the 'terrorists' of Afghanistan and Pakistan can be grouped into five groups: 

• The Afghan Taliban, involved in terrorist activities mainly through the Haqqani network, which operate against Western presence in Afghanistan and against the Afghans accused of collaborating with them;

To resolve "historical misunderstandings" and end the longstanding "undeclared state of war" with Pakistan, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani made what was seen as a contentious, groundbreaking attempt to reconcile with a country many Afghans see as their enemy.

Pakistan’s armed forces are among the most modern, largest and well funded in the world. Within them, the army is the largest unit and the most powerful institution in the country. In the late 1950s, it became a key political force and increasingly infiltrated the economy. Its penetration into crucial political decision-making became entrenched in the ’80s, while the greatest penetration into the economy and society took place in following decade, and has not been reversed to date. In the paper we will see how the army turned into a key player on the political scene and came to control a wide economic sector, what factors may have contributed to its “over-development” and what are its implications.

Sub-national identities are politically relevant in many Asian and African countries, irrespective to their political system. The vote tends to be guided by clanic, ethnic, religious or regional identities, and political parties are organized along primordial loyalties. Identity politics is invoked to justify ingrained power relations or, for those groups who are discriminated against and excluded from economic and political power, to further their interests.

Abstract