Pakistan Beyond the 'Crisis State

Abstract

From the majestic Himalayan and Karakorum mountain ranges the Indus river winds down the plains of Pakistan for nearly a thousand miles to the Arabian sea. The banks of this river have been home to one of the world's oldest and greatest civilisations. The mighty river has been the country's lifeblood, animating much of its culture and history and helping to shape a distinctly Pakistani identity. In the summer of 2010 it was the fury of the Indus river that unleashed itself on the country with devastating consequences. Engorged by heavy monsoon rain, the river system over-flooded and deluged large swathes of Pakistan-as much as a fifth of its land area-causing large-scale destruction and displacement. Twenty million people were affected by this calamity. And this at a time when Pakistan was struggling to cope with economic and security crises and reeling from the blowback of nine years of war in neighbouring Afghanistan that started with the US- led military intervention in 2001. The floods exposed a paradox that lies at the heart of Pakistan's pre-dicament today: that of a weak state and a strong society. As the government machinery foundered in responding to the situation, civil society, the business community, ordinary citizens and even the media, organised efforts to help the flood victims. The anaemic official responsenotwithstanding the Army's effective rescue and relief efforts- contrasted sharply with the heroic actions taken by private charities and local communities