Social movement and politics of identities: Understanding and Misunderstand PTM

Abstract

Pathans are the second largest ethnic group of Pakistan. Erstwhile FATA has been an epicenter of proxy wars, violence, and extremism since colonial era. This study employs qualitative approach to highlight the plight and miseries of erstwhile FATA as a repercussion of such identity profiling and emergence of PTM to counter such stereotypical profiling to de-construct and re-present Pathan social identity. This study analyzes the internal contradictions of Pathan identity, and their social construction and politics of romanticizing and internalization has led to identity crisis. This study demonstrates that the very perception of Pathans, public domain as well as media representation are based on colonial discourse that lacks the understanding of identity pluralism. The analysis of NSMs demonstrate that PTM is not only a civil rights social movement striving for social recognition, acceptability, and an end of demonization but a pacifist movement i.e. anti-war, anti-terrorism. In the theoretical framework of social identity theory, this study emphasizes on pluralistic identity allegiance, affiliations, and their misinterpretations. This study demonstrates that how the very roots of colonial stereotyping and historical security paranoia is leading to misinterpretation as well as misunderstanding of PTM through dominant narrative transformation. This study concludes that PTM issue is identity rather than ethnicity, the very profiling of Pathan identity is a social construction embedded in dominant discourse.