What do I mean by that? Pakistan is a rowdy, divided bunch of -
- Sindhi
- Mohajir
- Pakhtuns
- Punjabi
- Seraiki
- Baloch
- Shia
- Sunni
- various religious splinter groups led by mullahs
These are above the normal division that exist in any society like rich/poor, urban/rural etc. All these groups tend to vote along certain parties and show preferances or loyalities to certain leaders. The country can only be ruled by keeping them all 'balanced'.
The only
uniting force is the military and small federal admin. The power in the hand of the centre at Islamabad keeps all these groups I listed in 'balance' but that entails compromises. Push them too far and one by one they will begin to gang up and cause trouble leading to pressure on the federal government which will fall back on the army, which in turn knows it can only push so far as if you annoy too many of these groups they will join together and overwhem even the army.
This is why even military dictators like Ayub, Zia and Musharaf had to rely on politics to keep most of the groups calm. Annoy too many and watch what happens. Chaos prevails. Right now as we speak you can see how the present government is treading with caution as it moves against Nawaz and Zardari. Both have potent vote banks in their respective regions.
