Some good news

[Creder]

This is from a dawn report, which is taken from a survey done by a US research groups.

The report can be found HERE


Eighty-nine per cent Pakistanis surveyed by a leading US research group say they think of themselves first as Pakistanis, rather than as members of their ethnic groups.

The global attitudes survey by the Pew Research Centre, Washington, also shows that eighty-six per cent Pakistanis believe the military is having a good influence on the country.


As many as seventy per cent Pakistanis have unfavourable views of the Taliban and sixty-one per cent reject Al Qaeda openly. Between thirty-twenty per cent say they do not know the two groups well enough to express an opinion.


President Asif Ali Zardari’s ratings have plummeted: Last year, sixty-four per cent people surveyed by Pew had a favourable opinion of him; now just thirty-two per cent hold this view.


While views about national conditions are overwhelmingly negative, most Pakistanis are upbeat about their personal lives — seventy-four per cent say they are very or somewhat satisfied with their overall lives, and most are satisfied with their family lives and incomes.

The nation-state is of great significance to Pakistanis, and despite important ethnic and regional differences, national identity is strong throughout the country. Overall, eighty-nine per cent say they think of themselves first as Pakistani, rather than as a member of the ethnic group they come from.

Just thirty-six per cent say the Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence is having a good impact, although many respondents (forty-one per cent) do not offer an opinion.


more Pakistanis judge India as a very serious threat to the nation (sixty-nine per cent) than regard the Taliban (fifty-seven per cent) or Al Qaeda (forty-one per cent) as very serious threats. Most Pakistanis see the US as on the wrong side of this issue: by a margin of fifty-four per cent to 4 per cent the US is seen as favouring India over Pakistan.


Pakistanis express overwhelmingly positive opinions about another Asian giant — eighty-four per cent have a favourable view of China and eighty per cent consider China a partner to their country.

yaaran naal baharan​

​

 

[Hyde]

true, when you ask their identity majority will say we are Muslims first, then Pakistanis and then anything else.

There is not much dispute over ethnic backgrounds in Pakistan. At least not in Punjab or Sindh

 

[kidwaibhai]

well i am pakistani first and then anything else.

 

[RameeX Xaved]

well if you ask me or my family or my relatives or friends, the reply would be muslim first, then Pakistani and then nothing else

 

[JonAsad]

both are different things.
My Ideology is Islam and my Identity is Pakistan.
These two things dont mix up.

 

[arslan_treen]

for me its Pakistan , Pakistan , Pakistan ........ And Pakistan .

 

[Huda]

for me my religion is come first for me than my family and my career

 

[Aeon]

To be Muslim first or Pakistani first? It isn't anyones choice whether they are born to Muslim parents or not. So if they are born to non-Muslim parents, it is important to have them feel at home. Therefore "Pakistani first then anything else" seems to be the better option. This way there is a greater chance non-Muslims will identify themselves positively with the general culture, not feel discriminated against, and remain loyal/supportive towards the country and its Muslim majority population. Otherwise you are shoving Islam down someone's throat, which might discriminate and antagonize them, and contradicts the claim of Islam being a religion of peace and of Pakistan being tolerant towards its non-Muslim minority.

And indeed if we were to be Muslim first and Pakistani second, what kind of Muslim do we mean? Shia, Sunni, Sufi, Wahabi, Ismaili, Ahmadi, etc...? When one sect considers another kaffir, or argues its own authenticity/superiority over others, what leg does the "Muslim first" argument have to stand on? We need to be Pakistani first, as that encompasses all the various identities of Muslims and non-Muslims (or ethnicity), and binds them together as one under an inclusive Muslim majority nation with a subcontinental heritage.

 

[pak-marine]

people when they meet ask you where are you from , so yes i am pakistani first ....... why shal i mix my religion with my ethnicity!?.

 

[Musafar]

its an oxymora to pick between being Pakistani or Muslim.

Being Pakistani is a nationality and Muslim is a religion, we're not comparing like with like.

 

[Hutchroy]

This is from a dawn report, which is taken from a survey done by a US research groups.

The report can be found HERE


Eighty-nine per cent Pakistanis surveyed by a leading US research group say they think of themselves first as Pakistanis, rather than as members of their ethnic groups.

Can you please advise as to what Page this report is from as this report comprises 176 Pages.

Meantime the above report is contrary to the following report :

Pakistan wasting demographic dividend: British Council report

* Country currently has more productive youth than dependents; favourable balance of population ends in 2045

* Pioneering study of Pakistani youth reveals political disillusionment, identity crisis, resentment of West

LAHORE: Pakistan is in a unique position to tap what is known as a demographic dividend, i.e. a period when there is a favourable ratio of productive young to old, according to a British Council report. This ‘window of opportunity’ started in 1990, and Pakistan has done nothing to substantial to address this over the past twenty years.

The ‘British Council’s Next Generation Report on Pakistan’, available to Daily Times, is a major review of the demographics, economics and opinions of the youth of Pakistan, and one of the first representative survey reports of its kind.

In terms of political disillusionment, the report reveals that only 15 percent of the youth believe the country is headed in the right direction. While the findings overwhelmingly suggest that the youth are extremely loyal and nationalistic, but only 10 percent have faith in national or local government, the courts or police. On the question of identity, three quarters see themselves as Muslims first, Pakistani second, compared to just 14 percent who see themselves as primarily a citizen of Pakistan.

Demographic dividend: The report states that there is a strong possibility of demographic disaster, or dividend depending on how aggressively the government acts. The research commissioned calculates that one-third of the growth that the East Asian economies had in their boom years can be traced to this demographic structure. This ‘window of opportunity’, which opened in 1990, closes in 2045, giving the country a little over 35 years to change course and reap the economic and social potential attached to such an opportunity. If that is done, the report predicts that economic growth could increase by a fifth as soon as 2030.

Hopes and fears: The report also deals with the youth’s opinions on issues such as security fears, education, religion and the international community’s treatment of Pakistan. An overwhelming 92 percent believe education is an important issue that needs to be addressed immediately.

The research also noted widespread cynicism with democracy, with only a third of the young believing it is the best system for the country, while another third prefer sharia. Sixty percent have faith in the military and 50 percent in madrassas. The report also reveals that the young generation is civic-minded: 32 percent believed the primary purpose of the education system is to create good citizens.

In their views on the reasons for the prevailing violence in the country: 30 percent cited injustice and 28 percent poor economic conditions. A good deal of the respondents were also very critical of the international community for their interference in the country and for demonising the population of Pakistan.

Fasi Zaka, TV personality and one of the academics involved with the report said that with the ‘Next Generation Report on Pakistan’, which involved over 2,500 people as authors, the need to find out what the youth of Pakistan wants and feels was addressed. He hoped that the report would trigger debate and renewed interest in the subject. The report will be formally unveiled at a ceremony in Lahore today (Saturday).

 

[S_O_C_O_M]

off topic... but was A.Q. Khan a Pashtun?

 

[FreekiN]

I am a Pakistani-American Muslim.

 

[DESERT FIGHTER]

Thts why i say PROUD TO BE PAKISTANI NATIONALIST.

 

[DESERT FIGHTER]

off topic... but was A.Q. Khan a Pashtun?

I think he migrated frm india... maybe his by genes or somethin...anyways..
Salute to Father of Nations Atomic Bomb.
PAKISTAN ZINDABAD.