Content Type: Policy Brief / Publishing Institution: United States Institute of Peace / Political Geography: South Asia / Topic: Political Violence

Author:: Selina Adam Khan
Publication Date:: 09-2015
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: United States Institute of Peace
Abstract:: The December 2014 terrorist attack in Peshawar that killed 132 schoolchildren forced Pakistan to acknowledge the extent of its ongoing problem with radical Islamist militancy. Islamabad, however, has yet to implement a comprehensive deradicalization strategy. In January 2015, it took a formal step in this direction with its twenty-point National Action Plan in response to the Peshawar attack—a step, but only a first step. If deradicalization is to meet with any success in Pakistan, the national narrative itself needs to change.
Topic:: Conflict Prevention, Political Violence, Islam, and Terrorism
Political Geography:: Pakistan and South Asia

Author:: Raheem ul Haque
Publication Date:: 02-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: United States Institute of Peace
Abstract:: Pakistani leaders face serious domestic extremism challenges; more than 47,000 thousand lives have been lost in terrorism-related violence in Pakistan over the past decade. Effective counter-radicalization processes must take into account Pakistan's large young adult population (ages 15-29), which collectively accounts for at least 30 percent of the overall population. Youth radicalization in Pakistan can be understood as the product of an exclusively Islamic identity—meaning a majority of youth identify primarily through their religion over nationality— combined with a broader reactive movement comprised of militant, political and missionary organizations.
Topic:: Conflict Resolution, Political Violence, Demographics, Islam, and Youth Culture
Political Geography:: Pakistan and South Asia

Author:: Nadia Naviwala
Publication Date:: 04-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: United States Institute of Peace
Abstract:: PakVotes, a pilot project supported by the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP), used social media platforms and a network of reporters located in areas outside of major cities in Pakistan to track violence during the 2013 elections. The project offers lessons that could guide future efforts to use social media to record and publicize conflicts and the use of violence during elections and other major events. The hashtag #PakVotes trended for several days around elections, serving as a popular alternative news source to the mainstream media, which was not as diverse in its geographic coverage, sources or story types.
Topic:: Political Violence, Democratization, Non-Governmental Organization, Science and Technology, and Mass Media
Political Geography:: Pakistan, United States, and South Asia

Author:: Joshua T. White and Shuja Ali Malik
Publication Date:: 10-2012
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: United States Institute of Peace
Abstract:: Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) remain mired in an archaic century-old system of indirect governance that provides space in which militant movements have thrived. President Asif Ali Zardari recently announced the FATA Local Governance Regulation 2012, establishing a system of local councils in the troubled tribal region. Although the regulation is disappointingly vague, and retains the sweeping prerogatives of the central government, it appears to have been driven in part by the army's interest in building civilian governance capacity in conflict-torn areas. The governments of Pakistan and the United States, along with local and international stakeholders, should advocate for continuity of implementation, insist on party-based local council elections, encourage experimentation within the bounds of the regulation, link the new councils to existing development structures, press the government to articulate a longer-term political vision for the FATA, and be realistic about the necessity of the army's active involvement in shaping governance policy in the tribal areas.
Topic:: Political Violence, Corruption, Government, Islam, and Counterinsurgency
Political Geography:: Pakistan, United States, and South Asia

Author:: Stephanie Flamenbaum, Megan Neville, and Constantino Xavier
Publication Date:: 03-2011
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: United States Institute of Peace
Abstract:: Growing economic and political instability, rising support for extremism and increasing tensions in Pakistan's relationship with the United States currently threaten the country's prospects for a stable future.
Topic:: Political Violence and Economics
Political Geography:: Pakistan, United States, and South Asia

Author:: Moeed Yusuf
Publication Date:: 08-2010
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: United States Institute of Peace
Abstract:: Despite receiving over $15 billion in U.S. aid since 9/11, perceptions of America in Pakistan remain acutely negative. If Pakistanis continue to be opposed to U.S. policies, the Pakistani government will not be able to deliver on its promises, and U.S. initiatives in Pakistan will not produce desired outcomes. American and Pakistani governments have forged a rather opaque relationship which has not helped to cultivate popular support for policies across Pakistan. Instead, it has fostered an anti- U.S. sentiment in Pakistan that increasingly puts pressure on the government in Islamabad. U.S. policy must be fundamentally changed to turn around the anti-American outlook among Pakistanis. In order to do so, the official relationship needs to be more transparent; frequency of visits by U.S. officials ought to be reconsidered; 'image correcting aid' should be provided in addition to the long-term assistance; Pakistani citizens should be engaged through constant dialogue and debate on U.S.-Pakistan relations; and American and Pakistani officials should remain sensitive about the internal impact of their public statements and actions.
Topic:: Conflict Resolution, Political Violence, Imperialism, Mass Media, and Insurgency
Political Geography:: Pakistan, America, and South Asia

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