The Colossus of Rhodes

From its building to its destruction lies a time span of merely 56 years. Yet the colossus of rhodes earned a place in the famous list of Wonders. “But even lying on the ground, it is a marvel”, said Pliny the Elder. The Colossus of Rhodes was not only a gigantic statue. It was rather a symbol of unity of the people who inhabited that beautiful Mediterranean island — Rhodes.

Location of the Colosus
At the entrance of the harbor of the Mediterranean island of Rhodes in Greece.

History of the Colosus
Throughout most of its history, ancient Greece was comprised of city-states which had limited power beyond their boundary. On the small island of Rhodes were three of these: Ialysos, Kamiros, and Lindos. In 408 BC, the cities united to form one territory, with a unified capital, Rhodes. The city thrived commercially and had strong economic ties with their main ally, Ptolemy I Soter of Egypt. In 305 BC, the Antigonids of Macedonia who were also rivals of the Ptolemies, besieged Rhodes in an attempt to break the Rhodo-Egyptian alliance. They could never penetrate the city. When a peace agreement was reached in 304 BC, the Antagonids lifted the siege, leaving a wealth of military equipment behind. To celebrate their unity, the Rhodians sold the equipment and used the money to erect an enormous statue of their sun god, Helios.

The construction of the Colossus took 12 years and was finished in 282 BC. For years, the statue stood at the harbor entrance, until a strong earthquake hit Rhodes about 226 BC. The city was badly damaged, and the Colossus was broken at its weakest point — the knee. The Rhodians received an immediate offer from Ptolemy III Eurgetes of Egypt to cover all restoration costs for the toppled monument. However, an oracle was consulted and forbade the re-erection. Ptolemy’s offer was declined.

For almost a millennium, the statue laid broken in ruins. In AD 654, the Arabs invaded Rhodes. They disassembled the remains of the broken Colossus and sold them to a Jew from Syria. It is said that the fragments had to be transported to Syria on the backs of 900 camels.

Description of the Colossus
Let us first clear a misconception about the appearance of the Colossus. It has long been believed that the Colossus stood in front of the Mandraki harbor, one of many in the city of Rhodes, straddling its entrance. Given the height of the statue and the width of the harbor mouth, this picture is rather impossible than improbable. Moreover, the fallen Colossus would have blocked the harbor entrance. Recent studies suggest that it was erected either on the eastern promontory of the Mandraki harbor, or even further inland. Anyway, it did never straddle the harbor entrance.

The project was commissioned by the Rhodian sculptor Chares of Lindos. To build the statue, his workers cast the outer bronze skin parts. The base was made of white marble, and the feet and ankle of the statue were first fixed. The structure was gradually erected as the bronze form was fortified with an iron and stone framework. To reach the higher parts, an earth ramp was built around the statue and was later removed. When the colossus was finished, it stood about 33 m (110 ft) high. And when it fell, “few people can make their arms meet round the thumb”, wrote Pliny.

Although we do not know the true shape and appearance of the Colossus of rhodes, modern reconstructions with the statue standing upright are more accurate than older drawings. Although it disappeared from existence, the ancient World Wonder inspired modern artists such as French sculptor Auguste Bartholdi best known by his famous work: The Statue of Liberty.

The Pharos of Alexandria

Of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, only one had a practical use in addition to its architectural elegance: The Lighthouse of Alexandria. For sailors, it ensured a safe return to the Great Harbor. For architects, it meant even more: it was the tallest building on Earth. And for scientists, it was the mysterious mirror that fascinated them most… The mirror which reflection could be seen more than 50 km (35 miles) off-shore.

Location
On the ancient island of Pharos, now a promontory within the city of Alexandria in Egypt.

History
Shortly after the death of Alexander the Great, his commander Ptolemy Soter assumed power in Egypt. He had witnessed the founding of Alexandria, and established his capital there. Off of the city’s coast lies a small island: Pharos. Its name, legend says, is a variation of Pharaoh’s Island. The island was connected to the mainland by means of a dike – the Heptastadion – which gave the city a double harbor. And because of dangerous sailing conditions and flat coastline in the region, the construction of a lighthouse was necessary.

The project was conceived and initiated by Ptolemy Soter around 290 BC, but was completed after his death, during the reign of his son Ptolemy Philadelphus. Sostratus, a contemporary of Euclid, was the architect, but detailed calculations for the structure and its accessories were carried out at the Alexandria Library/Mouseion. The monument was dedicated to the Savior Gods: Ptolemy Soter (lit. savior) and his wife Berenice. For centuries, the Lighthouse of Alexandria (occasionally referred to as the Pharos Lighthouse) was used to mark the harbor, using fire at night and reflecting sun rays during the day. It was even shown on Roman coins, just as famous monuments are depicted on currency today.

When the Arabs conquered Egypt, they admired Alexandria and its wealth. The Lighthouse continues to be mentioned in their writings and travelers accounts. But the new rulers moved their capital to Cairo since they had no ties to the Mediterranean. When the mirror was brought down mistakenly, they did not restore it back into place. In AD 956, an earthquake shook Alexandria, and caused little damage to the Lighthouse. It was later in 1303 and in 1323 that two stronger earthquakes left a significant impression on the structure. When the famous Arab traveler Ibn Battuta visited Alexandria in 1349, he could not enter the ruinous monument or even climb to its doorway.

The final chapter in the history of the Lighthouse came in AD 1480 when the Egyptian Mamelouk Sultan, Qaitbay, decided to fortify Alexandria’s defense. He built a medieval fort on the same spot where the Lighthouse once stood, using the fallen stone and marble.

Description
Of the six vanished Wonders, the Lighthouse of Alexandria was the last to disappear. Therefore we have adequately accurate knowledge of its location and appearance. Ancient accounts such as those by Strabo and Pliny the Elder give us a brief description of the “tower” and the magnificent white marble cover. They tell us how the mysterious mirror could reflect the light tens of kilometers away. Legend says the mirror was also used to detect and burn enemy ships before they could reach the shore.

In 1166, an Arab traveler, Abou-Haggag Al-Andaloussi visited the Lighthouse. He documented a wealth of information and an gave accurate description of the structure which helped modern archeologists reconstruct the monument. It was composed of three stages: The lowest square, 55.9 m (183.4 ft) high with a cylindrical core; the middle octagonal with a side length of 18.30 m (60.0 ft) and a height of 27.45 m (90.1 ft); and the third circular 7.30 m (24.0 ft) high. The total height of the building including the foundation base was about 117 m (384 ft), equivalent to a 40-story modern building. The internal core was used as a shaft to lift the fuel needed for the fire. At the top stage, the mirror reflected sunlight during the day while fire was used during the night. In ancient times, a statue of Poseidon adorned the summit of the building.

Although the Lighthouse of Alexandria did not survive to the present day, it left its influence in various respects. From an architectural standpoint, the monument has been used as a model for many prototypes along the Mediterranean, as far away as Spain. And from a linguistic standpoint, it gave its name — Pharos — to all the lighthouses in the world… Just look up the dictionary for the French, Italian, or Spanish word for lighthouse

The Mausoleum

Similar to the Great Pyramid, we are now visiting the burial place of an ancient king. Yet the Mausoleum is different – so different from the Pyramid that it earned its reputation – and a spot within the list – for other reasons. Geographically, it is closer to the Temple of Artemis… And it was the beauty of the tomb rather than its size that fascinated its visitors for years.

Location
In the city of Bodrum (f.k.a. Halicarnassus) on the Aegean Sea, in south-west Turkey.

History
When the Persians expanded their ancient kingdom to include Mesopotamia, Northern India, Syria, Egypt, and Asia Minor, the king could not control his vast empire without the help of local governors or rulers — the Satraps. Like many other provinces, the kingdom of Caria in the western part of Asia Minor (Turkey) was so far from the Persian capital that it was practically autonomous. From 377 to 353 BC, king Mausollos of Caria reigned and moved his capital to Halicarnassus. Nothing is exciting about Maussollos life except the construction of his tomb. The project was conceived by his wife and sister Artemisia, and the construction might have started during the king’s lifetime. The Mausoleum was completed around 350 BC, three years after Maussollos death, and one year after Artemisia’s.

For 16 centuries, the Mausoleum remained in good condition until an earthquake caused some damage to the roof and colonnade. In the early fifteenth century, the Knights of St John of Malta invaded the region and built a massive crusader castle. When they decided to fortify it in 1494, they used the stones of the Mausoleum. By 1522, almost every block of the Mausoleum had been disassembled and used for construction.

Today, the massive castle still stands in Bodrum, and the polished stone and marble blocks of the Mausoleum can be spotted within the walls of the structure. Some of the sculptures survived and are today on display at the British Museum in London. These include fragment of statues and many slabs of the frieze showing the battle between the Greeks and the Amazons. At the site of the Mausoleum itself, only the foundation remains of the once magnificent Wonder.

Description
The structure was rectangular in plan, with base dimensions of about 40 m (120 ft) by 30 m (100 ft). Overlying the foundation was a stepped podium which sides were decorated with statues. The burial chamber and the sarcophagus of white alabaster decorated with gold were located on the podium and surrounded by Ionic columns. The colonnade supported a pyramid roof which was in turn decorated with statues. A statue of a chariot pulled by four horses adorned the top of the tomb.

The total height of the Mausoleum was 45 m (140 ft). This is broken down into 20 m (60 ft) for the stepped podium, 12 m (38 ft) for the colonnade, 7 m (22 ft) for the pyramid, and 6 m (20 ft) for the chariot statue at the top.

The beauty of the Mausoleum is not only in the structure itself, but in the decorations and statues that adorned the outside at different levels on the podium and the roof. These were tens of life-size as well as under and over life-size free-standing statues of people, lions, horses, and other animals. The statues were carved by four Greek sculptors: Bryaxis, Leochares, Scopas, and Timotheus, each responsible for one side. Because the statues were of people and animals, the Mausoleum holds a special place in histroy as it was not dedicated to the gods of Ancient Greece.

Since the nineteenth century, archeological excavations have been undertaken at the Mausoleum site. These excavations together with detailed descriptions by ancient historians give us a fairly good idea about the shape and appearance of the Mausoleum. A modern reconstruction of the shorter side of the Mausoleum illustrates the lavish nature of the art and architecture of the building… a building for a King whose name is celebrated in all large tombs today — mausoleums.

The Statue of Zeus

This is the statue of greek god zeus the god in whose honor the Ancient Olympic games were held. It was located on the land that gave its very name to the Olympics. At the time of the games, wars stopped, and athletes came from Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt, and Sicily to celebrate the Olympics and to worship their king of gods: Almighty Zeus.

Location of statue of Zeus
At the ancient town of Olympia, on the west coast of modern Greece, about 150 km west of Athens.

History of Almighty Zeus
The ancient Greek calendar starts in 776 BC, for the Olympic games are believed to have started that year. The magnificent temple of Zeus was designed by the architect Libon and was built around 450 BC. Under the growing power of ancient Greece, the simple Doric-style temple seemed too mundane, and modifications were needed. The solution: A majestic statue of zeus. The Athenian sculptor Pheidias was assigned for the “sacred” task, reminiscent of Michelangelo’s paintings at the Sistine Chapel.

For the years that followed, the temple attracted visitors and worshippers from all over the world. In the second century BC repairs were skillfully made to the aging statue. In the first century AD, the Roman emperor Caligula attempted to transport the statue to Rome. However, his attempt failed when the scaffolding built by Caligula’s workmen collapsed. After the Olympic games were banned in AD 391 by the emperor Theodosius I as Pagan practices, the temple of Zeus was ordered closed.

Olympia was further struck by earthquakes, landslides and floods, and the temple was damaged by fire in the fifth century AD. Earlier, the statue had been transported by wealthy Greeks to a palace in Constantinople. There, it survived until it was destroyed by a severe fire in AD 462. Today nothing remains at the site of the old temple except rocks and debris, the foundation of the buildings, and fallen columns.

Description of statue of Zeus
Pheidias began working on the statue around 440 BC. Years earlier, he had developed a technique to build enormous gold and ivory statues. This was done by erecting a wooden frame on which sheets of metal and ivory were placed to provide the outer covering. Pheidias’ workshop in Olympia still exists, and is coincidentally — or may be not — identical in size and orientation to the temple of Zeus. There, he sculpted and carved the different pieces of the statue before they were assembled in the temple.

When the statue of zeus was completed, it barely fitted in the temple. Strabo wrote:

“.. although the temple itself is very large, the sculptor is criticized for not having appreciated the correct proportions. He has shown Zeus seated, but with the head almost touching the ceiling, so that we have the impression that if Zeus moved to stand up he would unroof the temple.”

Strabo was right, except that the sculptor is to be commended, not criticized. It is this size impression that made the statue so wonderful. It is the idea that the king of gods is capable of unroofing the temple if he stood up that fascinated poets and historians alike. The base of the statue was about 6.5 m (20 ft) wide and 1.0 meter (3 ft) high. The height of the statue itself was 13 m (40 ft), equivalent to a modern 4-story building.

The statue of zeus was so high that visitors described the throne more than Zeus body and features. The legs of the throne were decorated with sphinxes and winged figures of Victory. Greek gods and mythical figures also adorned the scene: Apollo, Artemis, and Niobe’s children. The Greek Pausanias wrote:

On his head is a sculpted wreath of olive sprays. In his right hand he holds a figure of Victory made from ivory and gold… In his left hand, he holds a sceptre inlaid with every kind of metal, with an eagle perched on the sceptre. His sandals are made of gold, as is his robe. His garments are carved with animals and with lilies. The throne is decorated with gold, precious stones, ebony, and ivory.

The statue of zeus was occasionally decorated with gifts from kings and rulers. the most notable of these gifts was a woollen curtain “adorned with Assyrian woven patterns and Pheonician dye” which was dedicated by the Syrian king Antiochus IV.

Copies of the statue were made, including a large prototype at Cyrene (Libya). None of them, however, survived to the present day. Early reconstructions such as the one by von Erlach are now believed to be rather inaccurate. For us, we can only wonder about the true appearance of the statue — the greatest work in Greek sculpture.

The Temple of Artemis

Is it simply a temple? How could it take its place among other unique structures such as the Pyramid, the Hanging Gardens, and the Colossus of Rhodes? For the people who actually visited it, the answer was simple. It was not just a temple… It was the most beautiful structure on earth… It was built in honor of the Greek goddess of hunting and wild nature. That was the Temple of Artemis (Diana) at Ephesus.

Location
The ancient city of Ephesus near the modern town of Selcuk, about 50 km south of Izmir (Smyrna) in Turkey.

History of the artemis
Although the foundation of the temple dates back to the seventh century BC, the structure that earned a spot in the list of Wonders was built around 550 BC. Referred to as the great marble temple, or temple D, it was sponsored by the Lydian king Croesus and was designed by the Greek architect Chersiphron. It was decorated with bronze statues sculpted by the most skilled artists of their time: Pheidias, Polycleitus, Kresilas, and Phradmon.

The temple served as both a marketplace and a religious institution. For years, the sanctuary was visited by merchants, tourists, artisans, and kings who paid homage to the goddess by sharing their profits with her. Recent archeological excavations at the site revealed gifts from pilgrims including statuettes of Artemis made of gold and ivory… earrings, bracelets, and necklaces… artifacts from as far as Persia and India.

On the night of 21 July 356 BC, a man named Herostratus burned the temple to ground in an attempt to immortalize his name. He did indeed. Strangely enough, Alexander the Great was born the same night. The Roman historian Plutarch later wrote that the goddess was “too busy taking care of the birth of Alexander to send help to her threatened temple”. Over the next two decades, the temple was restored and is labeled “temple E” by archeologists. And when Alexander the Great conquered Asia Minor, he helped rebuild the destroyed temple.

When St Paul visited Ephesus to preach Christianity in the first century AD, he was confronted by the Artemis’ cult who had no plans to abandon their goddess. And when the temple was again destroyed by the Goths in AD 262, the Ephesians vowed to rebuild. By the fourth century AD, most Ephesians had converted to Christianity and the temple lost its religious glamor. The final chapter came when in AD 401 the Temple of Artemis was torn down by St John Chrysostom. Ephesus was later deserted, and only in the late nineteenth century has the site been excavated. The digging revealed the temple’s foundation and the road to the now swampy site. Attempts were recently made to rebuilt the temple, but only a few columns have been re-erected.

Description of the artemis
The foundation of the temple was rectangular in form, similar to most temples at the time. Unlike other sanctuaries, however, the building was made of marble, with a decorated façade overlooking a spacious courtyard. Marble steps surrounding the building platform led to the high terrace which was approximately 80 m (260 ft) by 130 m (430 ft) in plan. The columns were 20 m (60 ft) high with Ionic capitals and carved circular sides. There were 127 columns in total, aligned orthogonally over the whole platform area, except for the central cella or house of the goddess.

The temple housed many works of art, including four ancient bronze statues of Amazons sculpted by the finest artists at the time. When St Paul visited the city, the temple was adorned with golden pillars and silver statuettes, and was decorated with paintings. There is no evidence that a statue of the goddess herself was placed at the center of the sanctuary, but there is no reason not to believe so.

The Great Pyramid of Giza

It is the one and only Wonder which does not require a description by early historians and poets. It is the one and only Wonder that does not need speculations concerning its appearance, size, and shape. It is the oldest, yet it is the only surviving of the Seven Ancient Wonders. It is the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt.

Location of the egyptian Pyramid:
At the city of Giza, a necropolis of ancient Memphis, and today part of Greater Cairo, Egypt.

History of Egyptian pyramid
Contrary to the common belief, only the Great Pyramid of Khufu (Cheops), not all three Great Pyramids, is on top of the list of Wonders. The monument was built by the Egyptian pharaoh Khufu of the Fourth Dynasty around the year 2560 BC to serve as a tomb when he dies. The tradition of pyramid building started in Ancient Egypt as a sophistication of the idea of a mastaba or “platform” covering the royal tomb. Later, several stacked mastabas were used. Early pyramids, such as the Step Pyramid of King Zoser (Djoser) at Saqqara by the famous Egyptian architect, Imhotep, illustrate this connection.

The great pyramid is believed to have been built over a 20 year period. The site was first prepared, and blocks of stone were transported and placed. An outer casing (which disappeared over the years) was then used to smooth the surface. Although it is not known how the blocks were put in place, several theories have been proposed. One theory involves the construction of a straight or spiral ramp that was raised as the construction proceeded. This ramp, coated with mud and water, eased the displacement of the blocks which were pushed (or pulled) into place. A second theory suggests that the blocks were placed using long levers with a short angled foot.

Throughout their history, the pyramids of Giza have stimulated human imagination. They were referred to as “The Granaries of Joseph” and “The Mountains of Pharaoh”. When Napoleon invaded Egypt in 1798, his pride was expressed through his famous quote: “Soldats! Du haute de ces Pyramides, 40 siècles nous contemplent”. (Soldiers! From the top of these Pyramids, 40 centuries are looking at us)

Today, the Great Pyramid of Egypt is enclosed, together with the other pyramids and the Sphinx, in the touristic region of the Giza Plateau. Also in the area is the museum housing the mysterious Sun Boat, only discovered in 1954 near the south side of the pyramid. The boat is believed to have been used to carry the body of Khufu in his last journey on earth before being buried inside the pyramid. It may also serve him as a means of transportation in his afterlife journey according to Ancient Egyptian beliefs.

Description
When it was built, the Great pyramid was 145.75 m (481 ft) high. Over the years, it lost 10 m (30 ft) off its top. It ranked as the tallest structure on Earth for more than 43 centuries, only to be surpassed in height in the nineteenth century AD. It was covered with a casing of stones to smooth its surface (some of the casing can still be seen near the top of Khefre’s pyramid). The sloping angle of its sides is 54 degrees 54 minutes. Each side is carefully oriented with one of the cardinal points of the compass, that is, north, south, east, and west. The horizontal cross section of the pyramid is square at any level, with each side measuring 229 m (751 ft) in length. The maximum error between side lengths is astonishingly less than 0.1%.

The structure consists of approximately 2 million blocks of stone, each weighing more than two tons. It has been suggested that there are enough blocks in the three pyramids to build a 3 m (10 ft) high, 0.3 m (1 ft) thick wall around France. The area covered by the Great pyramid can accommodate St Peter’s in Rome, the cathedrals of Florence and Milan, and Westminster and St Paul’s in London combined.

On the north face, is the pyramid’s entrance. A number of corridors, galleries, and escape shafts either lead to the King’s burial chamber, or were intended to serve other functions. The King’s chamber is located at the heart of the pyramid, only accessible through the Great Gallery and an ascending corridor. The King’s sarcophagus is made of red granite, as are the interior walls of the King’s Chamber. Most impressive is the sharp-edged stone over the doorway which is over 3 m (10 ft) long, 2.4 m (8 feet) high and 1.3 m (4 ft) thick. All of the interior stones fit so well, a card won’t fit between them. The sarcophagus is oriented in accordance with the compass directions, and is only about 1 cm smaller in dimensions than the chamber entrance. It might have been introduced as the structure was progressing.

New theories concerning the origin and purpose of the Pyramids of Giza have been proposed… Astronomic observatories… Places of cult worship… Geometric structures constructed by a long-gone civilization… Even extraterrestrial-related theories have been proposed with little evidence in support… The overwhelming scientific and historic evidence still supports the conclusion that, like many smaller pyramids in the region, the Great Pyramids were built by the great Ancient Egyptian civilization off the West bank of the Nile as tombs for their magnificent Kings… Tombs where Khufu, Khefre, and Menkaure could start their mystic journey to the afterlife.

7 Wonders

The Hanging Gardens:

Fruits and flowers… Waterfalls… Gardens hanging from the palace terraces… Exotic animals… This is the picture of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon in most people’s minds. It may be surprising to know that they might have never existed except in Greek poets and historians imagination!

Location
On the east bank of the River Euphrates, about 50 km south of Baghdad, Iraq.

History
The Babylonian kingdom flourished under the rule of the famous King, Hammurabi (1792-1750 BC). It was not until the reign of Naboplashar (625-605 BC) of the Neo-Babylonian dynasty that the Mesopotamian civilization reached its ultimate glory. His son, Nebuchadnezzar II (604-562 BC) is credited for building the legendary Hanging Gardens. It is said that the Gardens were built by Nebuchadnezzar to please his wife or concubine who had been “brought up in Media and had a passion for mountain surroundings”.

While the most descriptive accounts of the Gardens come from Greek historians such as Berossus and Diodorus Siculus, Babylonian records stay silent on the matter. Tablets from the time of Nebuchadnezzar do not have a single reference to the Hanging Gardens, although descriptions of his palace, the city of Babylon, and the walls are found. Even the historians who give detailed descriptions of the Hanging Gardens never saw them. Modern historians argue that when Alexander’s soldiers reached the fertile land of Mesopotamia and saw Babylon, they were impressed. When they later returned to their rugged homeland, they had stories to tell about the amazing gardens and palm trees at Mesopotamia.. About the palace of Nebuchadnezzar.. About the Tower of Babel and the ziggurats. And it was the imagination of poets and ancient historians that blended all these elements together to produce one of the World Wonders.

It wasn’t until the twentieth century that some of the mysteries surrounding the Hanging Gardens were revealed. Archaeologists are still struggling to gather enough evidence before reaching the final conclusions about the location of the Gardens, their irrigation system, and their true appearance.

Description
Detailed descriptions of the Gardens come from ancient Greek sources, including the writings of Strabo and Philo of Byzantium. Here are some excerpts from their accounts:

“The Garden is quadrangular, and each side is four plethra long. It consists of arched vaults which are located on checkered cube-like foundations.. The ascent of the uppermost terrace-roofs is made by a stairway…”

“The Hanging Garden has plants cultivated above ground level, and the roots of the trees are embedded in an upper terrace rather than in the earth. The whole mass is supported on stone columns… Streams of water emerging from elevated sources flow down sloping channels… These waters irrigate the whole garden saturating the roots of plants and keeping the whole area moist. Hence the grass is permanently green and the leaves of trees grow firmly attached to supple branches… This is a work of art of royal luxury and its most striking feature is that the labor of cultivation is suspended above the heads of the spectators”.

More recent archaeological excavations at the ancient city of Babylon in Iraq uncovered the foundation of the palace. Other findings include the Vaulted Building with thick walls and an irrigation well near the southern palace. A group of archaeologists surveyed the area of the southern palace and reconstructed the Vaulted Building as the Hanging Gardens. However, the Greek historian Strabo had stated that the gardens were situated by the River Euphrates. So others argue that the site is too far from the Euphrates to support the theory since the Vaulted Building is several hundreds of meters away. They reconstructed the site of the palace and located the Gardens in the area stretching from the River to the Palace. On the river banks, recently discovered massive walls 25 m thick may have been stepped to form terraces… the ones described in Greek references.

History Of Pakistan

Islamic Republic of Pakistan اسلامی جمہوریہ پاکِستان Islāmī Jumhūrī-ye Pākistān
Flag State Emblem
Motto: اتحاد، تنظيم، يقين مُحکم Ittehad, Tanzim, Yaqeen-e-Muhkam (Urdu) “Unity, Discipline and Faith”
Anthem: “Qaumi Tarana“
Capital		Islamabad 33°40′N 73°10′E / 33.667°N 73.167°E / 33.667; 73.167
Largest city		Karachi
Official language(s)		Urdu (National) English (Government)
Regional languages		Punjabi, Pashto, Sindhi, Seraiki and Balochi
Demonym		Pakistani
Government		Federal semi-presidential republic
-	President	Asif Zardari (PPP)
-	Prime Minister	Yousaf Gillani (PPP)
-	Chair of Senate	Farooq Naek (PPP)
-	House Speaker	Fahmida Mirza (PPP)
-	Chief Justice	Iftikhar Chaudhry
Formation
-	Independence	from the United Kingdom
-	Declared	14 August 1947
-	Islamic republic	23 March 1956
Area
-	Total	803,940 km2 (36th) 340,403 sq mi
-	Water (%)	3.1
Population
-	2010 estimate	169,180,500[1] (6th)
-	1998 census	132,352,279[2]
-	Density	210.4/km2 (55th) 497/sq mi
GDP (PPP)		2008 estimate
-	Total	$422.392 billion[3] (27th)
-	Per capita	$2,624[3] (133rd)
GDP (nominal)		2008 estimate
-	Total	$164.557 billion[3] (48th)
-	Per capita	$1,022[3] (142nd)
Gini (2002)		30.6 (medium)
HDI (2007)		▲ 0.572[4] (medium) (141st)
Currency		Pakistani Rupee (Rs.) (PKR)
Time zone		PST (UTC+5)
-	Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC+6)
Drives on the		left[5]
Internet TLD		.pk
Calling code		92

Pakistan (Urdu: پاکِستان), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It has a 1,046 kilometres (650 mi) coastline along the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast.^[6] Tajikistan also lies very close to Pakistan but is separated by the narrow Wakhan Corridor. Thus, it occupies a crossroads position between South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East.^[7] The region forming modern Pakistan was at the heart of the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation and then later was the recipient of Vedic, Persian, Indo-Greek, Turco-Mongol, Islamic and Sikh cultures. The area has witnessed invasions and/or settlements by the Indo-Aryans, Persians, Greeks, Arabs, Turks, Afghans, Mongols and the British.^[8]

While the Indian independence movement demanded an independent India, the Pakistan Movement (led by Quaid e Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah of the Muslim League) sought independent states for the majority Muslim populations of the eastern and western regions of British India as well. The British granted independence and also the creation of one Muslim majority state of Pakistan that comprised the provinces of Sindh, North-West Frontier Province, West Punjab, Balochistan and East Bengal. With the adoption of its constitution in 1956, Pakistan became an Islamic republic. In 1971, a civil war in East Pakistan resulted in the creation of Bangladesh.

Pakistan’s history has been characterized by periods of military rule, political instability and conflicts with neighboring India. It is the sixth most populous country in the world and has the second largest Muslim population after Indonesia.^[9] Pakistan also has the second largest Shia Muslim population.^[10] It is the only Muslim-majority nuclear state and is classified as major non-NATO ally of the United States. Pakistan is one of the founders of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference and a member of the United Nations, Commonwealth of Nations, Next Eleven economies and G20 developing nations.

Etymology

The name Pakistan (Urdu pronunciation: [paːkɪsˈtaːn] ( listen)) means Land of (the) Pure in Urdu and Persian (Farsi). It was coined in 1934 as Pakstan by Choudhary Rahmat Ali, a Pakistan movement activist, who published it in his pamphlet Now or Never.^[11] The name is a portmanteau representing the “thirty million Muslims of PAKISTAN, who live in the five Northern Units of British Raj — Punjab, Afghania (now known as North-West Frontier Province), Kashmir, Sindh, and Balochistan.”^[12]

History

Main articles: History of Pakistan and History of South Asia

“The Priest King” Wearing Sindhi Ajruk, ca. 2500 BC. National Museum, Karachi, Pakistan

Menander I was one of the rulers of the Indo-Greek Kingdom which existed in present-day Pakistan.

The Indus region, which covers a considerable amount of Pakistan, was the site of several ancient cultures including the Neolithic era’s Mehrgarh and the bronze era Indus Valley Civilisation (2500 BCE – 1500 BCE) at Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro.^[13]

Waves of conquerors and migrants from the west — including Harappan, Indo-Aryans, Persians, Greeks, Sakas, Parthians, Kushans, Hephthalites, Afghans, Arabs, Turks and Mughals — settled in the region throughout the centuries, influencing the locals and being absorbed among them.^[14] Ancient empires of the east — such as the Nandas, Mauryas, Sungas, Guptas and the Palas — ruled these territories at different times from Patliputra.^[15]

However, in the medieval period, while the eastern provinces of Punjab and Sindh grew aligned with Indo-Islamic civilisation, the western areas became culturally allied with the Iranian civilisation of Afghanistan and Iran.^[16] The region served as a crossroads of historic trade routes, including the Silk Road, and as a maritime entreport for the coastal trade between Mesopotamia and beyond up to Rome in the west and Malabar and beyond up to China in the east.^[17]

Modern day Pakistan was at the heart of the Indus Valley Civilisation; that collapsed in the middle of the second millennium BCE and was followed by the Vedic Civilisation, which also extended over much of the Indo-Gangetic plains. Successive ancient empires and kingdoms ruled the region: the Achaemenid Persian empire around 543 BCE,^[18] the Greek empire founded by Alexander the Great in 326 BCE and the Mauryan empire thereafter.^[19]

The Indo-Greek Kingdom founded by Demetrius of Bactria included Gandhara and Punjab from 184 BCE, and reached its greatest extent under Menander, establishing the Greco-Buddhist period with advances in trade and culture. The city of Taxila (Takshashila) became a major centre of learning in ancient times — the remains of the city, located to the west of Islamabad, are one of the country’s major archaeological sites.^[20] The Rai Dynasty (c.489–632) of Sindh, at its zenith, ruled this region and the surrounding territories.^[21]

In 712 CE, the Arab general Muhammad bin Qasim conquered Sindh and Multan in southern Punjab.^[22] The Pakistan government’s official chronology states that “its foundation was laid” as a result of this conquest.^[23] This Arab and Islamic victory would set the stage for several successive Muslim empires in South Asia, including the Ghaznavid Empire, the Ghorid Kingdom, the Delhi Sultanate and the Mughal Empire. During this period, Sufi missionaries played a pivotal role in converting a majority of the regional Buddhist and Hindu population to Islam.

17th Century Badshahi Masjid built during Mughal rule

The gradual decline of the Mughal Empire in the early eighteenth century provided opportunities for the Afghans, Balochis and Sikhs to exercise control over large areas until the British East India Company gained ascendancy over South Asia.^[24] The Indian Rebellion of 1857, also known as the Sepoy Mutiny, was the region’s last major armed struggle against the British Raj, and it laid the foundations for the generally unarmed freedom struggle led by the Indian National Congress in the twentieth century. In the 1920s and 1930s, a movement led by the Hindu politician Mahatma Gandhi, and displaying commitment to long enshrined Hindu tenet of ahimsa, or non-violence, engaged millions of protesters in mass campaigns of civil disobedience.^[25]

The All India Muslim League rose to popularity in the late 1930s amid fears of under-representation and neglect of Muslims in politics. On 29 December 1930, Allama Iqbal‘s presidential address called for an autonomous “state in northwestern India for Indian Muslims, within the body politic of India.”^[26] Quaid e Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah espoused the Two Nation Theory and led the Muslim League to adopt the Lahore Resolution of 1940, popularly known as the Pakistan Resolution. In early 1947, Britain announced the decision to end its rule in India. In June 1947, the nationalist leaders of British India — including Nehru and Abul Kalam Azad on behalf of the Congress, Jinnah representing the Muslim League, and Master Tara Singh representing the Sikhs — agreed to the proposed terms of transfer of power and independence.

The first Governor General Quaid e Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah delivering the opening address on 11 August 1947 to the new state of Pakistan.

The modern state of Pakistan was established on 14 August 1947 (27 Ramadan 1366 in the Islamic Calendar), carved out of the two Muslim-majority wings in the eastern and northwestern regions of British India and comprising the provinces of Balochistan, East Bengal, the North-West Frontier Province, West Punjab and Sindh.^[27] The controversial, and ill-timed, division of the provinces of Punjab and Bengal caused communal riots across India and Pakistan — millions of Muslims moved to Pakistan and millions of Hindus and Sikhs moved to India.^[28] Disputes arose over several princely states including Muslim-majority Jammu and Kashmir, whose Hindu ruler had acceded to India following an invasion by Pashtun tribal militias, leading to the First Kashmir War in 1948.^[29]

From 1947 to 1956, Pakistan was a Dominion in the Commonwealth of Nations. It became a Republic in 1956, but the civilian rule was stalled by a coup d’état by General Ayub Khan, who was president during 1958–69, a period of internal instability and a second war with India in 1965. His successor, Yahya Khan (1969–71) had to deal with a devastating cyclone — which caused 500,000 deaths in East Pakistan — and also face a civil war in 1971. Economic grievances and political dissent in East Pakistan led to violent political tension and military repression that escalated into a civil war.^[30] After nine months of guerrilla warfare between the Pakistan Army and the Indian backed Bengali Mukti Bahini militia, Indian intervention escalated into the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, and ultimately to the secession of East Pakistan as the independent state of Bangladesh.^[31]

The two wings of Pakistan in 1970; East Pakistan separated from the West wing in 1971 as an independent Bangladesh.

Civilian rule resumed in Pakistan from 1972 to 1977 under Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, until he was deposed and later sentenced to death in 1979 by General Zia-ul-Haq, who became the country’s third military president. Zia introduced the Islamic Sharia legal code, which increased religious influences on the civil service and the military. With the death of President Zia in a plane crash in 1988, Benazir Bhutto, daughter of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was elected as the first female Prime Minister of Pakistan. Over the next decade, she fought for power with Nawaz Sharif as the country’s political and economic situation worsened. Pakistan got involved in the 1991 Gulf War and sent 5,000 troops as part of a U.S.-led coalition, specifically for the defence of Saudi Arabia.^[32]

Military tensions in the Kargil conflict with India were followed by a Pakistani military coup d’état in 1999 in which General Pervez Musharraf assumed vast executive powers.^[33][34] In 2001, Musharraf became President after the controversial resignation of Rafiq Tarar. After the 2002 parliamentary elections, Musharraf transferred executive powers to the newly-elected Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali, who was succeeded in the 2004 prime-ministerial election by Shaukat Aziz. On 15 November 2007, the National Assembly, for the first time in Pakistan’s history, completed its tenure and new elections were called. The exiled political leaders Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif were permitted to return to Pakistan. However, the assassination of Benazir Bhutto during the election campaign in December led to postponement of elections and nationwide riots. Bhutto’s Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) won the largest number of seats in the elections held in February 2008 and its member Yousaf Raza Gillani was sworn in as Prime Minister.^[35] On 18 August 2008, Pervez Musharraf resigned from the presidency when threatened to faced with impeachment,^[36] and was succeeded by current president Asif Ali Zardari. By the end of 2009, more than 3 million Pakistani civilians have been displaced by the on going conflict in North-West Pakistan between the government and Taliban militants.^[37]

Government and politics

Main articles: Government of Pakistan, Politics of Pakistan, and Foreign relations of Pakistan

Prime Minister’s Secretariat, Islamabad

Pakistan is a semi-presidential federal democratic republic with Islam as the state religion.^[38] The first Constitution of Pakistan was adopted in 1956, but was suspended in 1958 by General Ayub Khan. The Constitution of 1973 — suspended in 1977, by Zia-ul-Haq, but re-instated in 1985 — is the country’s most important document, laying the foundations of the current government.^[14]

The bicameral legislature comprises a 100-member Senate and a 342-member National Assembly. The President is the Head of State and the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces and is elected by an electoral college. The prime minister is usually the leader of the largest party in the National Assembly. Each province has a similar system of government with a directly elected Provincial Assembly in which the leader of the largest party or alliance becomes Chief Minister. Provincial Governors are appointed by the President.^[38]

The Pakistani military has played an influential role in mainstream politics throughout Pakistan’s history, with military presidents ruling from 1958–71, 1977–88 and from 1999–2008.^[39] The leftist Pakistan Peoples Party, led by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, won support after the loss of East Pakistan but was overthrown amidst riots in 1977.^[40] Under the military rule of Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, during the 1980s, the anti-feudal, pro-Muhajir Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) was started by unorthodox and educated urban dwellers of Sindh and particularly Karachi. A politically nationalist insurgency in Balochistan was also bloodlessly quelled by military governor Rahimuddin.^[41] The 1990s were characterized by coalition politics dominated by the Pakistan Peoples Party and a rejuvenated Muslim League.^[38]

National Symbols of Pakistan[42]
Flag	Flag of Pakistan
Emblem	Faith, Unity, Discipline
Anthem	Qaumi Tarana
Animal	Markhor
Bird	Chukar
Flower	Jasmine
Tree	Cedrus deodara
Juice	Sugarcane juice
Sport	Field hockey
Dress	Shalwar Kameez

Pakistan is an active member of the United Nations (UN) and the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), the latter of which Pakistan has used as a forum for Enlightened Moderation, a plan to promote a renaissance and enlightenment in the Muslim world.^[38] Pakistan is also a member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and the Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO).^[38] In the past, Pakistan has had mixed relations with the United States; in the early 1950s, Pakistan was the United States’ “most allied ally in Asia”^[43] and a member of both the Central Treaty Organisation (CENTO) and the Southeast Asia Treaty Organisation (SEATO).

During the Soviet-Afghan War in the 1980s, Pakistan was a major U.S. ally.^[44] But relations soured in the 1990s, when sanctions were imposed by the U.S. over Pakistan’s refusal to abandon its nuclear activities.^[45] However, the American War on Terrorism, as an aftermath of 11 September 2001 attacks in U.S.A., led to an improvement in U.S.–Pakistan ties, especially after Pakistan ended its support of the Taliban regime in Kabul. Its positive side was evidenced by a major increase in American military aid, providing Pakistan $4 billion more in three years after the 9/11 attacks than before.^[46] On the other hand, Pakistan is presently burdened with nearly 3 million displaced civilians due to the ongoing Afghan war. As of 2004, in contexts of the War on Terrorism Pakistan was been referred to as part of the Greater Middle East by the U.S. under the Bush administration^[47]

On 18 February 2008, Pakistan held its general elections after Benazir Bhutto’s assassination postponed the original date of 8 January 2008.^[48] The Pakistan Peoples Party won the majority of the votes and formed an alliance with the Pakistan Muslim League (N). They nominated and elected Yousaf Raza Gilani as Prime Minister of Pakistan.^[49] On 18 August 2008, Pervez Musharraf resigned as President of Pakistan amidst increasing calls for his impeachment.^[50] In the presidential election that followed, Asif Ali Zardari of Pakistan People’s Party won by a landslide majority and became President of Pakistan.^[51]

Subdivisions

Main articles: Subdivisions of Pakistan, Districts of Pakistan, and List of most populated metropolitan areas in Pakistan

Provinces and territories of Pakistan

Provinces: Balochistan North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) Punjab Sindh

Territories: Islamabad Capital Territory (IST) Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) Azad Jammu and Kashmir (or simply Azad Kashmir)[6] (AJK) Gilgit-Baltistan

• Balochistan and NWFP also have Provincially Administered Tribal Areas.^[52](PATA)

Pakistan is a federation of four provinces, a capital territory and federally administered tribal areas. The government of Pakistan exercises de facto jurisdiction over the western parts of the disputed Kashmir region,^[6] organized as two separate political entities (Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan). The third tier of government was composed of 26 divisions with two further tiers (districts and tehsils) administered directly from the provincial level. The divisions were abolished in 2001^[53] and a new three-tiered system of local government came into effect comprising districts, tehsils and union councils with an elected body at each tier. There are currently 107 districts in Pakistan proper, each with several tehsils and union councils. The tribal areas comprise seven tribal agencies and six small frontier regions detached from neighbouring districts whilst Azad Kashmir comprises seven districts and Northern Areas comprises six districts.^[54]

Demographics

Main articles: Demographics of Pakistan and Ethnic groups in Pakistan

Population density in Pakistan

The estimated population of Pakistan in 2010 was over 169,180,500^[1] making it the world’s sixth most-populous country, behind Brazil and ahead of Russia. The population growth rate now stands at 1.6% ^[55].

About 20% of the population live below the international poverty line of US$1.25 a day.^[56] Population projections for Pakistan are relatively difficult because of the differences in the accuracy of each census and the inconsistencies between various surveys related to the fertility rate, but it is likely that the rate of growth peaked in the 1980s and has since declined significantly.^[57] Life expectancy at birth was 63 for females and 62 for males in 2006.^[58] Healthy life expectancy at birth was at 54 for males and 52 for females in 2003.^[58] Expenditure on health was at 2% of the GDP in 2006.^[58] The mortality below 5 was at 97 per 1,000 live births in 2006.^[58]

The majority of southern Pakistan’s population lives along the Indus River. By population size, Karachi is the largest city of Pakistan.^[59] In the northern half, most of the population lives about an arc formed by the cities of Lahore, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Gujrat, Jhelum, Sargodha and Sheikhupura. In the past, the country’s population had a relatively high growth rate that has, however, been moderated by declining fertility and birth rates. Dramatic social changes have led to rapid urbanization and the emergence of megacities. During 1990–2003, Pakistan sustained its historical lead as the most urbanized nation in South Asia, with city dwellers making up 36% of its population.^[60]

Pakistan has a multicultural and multi-ethnic society and hosts one of the largest refugee populations in the world as well as a young population. About 8 million Muhajirs—then roughly one-fourth of the country’s population—arrived from India after independence in 1947.^[61] The Urdu-speaking Muhajirs make up nearly half of Karachi’s 17 million residents,^[62] with Punjabis and Pashtuns also having sizable communities in the city.^[63] Approximately 1.7 million Afghan refugees remain in the country, about half of them were born and grew up in Pakistan during the last 30 years.^[64] They are not counted in the national census, even the ones born in Pakistan, because they are still considered citizens of Afghanistan.

Cities by population (2010 estimate)^[65]

Rank	City	Location	Population	Rank	City	Location	Population	view • talk • edit Karachi, Sindh Lahore, Punjab
1	Karachi	Sindh	13,205,339	11	Sargodha	Punjab	600,501
2	Lahore	Punjab	7,129,609	12	Bahawalpur	Punjab	543,929
3	Faisalabad	Punjab	2,880,675	13	Sialkot	Punjab	510,863
4	Rawalpindi	Punjab	1,991,656	14	Sukkur	Sindh	493,438
5	Multan	Punjab	1,606,481	15	Larkana	Sindh	456,544
6	Hyderabad	Sindh	1,578,367	16	Sheikhupura	Punjab	426,980
7	Gujranwala	Punjab	1,569,090	17	Jhang	Punjab	372,645
8	Peshawar	NWFP	1,439,205	18	Rahim Yar Khan	Punjab	353,112
9	Quetta	Balochistan	896,090	19	Mardan	NWFP	352,135
10	Islamabad	Capital Territory	689,249	20	Gujrat	Punjab	336,727

Languages

Main article: Languages of Pakistan

Pakistan is a multilingual country with more than sixty languages being spoken. English is the official language of Pakistan and used in official business, government, and legal contracts,^[14] while Urdu is the national language.

Major Ethnic Groups in Pakistan

Punjabi is the provincial language of Punjab.Saraiki is also spoken in larger area of punjab province. Pashto is the provincial language of North-West Frontier Province. Sindhi is the provincial language of Sindh and Balochi is the provincial language of Balochistan.^[66]

Other languages include Aer, Badeshi, Bagri, Balti, Bateri, Bhaya, Brahui, Burushaski, Chilisso, Dameli, Dehwari, Dhatki, Domaaki, Farsi (Dari), Gawar-Bati, Ghera, Goaria, Gowro, Gujarati, Gujari, Gurgula, Hazaragi, Hindko (two varieties), Jadgali, Jandavra, Kabutra, Kachchi (Kutchi), Kalami, Kalasha, Kalkoti, Kamviri, Kashmiri, Kati, Khetrani, Khowar, Indus Kohistani, Koli (three varieties), Lasi, Loarki, Marwari, Memoni, Od, Ormuri, Pahari-Potwari, Pakistan Sign Language, Palula (Phalura), Sansi, Savi, Shina (two varieties), Torwali, Ushojo, Vaghri, Wakhi, Waneci, and Yidgha.^[67] Some of these are endangered languages with a relatively small number of speakers and others have hundreds of thousands of speakers. Most of the languages belong to the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European family. The exceptions are Burushaski, which is a language isolate; Balti, which is Sino-TIbetan; and Brahui, which is Dravidian.

Religions

Main article: Religion in Pakistan

Religion in Pakistan
Religion			Percent
Islam			96%
Hinduism			1.85%
Sikhism			0.001%
Christianity			1.6%
Other			0.549%

Pakistan is the second-most populous Muslim-majority country^[9][68] and also has the second-largest Shi’a population in the world.^[10] About 95% of the Pakistanis are Muslim, of which nearly 75% are Sunni and 20% are Shi’a.^[14] Although the two groups of Muslims usually coexist peacefully, sectarian violence occurs sporadically.^[69]

The religious breakdown of the country is as follows:^[14]

• Islam 173,000,000 (96%) (nearly 70% are Sunni Muslims and 20% are Shi’a Muslims).
• Hinduism 3,200,000 (1.85%)
• Christianity 2,800,000 (1.6%)
• Sikhs Around 20,000 (0.001%)
• The remaining are Parsis, Ahmadi Muslims, Buddhists, Jews, Bahá’ís, and Animists (mainly the Kalasha of Chitral).^[70]

Military

Pakistan Air Force F-16 fighter aircraft

Pakistan’s nuclear capable Babur cruise missile

Main article: Military of Pakistan

Further information: War in North-West Pakistan

The armed forces of Pakistan are an all-volunteer force and the sixth-largest in the world. The three main services are the Army, Navy and the Air Force, supported by a number of paramilitary forces which carry out internal security roles and border patrols. The National Command Authority is responsible for exercising employment and development control of all strategic nuclear forces and organizations.

The Pakistan military first saw combat in the First Kashmir War, gaining control of what is now Azad Kashmir. In 1961, the army repelled a major Afghan incursion on Pakistan’s western border.^[71] Pakistan and India would be at war again in 1965 and in 1971. In 1973, the military quelled a Baloch nationalist uprising. During the Soviet-Afghan war, Pakistan shot down several intruding pro-Soviet Afghan aircraft and provided covert support to the Afghan mujahideen through the Inter-Services Intelligence agency. In 1999, Pakistan was involved in the Kargil conflict with India. Currently, the military is engaged in an armed conflict with extremist Islamic militants in the north-west of the country.

The Pakistani armed forces contributed to United Nations peacekeeping efforts, with more than 10,700 personnel deployed in 2009,^[72] and are presently the largest contributor. In the past, Pakistani personnel have volunteered to serve alongside Arab forces in conflicts with Israel. Pakistan provided a military contingent to the U.N.-backed coalition in the first Gulf War.^[73]

Pakistan’s military employs armaments that include atomic weapons, mobile vehicle ballistic missile systems, laser communication systems, armored cars and tanks, and multi-role fighter/bomber jets.

Since 2004, Pakistani armed forces are engaged in fighting against Pakistani Taliban groups. Ever since the militant groups have been retaliating by suicide bombings in Pakistani cities, killing more than 3,000 civilians and armed personnels only in 2009.^[74]

Geography and climate

Main article: Geography of Pakistan

The Baltoro Glacier, Northern Pakistan, is one of the longest glaciers outside of the polar regions.

Pakistan covers 340,403 square miles (881,640 km²),^[75] approximately equalling the combined land areas of France and the United Kingdom. Its eastern regions are located on the Indian tectonic plate and the western and northern regions on the Iranian plateau and Eurasian landplate. Apart from the 1,046-kilometre (650 mi) Arabian Sea coastline, Pakistan’s land borders total 6,774 kilometres—2,430 kilometres (1,509 mi) with Afghanistan to the northwest, 523 kilometres (325 mi) with China to the northeast, 2,912 kilometres (1,809 mi) with India to the east and 909 kilometres (565 mi) with Iran to the southwest.^[14] The northern and western highlands of Pakistan contain the towering Karakoram and Pamir mountain ranges, which incorporate some of the world’s highest peaks, including K2 (28,250 ft; 8,611 m) and Nanga Parbat (26,660 ft; 8,126 m).

Toli peer, Azad Kashmir

The Balochistan Plateau lies to the West, and the Thar Desert in the East. An expanse of alluvial plains lies in Punjab and Sindh along the Indus river. The 1,000-mile-long (1,609-km) Indus River and its tributaries flow through the country from the Kashmir region to the Arabian Sea.^[76]

Pakistan has four seasons: a cool, dry winter from December through February; a hot, dry spring from March through May; the summer rainy season, or southwest monsoon period, from June through September; and the retreating monsoon period of October and November. The onset and duration of these seasons vary somewhat according to location.^[77] Rainfall can vary radically from year to year, and successive patterns of flooding and drought are also not uncommon.^[78]

Flora and fauna

Main articles: Flora of Pakistan and Fauna of Pakistan

Markhor, Pakistan’s national animal

The national animal of Pakistan is the Markhor and the national bird is the Chukar, also known as Chakhoor in Urdu.^[79] The wide variety of landscapes and climates in Pakistan allows for a wide variety of wild animals and birds. The forests range from coniferous alpine and subalpine trees such as spruce, pine, and deodar cedar in the northern mountains to deciduous trees such as the mulberry-type Shisham in the Sulaiman range in the south. The western hills have juniper and tamarisk as well as coarse grasses and scrub plants. Along the southern coast are mangrove forests which form much of the coastal wetlands.^[80]

In the south, there are crocodiles in the murky waters at the mouth of the Indus River whilst on the banks of the river, there are boars, deer, porcupines, and small rodents. In the sandy scrublands of central Pakistan are found jackals, hyenas, wild cats, panthers, and leopards while the clear blue skies abound with hawks, falcons, and eagles. In the southwestern deserts are rare Asiatic cheetahs. In the northern mountains are a variety of endangered animals including Marco Polo sheep, Urial sheep, Markhor and Ibex goats, black and brown Himalayan bears, and the rare Snow Leopard. During August 2006, Pakistan donated an orphaned snow leopard cub called Leo to the United States.^[81] Another rare species is the blind Indus River Dolphin of which there are believed to be about 1,100 remaining, protected at the Indus River Dolphin Reserve in Sindh.^[82] In recent years, the number of wild animals being killed for fur and leather trading led to a new law banning the hunting of wild animals and birds as well as the establishment of several wildlife sanctuaries and game reserves. The number of hunters have greatly dwindled since then.^[83]

Economy

Main article: Economy of Pakistan

A View of I. I. Chundrigar Road road, Karachi, which is the financial hub of pakistan

Pakistan has a semi-industrialized economy.^[84][85] The growth poles of the Pakistani economy are situated along the Indus River,^[85][86] diversified economies of Karachi and Punjab’s urban centers, coexist with lesser developed areas in other parts of the country.^[85] Despite being a very poor country in 1947, Pakistan’s economic growth rate has been better than the global average during the subsequent four decades, but imprudent policies led to a slowdown in the late 1990s.^[87] Recently, wide-ranging economic reforms have resulted in a stronger economic outlook and accelerated growth especially in the manufacturing and financial services sectors.^[87] Since the 1990s, there has been great improvement in the foreign exchange position and rapid growth in hard currency reserves.^[87]

The 2005 estimate of foreign debt was close to US$40 billion. However, this has decreased in recent years with assistance from the International Monetary Fund and significant debt-relief from the United States. Pakistan’s gross domestic product, as measured by purchasing power parity, is estimated to be US$475.4 billion^[88] while its per capita income stands at $2,942.^[88] The poverty rate in Pakistan is estimated to be between 23%^[89] and 28%.^[90] GDP growth was steady during the mid 2000s at a rate of 7%;^[91][92] however, slowed down during the Economic crisis of 2008 to 4.7%.^[14] A large inflation rate of 24.4% and a low savings rate, and other economic factors, continue to make it difficult to sustain a high growth rate.^[93][94] Pakistan’s GDP is US$167 billions, which makes it the 48th-largest economy in the world or 27th largest by purchasing power adjusted exchange rates. Today, Pakistan is regarded as to having the second largest economy in South Asia.^[95]

GDP by Province

The structure of the Pakistani economy has changed from a mainly agricultural base to a strong service base. Agriculture now only accounts for roughly 20% of the GDP, while the service sector accounts for 53% of the GDP.^[96] Significant foreign investments have been made in several areas including telecommunications, real estate and energy.^[97][98] Other important industries include apparel and textiles (accounting for nearly 60% of exports), food processing, chemicals manufacture, and the iron and steel industries.^[99] Pakistan’s exports in 2008 amounted to $20.62 billion (USD).^[14] Pakistan is a rapidly developing country.^{[100][101][102]}

However, the Economic crisis of 2008 led Pakistan to seek more than $100 billion in aid in order to avoid possible bankruptcy.^[103][104] This was never given to Pakistan and therefore it had to depend on a more aggressive fiscal policy, backed by the IMF. A year later Asian Development Bank Reports Pakistan economic crisis easing in 2009.^[105] Furthermore it is projected that in 2010 Pakistan economy would grow at least 4 percent and could grow more with strong international economic recovery.^[106]

Education

Main article: Education in Pakistan

Punjab University Old Campus, also known as Allama Iqbal Campus

Education in Pakistan is divided into five levels: primary (grades one through five); middle (grades six through eight); high (grades nine and ten, leading to the Secondary School Certificate); intermediate (grades eleven and twelve, leading to a Higher Secondary School Certificate); and university programmes leading to graduate and advanced degrees.^[107]

Pakistan also has a parallel secondary school education system in private schools, which is based upon the curriculum set and administered by the Cambridge International Examinations, in place of government exams. Some students choose to take the O level and A level^[108] exams through the British Council.

There are currently 730 technical & vocational institutions in Pakistan.^[109] The minimum qualifications to enter male vocational institutions, is the completion of grade 8.

Literacy Rate – Pakistan, Sources:^[110][111]

The programmes are generally two to three years in length. The minimum qualifications to enter female vocational institutions, is the completion of grade 5.^[112] All academic education institutions are the responsibility of the provincial governments. The federal government mostly assists in curriculum development, accreditation and some financing of research.

English medium education is to be extended, on a phased basis, to all schools across the country.^[113] Through various educational reforms, by the year 2015, the ministry of education expects to attain 100% enrolment levels amongst primary school aged children, and a literacy rate of 86% amongst people aged over 10.^[114]

Pakistan also has madrassahs that provide free education and also offer free boarding and lodging to students who come mainly from the poorer strata of society.^[115] After criticism over terrorists using them for recruiting purposes, efforts have been made to regulate them.^[116]

Culture

Main article: Culture of Pakistan

Sir Muhammad Iqbal was a key leader in the Pakistan Movement and is a well known poet all over Pakistan

A sitar workshop in Islamabad

View of Food Street in Lahore

Pakistani society is largely hierarchical, with high regard for traditional Islamic values, although urban families have grown into a nuclear family system because of the socio-economic constraints imposed by the traditional joint family system.^[117] Recent decades have seen the emergence of a middle class in cities like Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Hyderabad, Faisalabad, Multan and Peshawar that wish to move in a more centrist direction, as opposed to the northwestern regions bordering Afghanistan that remain highly conservative and dominated by centuries-old regional tribal customs. Increasing globalization has resulted in ranking 46th on the A.T. Kearney/FP Globalization Index.^[118]

The variety of Pakistani music ranges from diverse provincial folk music and traditional styles such as Qawwali and Ghazal Gayaki to modern forms fusing traditional and western music, such as the synchronisation of Qawwali and western music by the world renowned Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. In addition Pakistan is home to many famous folk singers such as the late Alam Lohar, who is also well known in Indian Punjab. However, majority of Pakistanis listen to Indian music produced by Bollywood and other Indian film industries. The arrival of Afghan refugees in the western provinces has rekindled Pashto and Persian music and established Peshawar as a hub for Afghan musicians and a distribution centre for Afghan music abroad.^[119]

State-owned Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV) and Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation were the dominant media outlets, but there are now numerous private television channels. Various American, European, and Asian television channels and films are available to the majority of the Pakistani population via private television networks, cable, and satellite television. There are also small indigenous film industries based in Lahore and Peshawar (often referred to as Lollywood). And while Bollywood films have been banned from being played in public cinemas since 1965 they have remained popular in popular culture.^[120]

The architecture of the areas now constituting Pakistan can be designated to four distinct periods—pre-Islamic, Islamic, colonial and post-colonial. With the beginning of the Indus civilization around the middle of the 3rd millennium B.C.,^[121] an advanced urban culture developed for the first time in the region, with large structural facilities, some of which survive to this day.^[122] Mohenjo Daro, Harappa and Kot Diji belong to the pre-Islamic era settlements. The rise of Buddhism and the Persian and Greek influence led to the development of the Greco-Buddhist style, starting from the 1st century CE. The high point of this era was reached with the culmination of the Gandhara style. An example of Buddhist architecture is the ruins of the Buddhist monastery Takht-i-Bahi in the northwest province.

The arrival of Islam in today’s Pakistan meant a sudden end of Buddhist architecture.^[123] However, a smooth transition to predominantly pictureless Islamic architecture occurred. The most important of the few completely discovered buildings of Persian style is the tomb of the Shah Rukn-i-Alam in Multan. During the Mughal era design elements of Islamic-Persian architecture were fused with and often produced playful forms of the Hindustani art. Lahore, occasional residence of Mughal rulers, exhibits a multiplicity of important buildings from the empire, among them the Badshahi mosque, the fortress of Lahore with the famous Alamgiri Gate, the colourful, still strongly Persian seeming Wazir Khan Mosque as well as numerous other mosques and mausoleums. Also the Shahjahan Mosque of Thatta in Sindh originates from the epoch of the Mughals. In the British colonial period, predominantly functional buildings of the Indo-European representative style developed from a mixture of European and Indian-Islamic components. Post-colonial national identity is expressed in modern structures like the Faisal Mosque, the Minar-e-Pakistan and the Mazar-e-Quaid.

A Kalash man dances during the Uchau Festival.

The literature of Pakistan covers the literatures of languages spread throughout the country, namely Urdu, Sindhi, Punjabi, Pushto, Baluchi as well as English^[124] and Persian as well. Prior to the 19th century, the literature mainly consisted of lyric poetry and religious, mystical and popular materials. During the colonial age the native literary figures, under the influence of the western literature of realism, took up increasingly different topics and telling forms. Today, short stories enjoy a special popularity.^[125]

The national poet of Pakistan, Allama Muhammad Iqbal, suggested the creation of a separate homeland for the Muslims of India. However, Iqbal had also wrote the Tarana-e-Hind which stated the belief of a strong united India. His book The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam is a major work of modern Islamic philosophy. The most well-known representative of the contemporary Urdu literature of Pakistan is Faiz Ahmed Faiz. Sufi poets Shah Abdul Latif, Bulleh Shah and Khawaja Farid are also very popular in Pakistan.^[126] Mirza Kalich Beg has been termed the father of modern Sindhi prose.^[127]

Tourism

Main article: Tourism in Pakistan

PTDC Motel at Malam Jabba Ski Resort.

Despite having an image problem, hyped particularly in the West, and once alleged as one of the most dangerous countries in the world by the British magazine “The Economist”,^[128] tourism is still a growing industry in Pakistan because of its diverse cultures, peoples and landscapes.^[129] The variety of attractions ranges from the ruins of ancient civilizations such as Mohenjo-daro, Harappa and Taxila, to the Himalayan hill-stations, that attract those interested in field and winter sports. Pakistan also has several mountain peaks of height over 8,000 metres (26,250 ft), that attract adventurers and mountaineers from around the world, especially to K2.^[130] Starting in April to September, domestic and international tourists visit these areas helping tourism become a source of income for the local people.

In Balochistan there are many caves for cavers and tourists to visit especially the Juniper Shaft Cave, the Murghagull Gharra cave, Mughall saa cave, and naturally decorated cave. Pakistan is a member country through Hayatullah Khan Durrani to the Union International de Spéléologie (UIS).^[131]

The 1872-built Noor Mahal (Diamond Palace), is one of several palaces in the city of Bahawalpur

The northern parts of Pakistan are home to several historical fortresses, towers and other architecture including the Hunza and Chitral valleys, the latter being home to the Kalash, a small pre-Islamic Animist community.^[132] Punjab is also the site of Alexander’s battle on the Jhelum River. The historic city of Lahore is considered Pakistan’s cultural centre and has many examples of Mughal architecture such as the Badshahi Masjid, Shalimar Gardens, Tomb of Jahangir and the Lahore Fort.^[133] The Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) also helps promote tourism in the country.^[134] However, tourism is still limited because of the lack of proper infrastructure and the worsening security situation in the country. The recent militancy in Pakistan’s scenic sites, including Swat in NWFP province, have dealt a massive blow to the tourism industry. Many of the troubles in these tourist destinations are also blamed on the frail travel network, tourism regulatory framework, low prioritization of the tourism industry by the government, low effectiveness of marketing and a constricted tourism perception.^[135][136] After these areas were being cleared off the militant groups in late 2009, the government of Pakistan with the financial support from the USAID have started a campaign to reintroduce tourism in Swat valley. Pakistan receives 500,000 tourists annually, and almost half of them head to northern Pakistan.^[137]

Sports

Main article: Sports in Pakistan

Cricket is the most popular sport in Pakistan

The national sport of Pakistan is field hockey, although cricket is the most popular game across the country. The national cricket team has won the Cricket World Cup once (in 1992), were runners-up once (in 1999), and co-hosted the games twice (in 1987 and 1996). Pakistan were runners-up in the inaugural 2007 ICC World Twenty20 held in South Africa and are the champions of 2009 ICC World Twenty20 held in England. However, cricket here has suffered heavily due to teams refusing to tour Pakistan fearing terrorism; no team having toured Pakistan since March 2009, when militants attacked the touring Sri Lankan cricket players.^[138] Squash is another sport that Pakistanis have excelled in. Successful world-class squash players such as Jahangir Khan and Jansher Khan won the World Open several times during their careers.

Polo is regarded as a traditional sport and played widely in the northern areas

At an international level, Pakistan has competed many times at the Summer Olympics in field hockey, boxing, athletics, swimming, and shooting. Pakistan’s medal tally remains at 10 medals (3 gold, 3 silver and 4 bronze) while at the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games it stands at 61 medals and 182 medals respectively. Hockey is the sport in which Pakistan has been most successful at the Olympics, with three gold medals in (1960, 1968, and 1984). Pakistan has also won the Hockey World Cup a record four times (1971, 1978, 1982, 1994). The Motorsport Association of Pakistan is a member of the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile.^[139] In caving and adventure sports, Pakistan is member country to UIS (Union of International Speleology)^[131] The Freedom Rally is a yearly off-road race which takes place during the Independence celebrations. Pakistan also qualified for the Golf World Cup for the first time in 2009.^[140]

Transportation

Main article: Transportation in Pakistan

The Makran Coastal Highway starts from Karachi and goes all the way to Gwadar

Rail services in Pakistan are provided by the state-run Pakistan Railways, under the supervision of the Ministry of Railways. Pakistan Railways provides an important mode of transportation in Pakistan, catering to the large-scale movement of people and freight. The railway network comprises 8,163 km^[141] of which 1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) (broad gauge) forms 7,718 km including 293 km of electrified track. Pakistan Railways carry 65 million passengers annually and daily operates 228 mail, express and passenger trains. Pakistan Railways also operate special trains for various occasions. The Freight Business Unit with 12000 personnel operates over 200 freight stations on the railway network. Pakistan has also planned or had many Mass Transit Systems. The Karachi Circular Railway, which opened in the early 1940s, is the only functioning Mass Transit System in Pakistan as of date. In 1976, Karachi was slated to begin work on an underground metro system, but plans have been put on hold since. The Lahore Metro is another proposal still in planning and is scheduled to be completed by 2020. Pakistan has been successful in foreign trade using Railway. Pakistan has successfully traded with countries such as Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, India, Turkmenistan and China^[142] During the 1990s, Pakistan began an ongoing project to rebuild all national highways throughout the country specifically to important financial, cargo and textile centers. The National Highway Authority or NHA is responsible for the maintenance of all national highways in Pakistan. The construction of motorways began in the early 1990s with the idea building a world class road network and to reduce the load off the heavily used national highways throughout the country. The first motorway to be completed was M1 in 1997 from Peshawar to Islamabad.

Lahore Railway Station

Later on, Highways such as M2 from Islamabad to Lahore, M3 from Pindi Bhattian to Faisalabad, M9 from Hyderabad to Karachi, Karachi Northern Bypass from Hyderabad to Karachi, Lahore ring road project^[143]. The waterway network in Pakistan is in its infancy with Karachi being the only major city situated next to the Arabian Sea. Still plans are being proposed for the development of the waterways in the country along the Indus River and through the Punjab as it would boost employment opportunities and the economic and social development of Pakistan.^[144]. Pakistan has About 139 Airports in all together. Out of 139, only 10 of them are International^[145].

Outline of Pakistan

	Afghanistan	China	India
	Afghanistan		India
		Outline of Pakistan
	Afghanistan Iran	Arabian Sea Persian Gulf	India

History Of Indonesia

Republic of Indonesia Republik Indonesia
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Old Javanese) Unity in Diversity National ideology: Pancasila[1]
Anthem: Indonesia Raya
Capital (and largest city)		Jakarta 6°10.5′S 106°49.7′E / 6.175°S 106.8283°E / -6.175; 106.8283
Official language(s)		Indonesian
Official scripts		Latin alphabet
Demonym		Indonesian
Government		Presidential republic
-	President	Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
-	Vice President	Boediono
Independence		from the Netherlands
-	Declared	17 August 1945
-	Acknowledged	27 December 1949
Area
-	Land	1,919,440 km2 (16th) 735,355 sq mi
-	Water (%)	4.85
Population
-	2009 estimate	229,965,000[2] (4th)
-	2000 census	206,264,595
-	Density	119.8/km2 (84th) 312.7/sq mi
GDP (PPP)		2008 estimate
-	Total	$909.729 billion[3] (16th)
-	Per capita	$3,980[3] (121st)
GDP (nominal)		2008 estimate
-	Total	$511.765 billion[3] (19th)
-	Per capita	$2,239[3] (116th)
Gini (2002)		34.3
HDI (2007)		▲ 0.734[4] (medium) (111th)
Currency		Rupiah (IDR)
Time zone		various (UTC+7 to +9)
-	Summer (DST)	not observed (UTC)
Internet TLD		.id
Calling code		+62

Etymology

The name Indonesia derives from the Latin Indus, meaning “India”, and the Greek nesos, meaning “island”.^[6] The name dates to the 18th century, far predating the formation of independent Indonesia.^[7] In 1850, George Earl, an English ethnologist, proposed the terms Indunesians — and, his preference, Malayunesians — for the inhabitants of the “Indian Archipelago or Malayan Archipelago”.^[8] In the same publication, a student of Earl’s, James Richardson Logan, used Indonesia as a synonym for Indian Archipelago.^[9] However, Dutch academics writing in East Indies publications were reluctant to use Indonesia. Instead, they used the terms Malay Archipelago (Maleische Archipel); the Netherlands East Indies (Nederlandsch Oost Indië), popularly Indië; the East (de Oost); and even Insulinde.^[10]

From 1900, the name Indonesia became more common in academic circles outside the Netherlands, and Indonesian nationalist groups adopted it for political expression.^[11] Adolf Bastian, of the University of Berlin, popularized the name through his book Indonesien oder die Inseln des Malayischen Archipels, 1884–1894. The first Indonesian scholar to use the name was Suwardi Suryaningrat (Ki Hajar Dewantara), when he established a press bureau in the Netherlands with the name Indonesisch Pers-bureau in 1913

Main article: History of Indonesia

As early as the first century CE Indonesian vessels made trade voyages as far as Africa. Picture: a ship carved on Borobudur, circa 800 CE.

Fossilized remains of Homo erectus, popularly known as the “Java Man“, suggest that the Indonesian archipelago was inhabited two million to 500,000 years ago.^[12] Austronesian people, who form the majority of the modern population, migrated to South East Asia from Taiwan. They arrived in Indonesia around 2000 BCE, and as they spread through the archipelago, confined the native Melanesian peoples to the far eastern regions.^[13] Ideal agricultural conditions, and the mastering of wet-field rice cultivation as early as the eighth century BCE,^[14] allowed villages, towns, and small kingdoms to flourish by the first century CE. Indonesia’s strategic sea-lane position fostered inter-island and international trade. For example, trade links with both Indian kingdoms and China were established several centuries BCE.^[15] Trade has since fundamentally shaped Indonesian history.^[16]

The nutmeg plant is native to Indonesia’s Banda Islands. Once one of the world’s most valuable commodities, it drew the first European colonial powers to Indonesia.

From the seventh century CE, the powerful Srivijaya naval kingdom flourished as a result of trade and the influences of Hinduism and Buddhism that were imported with it.^[17] Between the eighth and 10th centuries CE, the agricultural Buddhist Sailendra and Hindu Mataram dynasties thrived and declined in inland Java, leaving grand religious monuments such as Sailendra’s Borobudur and Mataram’s Prambanan. The Hindu Majapahit kingdom was founded in eastern Java in the late 13th century, and under Gajah Mada, its influence stretched over much of Indonesia; this period is often referred to as a “Golden Age” in Indonesian history.^[18]

Although Muslim traders first traveled through South East Asia early in the Islamic era, the earliest evidence of Islamized populations in Indonesia dates to the 13th century in northern Sumatra.^[19] Other Indonesian areas gradually adopted Islam, and it was the dominant religion in Java and Sumatra by the end of the 16th century. For the most part, Islam overlaid and mixed with existing cultural and religious influences, which shaped the predominant form of Islam in Indonesia, particularly in Java.^[20] The first Europeans arrived in Indonesia in 1512, when Portuguese traders, led by Francisco Serrão, sought to monopolize the sources of nutmeg, cloves, and cubeb pepper in Maluku.^[21] Dutch and British traders followed. In 1602 the Dutch established the Dutch East India Company (VOC) and became the dominant European power. Following bankruptcy, the VOC was formally dissolved in 1800, and the government of the Netherlands established the Dutch East Indies as a nationalized colony.^[21]

For most of the colonial period, Dutch control over the archipelago was tenuous outside of coastal strongholds; only in the early 20th century did Dutch dominance extend to what was to become Indonesia’s current boundaries.^[22] The Japanese invasion and subsequent occupation during World War II^[23] ended Dutch rule,^[24] and encouraged the previously suppressed Indonesian independence movement.^[25] Two days after the surrender of Japan in August 1945, Sukarno, an influential nationalist leader, declared independence and was appointed president.^[26] The Netherlands tried to reestablish their rule, and an armed and diplomatic struggle ended in December 1949, when in the face of international pressure, the Dutch formally recognized Indonesian independence^[27] (with the exception of The Dutch territory of West New Guinea, which was incorporated into Indonesia following the 1962 New York Agreement, and the UN-mandated Act of Free Choice of 1969).^[28]

Soekarno, Indonesia’s founding president

Sukarno moved from democracy towards authoritarianism, and maintained his power base by balancing the opposing forces of the Military and the Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI).^[29] An attempted coup on 30 September 1965 was countered by the army, who led a violent anti-communist purge, during which the PKI was blamed for the coup and effectively destroyed.^[30] Between 500,000 and one million people were killed.^[31] The head of the military, General Suharto, out-maneuvered the politically weakened Sukarno, and was formally appointed president in March 1968. His New Order administration^[32] was supported by the US government,^[33] and encouraged foreign direct investment in Indonesia, which was a major factor in the subsequent three decades of substantial economic growth.^[34] However, the authoritarian “New Order” was widely accused of corruption and suppression of political opposition.

In 1997 and 1998, Indonesia was the country hardest hit by the Asian Financial Crisis.^[35] This increased popular discontent with the New Order^[36] and led to popular protests. Suharto resigned on 21 May 1998.^[37] In 1999, East Timor voted to secede from Indonesia, after a twenty-five-year military occupation that was marked by international condemnation of often brutal repression of the East Timorese.^[38] Since Suharto’s resignation, a strengthening of democratic processes has included a regional autonomy program, and the first direct presidential election in 2004. Political and economic instability, social unrest, corruption, and terrorism have slowed progress. Although relations among different religious and ethnic groups are largely harmonious, acute sectarian discontent and violence remain problems in some areas.^[39] A political settlement to an armed separatist conflict in Aceh was achieved in 2005.^[40]

[edit] Government and politics

Main article: Politics of Indonesia

Indonesia is a republic with a presidential system. As a unitary state, power is concentrated in the central government. Following the resignation of President Suharto in 1998, Indonesian political and governmental structures have undergone major reforms. Four amendments to the 1945 Constitution of Indonesia^[41] have revamped the executive, judicial, and legislative branches.^[42] The president of Indonesia is the head of state, commander-in-chief of the Indonesian National Armed Forces, and the director of domestic governance, policy-making, and foreign affairs. The president appoints a council of ministers, who are not required to be elected members of the legislature. The 2004 presidential election was the first in which the people directly elected the president and vice president.^[43] The president may serve a maximum of two consecutive five-year terms.^[44]

A session of the People’s Representative Council in Jakarta

The highest representative body at national level is the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR). Its main functions are supporting and amending the constitution, inaugurating the president, and formalizing broad outlines of state policy. It has the power to impeach the president.^[45] The MPR comprises two houses; the People’s Representative Council (DPR), with 560 members, and the Regional Representative Council (DPD), with 132 members.^[46] The DPR passes legislation and monitors the executive branch; party-aligned members are elected for five-year terms by proportional representation.^[42] Reforms since 1998 have markedly increased the DPR’s role in national governance.^[47] The DPD is a new chamber for matters of regional management.^[48]

Most civil disputes appear before a State Court; appeals are heard before the High Court. The Supreme Court is the country’s highest court, and hears final cassation appeals and conducts case reviews. Other courts include the Commercial Court, which handles bankruptcy and insolvency; a State Administrative Court to hear administrative law cases against the government; a Constitutional Court to hear disputes concerning legality of law, general elections, dissolution of political parties, and the scope of authority of state institutions; and a Religious Court to deal with specific religious cases.^[49]

[edit] Foreign relations and military

Main articles: Foreign relations of Indonesia and Indonesian National Armed Forces

In contrast to Sukarno’s anti-imperialistic antipathy to western powers and tensions with Malaysia, Indonesia’s foreign relations since the Suharto “New Order” have been based on economic and political cooperation with Western nations.^[50] Indonesia maintains close relationships with its neighbors in Asia, and is a founding member of ASEAN and the East Asia Summit.^[46] The nation restored relations with the People’s Republic of China in 1990 following a freeze in place since anti-communist purges early in the Suharto era.^[49] Indonesia has been a member of the United Nations since 1950,^[51] and was a founder of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC).^[46] Indonesia is signatory to the ASEAN Free Trade Area agreement, the Cairns Group, and the WTO, and has historically been a member of OPEC, although it withdrew in 2008 as it was no longer a net exporter of oil. Indonesia has received humanitarian and development aid since 1966, in particular from the United States, western Europe, Australia, and Japan.^[46]

National flags at the site of the 2002 terrorist bombing in Kuta, Bali

The Indonesian Government has worked with other countries to apprehend and prosecute perpetrators of major bombings linked to militant Islamism and Al-Qaeda.^[52] The deadliest killed 202 people (including 164 international tourists) in the Bali resort town of Kuta in 2002.^[53] The attacks, and subsequent travel warnings issued by other countries, severely damaged Indonesia’s tourism industry and foreign investment prospects.^[54]

Indonesia’s 300,000-member armed forces (TNI) include the Army (TNI–AD), Navy (TNI–AL, which includes marines), and Air Force (TNI–AU).^[55] The army has about 233,000 active-duty personnel. Defense spending in the national budget was 4% of GDP in 2006, and is controversially supplemented by revenue from military commercial interests and foundations.^[56] One of the reforms following the 1998 resignation of Suharto was the removal of formal TNI representation in parliament; nevertheless, its political influence remains extensive.^[57]

Separatist movements in the provinces of Aceh and Papua have led to armed conflict, and subsequent allegations of human rights abuses and brutality from all sides.^[58] Following a sporadic thirty-year guerrilla war between the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and the Indonesian military, a ceasefire agreement was reached in 2005.^[59] In Papua, there has been a significant, albeit imperfect, implementation of regional autonomy laws, and a reported decline in the levels of violence and human rights abuses, since the presidency of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.^[60]

[edit] Administrative divisions

Main articles: Provinces of Indonesia and Administrative divisions of Indonesia

Provinces of Indonesia

Administratively, Indonesia consists of 33 provinces, five of which have special status. Each province has its own political legislature and governor. The provinces are subdivided into regencies (kabupaten) and cities (kota), which are further subdivided into subdistricts (kecamatan), and again into village groupings (either desa or kelurahan). Following the implementation of regional autonomy measures in 2001, the regencies and cities have become the key administrative units, responsible for providing most government services. The village administration level is the most influential on a citizen’s daily life, and handles matters of a village or neighborhood through an elected lurah or kepala desa (village chief).

The provinces of Aceh, Jakarta, Yogyakarta, Papua, and West Papua have greater legislative privileges and a higher degree of autonomy from the central government than the other provinces. The Acehnese government, for example, has the right to create an independent legal system; in 2003, it instituted a form of Sharia (Islamic law).^[61] Yogyakarta was granted the status of Special Region in recognition of its pivotal role in supporting Indonesian Republicans during the Indonesian Revolution.^[62] Papua, formerly known as Irian Jaya, was granted special autonomy status in 2001.^[63] Jakarta is the country’s special capital region.

Shoaib gets ‘freedom’ over phone

Ayesha Siddiqui’s mother Farissa in Hyderabad after the compromise was reached between her daughter and Shoaib Malik on Wednesday. (Above) Sania with Shoaib on Monday. (AP, Reuters)

Hyderabad, April 7: Married over landline, divorce via cellphone.

Shoaib Malik is at last free for Sania Mirza. But the tennis star will have to be content being the cricketer’s second wife, after all.

A murky eight-year saga of allegations and denials ended today after Shoaib formally divorced Ayesha Siddiqui this morning, finally acknowledging that he had indeed married the Hyderabad girl.

Sources said the Pakistani all-rounder dialled Ayesha’s landline number from his mobile to utter the triple talaq.

The 9am telephone talaq, which ended their June 2002 phone wedding, came after nightlong efforts at a compromise by a team of 15 mediators who included local qazis, relatives and friends of both families.

“I intervened after friends from Delhi urged me to bring about a compromise as both (Sania and Ayesha) were Hyderabad girls,” said Andhra Pradesh minorities minister Ahmadullah Syed Mohammed, one of those who played a role in making Shoaib accept that he had married Ayesha nearly eight years ago.

Till yesterday, Shoaib had refused to accept the marriage and kept insisting that he hadn’t met her and that there was no question of giving Ayesha the divorce she had been demanding. His denials had prompted the girl’s family to file cheating and harassment charges and police had impounded Shoaib’s passport on Monday.

The compromise was announced by Shams Babbar, the family doctor of the Siddiquis, and local politician Abid Rasool Khan after they received the talaqnama Shoaib had signed and sent to Pakistan for attestation by clerics.

Shoaib accepted all the claims made by Ayesha as his first wife and agreed to give her a divorce. He also offered her Rs 5,000 for each month of iddat to be observed by her for three months.

“At last justice has been done to my daughter and she is very happy that her word has been respected and honoured,” Ayesha’s mother Farissa told a media conference she addressed with Khan and Babbar. They also said the cases filed against Shoaib would be withdrawn.

A joint press conference by Sania and Shoaib, scheduled at the Mirza home in the evening, was, however, cancelled as neither wanted to face the media, sources said.

But what prompted Shoaib to admit that he had married Ayesha?

Police sources said the scene changed after Ayesha yesterday submitted more evidence of her association with Shoaib, including the clothes she claimed to have worn when she met him at a local hotel a few years ago.

It appears the city police told Sania’s father Imran Mirza to work out a compromise. Some of the mediators said Babbar, the family doctor of the Siddiquis, produced a certificate of an abortion Ayesha had which proved to be the clincher.

Police sources said passport entries had shown that Shoaib was in Hyderabad on the dates mentioned by Ayesha in her complaint and that forensic tests had confirmed most of Ayesha’s charges. “There were several twists and gaps in his written and oral statements,” a source said.

“If he had continued to reject Ayesha, it could have meant arrest and remand in judicial custody,” said a police official.

Sources close to Sania’s family said community elders were upset with her comments about Ayesha. “Ask anyone about them, they will tell you the truth,” Sania had said.

A prominent Sunni leader and a former judge said Sania had no right to insult other Muslim women. “We all know who is in the wrong and who is right.”

On Monday night, some Muslim leaders had called on Sania’s father and advised that he shouldn’t go ahead with the scheduled April 15 wedding in such a vicious atmosphere.

The senior Mirza later told Shoaib to put an end to the controversy. “Let us not give room for any more public outcry as the wedding is hardly a week away,” Imran is said to have told Shoaib.

But it was Sania who didn’t want a compromise. “If Shoaib crumbles under pressure, I will be his second wife,” she is said to have told her parents.

Family friends said there was a heated argument at the dinner table last night at the Mirza home, with Sania and Shoaib arguing for hours and the elders insisting on a compromise.

In Islamabad, a PTI report quoted Pakistani rights activist Ansar Burney as saying that Shoaib should “say sorry to Ayesha and the people and media of India and Pakistan as his actions (had) hurt relations between the two countries”.