Pakistan Government and Politics
Pakistan is, according to AllCityCodes.com, an Islamic Republic within the Commonwealth of Nations. The country is a presidential regime in which the head of state is elected for a term of five years. The Legislative Assembly includes the National Assembly and the Senate.
Reference: Pakistan Flag Meaning
Pakistan is a federal state, divided into four provinces; Baluchistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh. Also see AbbreviationFinder for abbreviation of PK and its meanings of Pakistan.
The military generally has a strong position in the country and in times of military rule, the country’s constitution has been suspended for some time and/or subject to change.
Constitution and political system
Pakistan’s parliamentary- democratic constitution of 1973 was suspended in 1977, revised in 1985, suspended again in 1999 and revised again in 2003. According to the Constitution, Pakistan is a presidential regime in which the president is elected by a college of elected representatives in the National Assembly, Senate and the provincial assemblies, for a period of five years. The government is accountable to the president, who has decisive powers in legislative matters. The President’s power was expanded in the Constitution of 2003.
The Legislative Assembly includes the National Assembly (342 members) and the Senate (100 members, 88 elected from the provinces and 12 appointed by the National Assembly, the federally administered tribal areas and the metropolitan area).
The Majlis-e-Shura National Assembly is elected for four years. Ten of the seats are reserved for religious minorities and 60 are reserved for women. The Senate is elected for six years, and a third is replaced every two years. The military has a strong position in Pakistan, having military rule in 1977–1985 and in 1999–2002. Pakistan’s constitution presupposes an Islamic state, and many of the country’s disputes are related to which Islamic direction should be dominant.
Administrative division
Pakistan is a federal state, divided into four provinces, each headed by a presidential governor who is again assisted by elected provincial councils. In addition to the provinces, there is a separate metropolitan area as well as federally managed tribal areas. The Pakistani part of Kashmir consists of two administrative units. The provinces are divided into divisions, governed by commissioners, appointed by the president. At lower levels, districts and the like, Vice Commissioners are in charge of provincial governments. There are significant regional tensions in the country.
Judiciary
The legislation is characterized by both English examples and Islamic law. The Supreme Court judges are appointed by the President. Since the 1990s the traditional court system complemented and partly pushed aside in favor of Islamic Courts (Sharia – courts). In 1998, it was decided to completely switch to Islamic law, but the resolution was not approved by the Senate. The country also has a separate military court system.
Cooperation between the United States and Pakistan reached a low in August 2016, when the United States canceled the payment of DKK 300 million. US $ in military aid. The two parties expressed mutual distrust. The United States accused Pakistan of not doing enough to curb the Taliban-linked Haqqani network which launched attacks on US forces in Afghanistan. As relations with the United States worsened, China and Pakistan worked more closely together to open an economic corridor so that Chinese goods could be transported down through Pakistan to Karachi and the Indian Ocean. In November, China announced that it was part of an alliance against terrorism with Pakistan, Afghanistan and Tajikistan.
A meticulous review of the so-called Panama Papers on wealth tax evasion and tax evasion revealed that Prime Minister Sharif was also involved in financial crime. PTI’s Imran Khan brought the case before the Supreme Court, which from November 2016 handled the case. In July 2017, the court finally unanimously issued a ruling disqualifying Sharif from holding public office. He then resigned and was replaced at the post by Shahid Khaqan Abbasi. Abbasi had until then been Minister of Oil and Natural Resources. In July 2018, Sharif was sentenced to 10 years in prison for corruption. The Sharif family had sought to launder a large sum of money through the purchase of 4 luxury apartments in London. Former Prime Minister’s daughter Maryam Nawaz Sharif was therefore sentenced to 7 years imprisonment. £ and the flats were ordered confiscated. (Former Pakistani PM Nawaz Sharif sentenced to 10 years in jail, Guardian 6/7 2018)
In May 2017, the United Nations Torture Committee published a report condemning, in sharp terms, Pakistani police, military and intelligence services for widespread use of torture. The country had otherwise ratified the Torture Convention in 2010. The Torture Committee referred to several Pakistani bloggers who had criticized extremism and the authorities, which led to them being arbitrarily detained for weeks. It also referred to the unwillingness of the authorities to investigate the numerous cases of murder or disappearance of arrested persons. (‘Widespread’ torture by police in Pakistan condemned by United Nations, Guardian 13/5 2017)
Supreme Court Judge Nasirul Mulk was inaugurated as acting prime minister in July 2018 until the July parliamentary elections. The parliamentary elections were a staggering defeat for the current corrupt PML-N government. PML-N went 84 mandates back to 81, while cricket player Imran Khan’s PTI went 111 mandates until 146. The electoral process was marked by some violence, but after initial protests, PML-N chose to accept his defeat and PTI went on to gathering encounter for a new government with Imran Khan as prime minister.
