PhD Theses and Dissertations

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    The Politics of Repatriation A Case of Afghan Refugee Repatriation from Pakistan 1989-2003
    (Department Of International Relations, University Of Peshawar, 2004-10) Nasreen Ghufran; Supervisor Dr Adnan Sarwar Khan
    The presence of Afghan refugees for over two decades has created political and economic problems for Pakistan. The political benefits of hosting refugees reaped by various governments have been less if compared to the political cost they paid for decades. A natural and durable solution to end the refugee cycle is ‘repatriation.’ However, repatriation as a solution is not free from the politics of host and home countries. Pakistan’s repatriation policy has been dictated by the political stake it has had in Afghanistan. It has remained hostage to its overall Afghan policy. Refugees have been treated according to the policies of the various governments. Refugees have been welcomed and pushed back whenever it suited the political leadership of the host.Pakistan has on and off been stressing repatriation of Afghans, but so far it has not been able to achieve its desired objective. The government has started to realize that the longer the Afghans stay, the greater will be the political, security, economic and social repercussions for Pakistan. As the international community has lost interest in funding and assisting Afghans in the host country, and has shown interest in supporting them provided they repatriate and reintegrate in their home society, refugees are therefore, motivated to return. Pakistan, Afghanistan, United States and the international community – all have political interest in the Afghan repatriation. Pakistan, now an ally of the United States, in its War against Terrorism, and supportive of the political changes that occurred after the Taliban regime collapsed, has encouraged the refugees return. Previously too, when the Afghan governments had the political backing of Pakistan e.g. Mujahideen and then the Taliban, it made attempts to make refugees go back. However, political instability in Afghanistan has been a major roadblock to comprehensive and sustainable repatriation. Afghanistan needs back the large refugee population living in the neighboring countries to establish its political credibility. The international community is ready to pour in aid and invest in Afghanistan for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of its displaced population, because they do not want continued assistance to Afghan refugees. They want to shed their economic burden and dissociate themselves from Afghan politics. Repatriation has been an on-going process for Afghans since the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989. However, massive returns occurred only in the years 1992-93 and 2002-2003. Two major political developments occurred in Afghanistan during these periods – one, in 1992 the Mujahideen government came in power after President Najibullah stepped down. Mujahideen had all along been opposing the Socialist government. Refugees started returning in large numbers but soon became disappointed as internecine conflict began due to the power wrangling among the various factions of mujahideen. In October 2001 the United Stated attacked Afghanistan for not allegedly cooperating in handing over Osama bin Laden – head of the Al-Qaeda network, and who had been held responsible for the terrorist attacks on the United States (Twin Towers of New York and Pentagon in Washington) on 11, September 2001. The Taliban regime soon collapsed and Hamid Karzai, a moderate Pushtun leader, was made head of the interim government in November 2001. For refugees in Pakistan it was seen as a major political change, particularly those who had fled Afghanistan during the Taliban period, to return and resume their lives in normalcy. As a result a major repatriation program started which still continues at the time of writing this thesis. While the political situation is still not stable enough to provide the required protection and security to returnees, yet the Karzai regime is making efforts to attract more returnees and make them resettle. It is not to say that it has been completely successful, as large numbers still need to be repatriated and recycling has to be stopped. In cooperation with the government of Pakistan and UNHCR, the transitional government in Afghanistan is making every effort to bring stability and establish political credibility. However, the challenges are grave and need to be tackled skillfully to make repatriation successful. If Pakistan actually desires a comprehensive and sustainable return of Afghan refugees, then it definitely needs to reassess its Afghan policy. As long as it remains a political stakeholder in Afghanistan, repatriation of Afghans will remain a major issue to be resolved.
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    Conflict Induced Internal Displacement: Issues & Challenges for Pakistan
    (Department Of International Relations, University Of Peshawar, 2009) SOHAIL AHMAD; Supervisor Prof. Dr. Nasreen Ghufran
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    THE CAUSES OF THE FAILURE OF GOVERNMENT OF AFGHANISTAN UNDER PROFESSOR BURHANUDDIN RABBANI (Afghanistan from Geneva Accords to the rise of Taliban (1988-96))
    (Department Of International Relations, University Of Peshawar, 2010) Ahmad Noor; Supervisor Prof. Dr. Taj Moharam Khan
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    THE CHANGING FACETS OF THE US-PAKISTAN RELATIONS: A REVIEW OF THE BILATERAL RELATIONS SINCE THE COLLAPSE OF SOVIET UNION TILL 9/11 (2001)
    (Department Of International Relations, University Of Peshawar, 2011-01) JEHANGIR KHAN; Supervisor Prof. Dr. Taj Moharram Khan
    Relations between the United States and Pakistan have a long history spread over nearly six decades. Though these relations have seen various phases of engagements and estrangements, this study takes into account the changing facets of the US Pakistan relations in the wake of the collapse of Soviet Union in early 1990s till 9/11(2001). The era under focus saw the acute type of estrangement between the two states. In the changed geostrategic scenario, the US strategic priorities had changed. Pakistan lost her strategic worth for the US policymakers. The issue of Pakistan’s controversial nuclear program resurfaced that further pushed these states apart from each other. Pressler Amendment (1985) was invoked by the US and sanctions were applied against Pakistan. Based on such a policy, all the US economic and military assistance to Pakistan was completely choked. The US policy of nuclear nonproliferation was vigorously brought into play. However, these coercive measures proved counterproductive and Pakistan became an overt nuclear state in May 1998. Nuclear proliferation was another manifestation of the failure of this US policy. In late 1990s, terrorism caught US attention and it became a focal point of her foreign policy. To eliminate this menace, Pakistan was urged to help American agencies. But this further heightened tension between them. Thus, US-Pakistan relations were greatly marred throughout the 1990s. This dissertation analyzes the causes and effects of the event-related ties between Pakistan and the United States and founds the divergence of interests as the main cause of trust deficit in their relationship. The US agenda was global while Pakistan sought after her narrow local objectives. But both wished national security for their nations. It explores how the US policy of sanctions towards Pakistan failed and gave rise to nuclear proliferation. It evaluates the economic, social, political costs of the US benign neglect towards Pakistan. Due to the US strategic myopia, Pakistan’s strategic worth was overlooked that gave terrorism a chance to flourish in the region. This study specially highlights the main areas of conflict and cooperation between Pakistan and the United States and enumerates the ways and means to mitigate the misperceptions between them. Some policy recommendations are also put forward to convert the US-Pakistan relations into strategic partnership characterized with equality and mutual co-existence.
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    PAKHTUNS AND THE WAR ON TERROR: A CULTURAL PERSPECTIVE
    (INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS, 2012-12) ABDUL SHAKOOR PhD SCHOLAR; SUPERVISOR PROF. DR. NASREEN GHUFRAN
    The war on terror, starting in October 2001, instead of stemming terrorism from the region, has further radicalized the Pakhtun society. The prevailing terrorism in the shape of Talibanization in the Pakhtun region of Pakistan has not been a result of the normal functional social change; rather, it has been the product of a conscious policy of social engineering in the Pakhtun society. The combination of culture reductionism and policy of social engineering produce a distorted picture of the Pakhtuns’ culture. Analysis of the history of religious mobilizations, nature of the current militant uprising, and the phenomenon of violence in the Pakhtun culture demonstrates that the Taliban form of terrorism, whose ideology transcends national boundaries, has no causal relationship with the socially controlled and limited-in-scope violence in the Pakhtun society. State institutions are weak to the point of non-existence mainly due to a limited government writ, especially in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). Therefore, there is a strong reliance on social and cultural institutions. The destruction of, and indifference to these social and cultural institutions by the counter-terrorism campaign and by the Taliban activities has given further impetus to the problem of terrorism in the Pakhtun society.
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    STRATEGIC AND ECONOMIC PROSPECTS OF GWADAR PORT AS A TRADE AND ENERGY CORRIDOR FOR PAKISTAN
    (Department Of International Relations, University Of Peshawar, 2014-12) Inayat Kaleem; Supervisor Prof. Dr. Syed Hussain Shaheed Soherwardi
    Development of Gwadar natural deep sea port, with all its associated projects, favorably influences the geo-strategic and geo-economic prospects of Pakistan. Geo-strategic location of Gwadar makes it an ideal hub port to capture transit and transshipment trade of Central Asia, Afghanistan, China and the Middle East and this regional accessibility with a viable and secured corridor would further expand regional economic cooperation. In addition to the efficient exploitation of exclusive economic zone, the port is also poised to provide strategic depth to the country’s commercial and military vessels. The aim of this research is to ascertain geo-strategic and geo-economic significance of Gwadar port as an indispensable factor to support national economic development; act as a vibrant commercial hub in the designed trade and energy corridor linking Pakistan with surrounding regions to generate immense economic dividends and give strategic depth to the Navy for surveillance activities to ensure maritime defence and safe flow of oil from the Persian Gulf to China via Gwadar- Kashgar Corridor. The research methodology applied in this dissertation is of mixed methods (descriptive, historical, empirical, comparative and analytical) to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. The data is comprised of structured and semistructured interviews followed by questionnaires and surveys to authenticate the factors influencing the port prospects as a trade and energy corridor while enhancing country’s defense capability to seek strategic depth further to the southwest from its geographical vulnerable Karachi Naval base. Based on empirical findings, the research further identifies areas with recommendations that require immediate attention of policy makers to translate Gwadar port vision into a tangible reality by addressing issues related with its success.