Nation-building in Postcolonial States: Examining the Effects of Successive Nation-Building Policies in Pakistan

Abstract

The primary goal of this research is to ascertain which nation-building approach is suitable for dealing with diversity in Pakistan. Historically, the State has adopted various policies such as assimilation, coercion, and accommodation. This study employs the historical-analytical method to investigate the effects of these policies in the case of Pakistan. The findings suggest that the State’s assimilative and coercive policies continued to be unsuccessful in merging the weaker peripheral identities into the dominant core national identity. Therefore, autonomy movements continued to flourish over the course of time in many regions. However, despite being a federation, for most of the period, the accommodative policy has been ignored to address the persistent identity challenges in Pakistan. The evidence shows that the post-18th amendment period has witnessed some inclusive governance and politics of accommodation that have effectively contributed to the nation-building process. Hence, this paper argues that this approach is more appropriate to deal with diversity.