The dynamics of Pakistan’s intra-national security: The role of the new provinces

Abstract

The debate and discourse to change the provincial map of Pakistan by creating new provinces is not a new phenomenon and is considered as a major challenge to intra-national security and to the centripetal forces who still want Pakistan to be a unitary/centralised state instead of a federal state. What is intra-national security and how can the issue of creating new provinces have a major impact on the dynamics of national security at different levels? When compared with national security, which deals with the whole country, intra-national security relates to contradictions and variations in the security dynamics and paradigms in different parts of the country. Pakistan as a multiethnic, multilingual, multicultural and multi-religious state can effectively deal with issues of security if intra-national security is accepted as a reality and is beyond the scope of national security. Matters and issues relating to different regions of Pakistan located in its provinces can at best be understood in terms of intra-national security. If the approach of major power stakeholders in Pakistan is positive, and they wish to peacefully address issues that cause friction, instability, chaos, disorder and violence in different provinces because of social, economic and political injustices, they must seriously consider proposal to upgrade existing divisions of Pakistan into provinces. For that matter, proper brainstorming by the concerned stakeholders including civil society groups needs to be done so that consensus is reached on the methodology to create new provinces in Pakistan.