V. YA. BELOKRENITSKY, V. N. MOSKALENKO. HISTORY OF PAKISTAN. XX CENTURY. Moscow: IV RAS; KRAFT+, 2008, 576 p. (Istoriya stran Vostoka. XX century)

The reviewed monograph is devoted to the study of the path taken by one of the world's largest states in terms of population (6th place, 160 million people), which plays an important role in shaping the international climate at the junction of South, West and Central Asia. Naturally, the processes taking place in Pakistan could not fail to attract the attention of researchers from many countries, including Russian scientists.

Over the six decades of Pakistan's existence, an extensive scientific, review and journalistic literature has been published on various aspects of the life of this state. In 1961, the first (and until recently only) full - scale study of the historical development of the then-young state in South Asia, The History of Pakistan, was published. Its authors were Yu.V. Gankovsky and L. R. Gordon-Polonskaya, already well - known in Oriental studies at that time-scientists who, in fact, laid the foundations of domestic Pakistani studies. The work aroused great interest among Russian and many foreign orientalists. It has been translated into foreign languages and published in a number of countries, primarily, of course, in Pakistan.

Almost half a century later, the second generalizing work on the history of Pakistan, which celebrated its 60th anniversary in August 2007, was published. This study was prepared by students of Yu. V. Gankovsky and L. R. Gordon-Polonskaya-V. Ya. Belokrenitsky and V. N. Moskalenko.

It should be noted that the goals and objectives of the two groups of authors differed significantly. Yu. V. Gankovsky and L. R. Gordon-Polonskaya based on the analysis of the short period of existence of the state, which practically had no analog in the past, it was necessary to determine the possibilities and main directions of its development. V. Ya. Belokrenitsky and V. N. Moskalenko had to explain the phenomenon of survival of Pakistan, which emerged on a confessional basis, trace the process of its transformation into a stable state entity, an active actor in the international arena, and outline the main directions of its future development. The main difficulty of the authors of the first monograph was related to the lack of factual material and the lack of development of the Pakistani problem. By the time a new book on the history of Pakistan was being prepared, there were many scientific publications, centers for the study of this state were operating in some countries, and domestic Pakistani studies had reached a high level. Writing a new work on the history of Pakistan was associated with the study of extensive scientific literature, acquaintance with the main conclusions of Pakistani scientists, and their critical analysis.

V. Ya. Belokrenitsky and V. N. Moskalenko successfully coped with the task. They used extensive material drawn from official sources and documents, memoirs, and the press, and studied the works of well-known scientists-representatives of Western, Pakistani, and Indian Pakistanistics, as well as the publications of their Russian colleagues (including S. Cohen, K. Kollard, H. Feldman, L. Rose, J. Talbot, W. Wilcox, and L. Smith). Ziring, A. Lamb, T. Ali, K. Aziz, S. Burki, S. Burki, G. Chowdhry, S. Ahmad, A. Mushtaq, I. Qureshi, H. Sayyid, D. Gupta, and others). V. Ya. Belokrenitsky and V. N. Moskalenko were careful about the authors of the first "History of Pakistan".

The monograph consists of seven chapters, an introduction and conclusion, as well as an auxiliary apparatus, including, in particular, an extensive list of references. Its structure

page 193
It is subordinated to the study of such important aspects of the history of Pakistan as the formation of a state created in accordance with the religious affiliation of the main part of the population of the territories included in its composition (chapters I and II), the alternation of two forms of power - civil administration (chapters II, IV, VI) and military regimes (chapters III, V, VII).

The authors ' initial position in the study of the path taken by Pakistan over the 60 years of its existence is defined in chapter I, devoted to the historical background and process of the formation of this state. It stressed that "the fact of gaining sovereignty by both India and Pakistan remains a major milestone in modern history... The emergence of Muslim Pakistan on the Indian subcontinent was not an accident, it had its own historical and cultural roots and was explained by a combination of multifaceted political reasons" (p.82).

Chapter II is devoted to the formation of Pakistan, which emerged as "a completely new territorial entity that appeared on the political map in 1947 in an unusual, bifurcated form" (p.83). The analysis of the development of the internal political situation during the first decade of Pakistan's existence, carried out in this chapter, allowed the authors to identify the origins of the subsequent involvement of the top of the armed forces in the system of state administration, which was greatly facilitated by the fragmentation of numerous political parties and organizations in the country. In Pakistan, " since the spring of 1954, the tradition of parliamentary democracy established during the colonial period has been undermined. Initially stronger than in India, tendencies towards personalist and bureaucratic authoritarianism, towards the power of non-political centers, such as the entourage (administration) of the Governor-General, and later the president, led to the rejection of the mechanisms inherent in the parliamentary system of government. The militarization that unfolded in the mid-1950s and the strengthening of the armed forces transformed senior officers and generals into an influential bureaucratic corporation and an institutional interest group" (p. 137 - 138).

After a historically short 11-year period of establishing Pakistan as a sovereign State, the country has entered a stage of alternating military regimes and civilian rule. For the first time, the military regime in Pakistan was introduced in October 1958 and abolished only in June 1962. Subsequently, the country lived under a military regime in March 1969-April 1972, July 1977 -December 1985; the state of emergency declared in October 1999 remained in effect until the fall of 2002, and the state of emergency (for a short period) was also introduced in November 2007.

Chapter III, "Generals in Power (1958-1971)," analyzes the complex internal political situation in Pakistan in the late 1950s, which was used by the top of the armed forces to establish their control over the country. "An attempt to introduce a democratic model of governance (the 'Westminster system') In the absence of objective and subjective grounds for this, it has led to disorganization of the entire domestic political process, discrediting of democratic institutions, and degeneration of political life. It was characterized by an unprincipled struggle for power, constant government crises in the center and provinces, unprecedented corruption, treason and treachery, and even political assassinations " (p. 140).

The brewing of a deep internal crisis did not lead, as before, to the unity of the ruling camp. On the contrary, the struggle within its top has intensified, and the confusion and vacillation in its ranks has intensified. The internal political crisis reached its climax by the autumn of 1958. Under these conditions, in October of the same year, President Mirza issued a decree on the introduction of martial law on the territory of the country.

The abolition of the military regime in June 1962, while maintaining the authoritarian rule of the top of the armed forces led by General M. Ayub Khan, did not lead to stabilization of the internal political situation in the country; in March 1969, martial law was again imposed in Pakistan.

The alternation of the two main forms of government - civil administration and military regimes - which has become a kind of tradition in Pakistan's domestic political life, also determined the structure of the next chapters of the book. Thus, chapter IV is devoted to the study of the policy of the civil administration of Z. A. Bhutto (1971-1977); chapters V, VI and VII cover, respectively, the periods of the military-bureaucratic regime of General M. Zia ul-Haq (1977-1988), parliamentary democracy (1988-1999) and the tenure of General P. Musharraf (1999 - 2007).

The authors of the monograph avoided a one-sided interpretation of such a phenomenon as the active participation of the army in the state and political life of the country. They view it as complex-

page 194
It is a complex and contradictory phenomenon, generated by a specific situation and creating favorable conditions for the next coming to power of the military. The monograph shows that during such periods the situation in the country became more stable, reforms were carried out, and economic development accelerated. At the same time, conditions for the development of parliamentarism and political pluralism worsened, and representative bodies were excluded from the management process. The analysis of the internal political situation in Pakistan conducted in chapters III-VII allowed the authors of the monograph to conclude: "The initial unpreparedness of Pakistan for parliamentary democracy did not weaken later, but, on the contrary, was reproduced and consolidated by successive military regimes... The civilian authorities that replaced the military were unable to establish a normal life of society on the basis of democratic principles, since there was no basis, norms and traditions of such governance in the country, and there were no managerial personnel trained and able to act in the conditions of constitutional and parliamentary institutions. Therefore, the "democratic gaps" between dictatorial regimes were characterized by extreme instability and inability to reform " (p.477).

Focusing on the analysis of Pakistan's domestic political problems, the authors of the monograph also highlighted the problems of the country's economic development. On the one hand, its results are significant - the most backward part of the former British colony has turned into a country with an almost medium - developed economy, from an agrarian one to an agrarian-industrial one. However, on the other hand, economic successes were largely limited, and most importantly, they did not adequately reflect on the state of the social system and the living conditions of the population. This factor is one of the main causes of political complications in the country.

The monograph analyzes the difficult path taken by Pakistan in the international arena. It shows that Pakistan's advantageous geostrategic position, prolonged confrontation with India, and involvement in the Afghan events in the 1980s and at the turn of the two centuries brought Pakistan to the global level of world politics; this allowed Islamabad to raise the country's weight and significance in the international arena. The authors rightly point out that in the conditions that have changed to date, it is no longer a confrontation with India, but, on the contrary, an improvement in relations with a powerful neighboring state that helps strengthen Pakistan's position in the international arena. Now Pakistan is actively involved in the fight against terrorism unleashed by Islamists, provides an ideological component of this struggle (the concept of "Enlightened Moderation" by P. Musharraf), and also seeks to create a coalition of moderate Islamic states.

One cannot but agree with the perspective outlined in the book on the further evolution of Pakistan. First of all, it is the continuation of the development of market relations on the basis of a "mixed economy" with a constant strengthening of the role of the private sector. In the domestic political sphere, democratic parliamentarism is likely to strengthen; this process will take considerable time and will take place in conditions of significant internal instability and the army's strong political influence. The main directions of foreign policy will be preserved and continued.

The reviewed monograph is not without its drawbacks. These are primarily some repetitions at the junctions of chapters written by different authors. There are also differences in the structure of individual chapters, in particular, the foreign policy activities of Islamabad are specifically discussed in chapters III, V and VII, while in other chapters their analysis is not divided into special divisions. Meanwhile, Pakistan's foreign policy is of great importance for shaping the international climate in South Asia and the Middle East.

I would like to see in the book a more detailed critical analysis of the current stage of development of Pakistan, including coverage of numerous acute problems facing the country at the present stage - they were especially clearly manifested in the crisis for Pakistan in 2007.

However, these comments do not in any way detract from the significance of the monograph. This is a major work that highlights the difficult path of formation and overall successful development of one of the major states of the East. The book, which is part of a series of monographs on the history of the 20th-century Orient prepared by the staff of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, successfully combines the generalizing style of research on the stated topic and the validity of the main provisions and conclusions resulting from the study of a wide range of sources and scientific literature.

page 195
The bibliography attached at the end of the book includes more than 250 titles of used official publications, scientific papers, periodicals, etc. The chronology prepared by the authors, which covers the period from 1875, when the Anglo-Oriental Muslim College in Aligarh (since 1920 - a Muslim University)was founded, also deserves a positive assessment until November 15, 2007

The monograph is a major contribution to the development of Pakistani studies. Its publication in English would undoubtedly be positively evaluated by our foreign colleagues and would contribute to increasing the prestige of Russian historical science in Pakistan and Western countries.

Permanent link to this publication: