Source: Sify News

Islamabad: Pakistani voters go to the polls on February 18, 2008 with allies of President Pervez Musharraf facing a tough challenge from slain opposition leader Benazir Bhutto’s party.

Key information on Pakistan

Geography
The Islamic Republic of Pakistan is the seventh largest country in the world with an area of about 796,096 sq km. The capital is Islamabad, and major cities are Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad and Peshawar.

Population
Pakistan’s population is about 16 crore with around 70 per cent of people living in rural areas, depending mainly on agriculture.

Languages
Urdu is the national language. English is the official language, used widely in government, the civil service and the military. Pakistan’s Constitution and laws are also written in English. Major regional languages include Punjabi, Pashto, Sindhi and Baluchi. Literacy in 2005 was at 49.9 per cent.

Religion
Muslim 96 per cent — about 80 per cent Sunni. Three per cent Christian and one per cent Hindu.

History
Pakistan was born from the bloody partition of British colonial India in August 1947. The following year saw the death of its founding father, Mohammad Ali Jinnah. Also in 1948 it fought its first war with India, over Kashmir. In 1958 Pakistan got the first of the four military rulers in its history, General Ayub Khan. Pakistan also fought wars with India in 1965 and 1971. The latter resulted in the division of Pakistan and the creation of Bangladesh from then East Pakistan.
Elections in 1970 — often cited as the country’s last free polls — installed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto as premier. Seven years later he was overthrown by General Zia-ul-Haq in another military coup. Zia had Bhutto hanged in 1979. Under Zia, Pakistan underwent a process of Islamisation, going hand-in-hand with Zia’s support for the US-sponsored “jihad” against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan.
Zia was killed in a mysterious plane crash in 1988. Elections soon afterwards brought Benazir Bhutto, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto’s daughter, to power, and began ten years of revolving-door civilian politics. During the 1990s, Pakistan supported Afghanistan’s Taliban regime and Islamic militants in Kashmir. Pakistan and India detonated nuclear devices in 1998. The following year, General Pervez Musharraf toppled Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a coup. Musharraf abandoned Pakistan’s backing for the Taliban after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States and joined the “war on terror”. Pakistani troops have been fighting Islamic militants near the border ever since.
India and Pakistan launched a peace process in 2004. Musharraf declared a state of emergency in November 2007 and his contested re-election as president was confirmed by a purged Supreme Court. Opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was assassinated in December 2007.

Economy
Pakistan has experienced a boom since 1999. Government figures recorded growth last year of 7.0 per cent — one of the fastest rates in the world. Poverty stands at about 25 per cent.

Political System
Bicameral system with National Assembly (lower house) members elected for five years by universal suffrage and Senate (upper house) members elected for three years by Provincial Assemblies. The party which wins the most seats in the 342-member National Assembly forms a government. Over 8 crore people aged 18 or over are eligible to vote.

Armed Forces 6,19,000 members

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Tags: Information, Pakistan, Population, Statistics