Indigenous Peoples and Ethnic Minorities of Pakistan

The partitioning of India and the creation of the independent State of Pakistan were consequences of demands for the right of self-determination by the Muslims of British India. Since the creation of Pakistan, however, its constitutional and legal practices have been equivocal, characterised by a failure to acknowledge the existence of 'ethnic' minorities and a reticence to accord internationally recognised rights to indigenous peoples. Even following the secession of East Pakistan, an unfortunate reflection of the lacuna within the constitutional and legal recognition of the rights of indigenous peoples and ethnic minorities, Pakistan's policy makers have continued their strategy of non-recognition and forced assimilation of minority groups. This in-depth study, the first of its kind, examines the issues being faced by the indigenous peoples and ethnic minorities in Pakistan, including their role in the nation's constitutional and legal developments. In its concluding part, it makes a number of recommendations which would satisfy the demands and claims of indigenous peoples and ethnic minorities without compromising the sovereignty of the state. This book will prove to be of interest not only to constitutional lawyers, but also to academics working in the areas of politics, international law and international relations.