Paper short abstract:

This paper will discuss the ethnic politics of Karachi examining the various ethnic allegiances of political parties and the implications for these on the politics and future of Pakistan.

Paper long abstract:

Ethnicity has been intimately imbricated in the creation of Pakistan and it has been fundamental to the history of the country. Of all the factors that characterise the political dynamics of the Pakistan state, from its feudal landowners to its domination by the military, ethnic allegiance and ethnic rivalry have been and remain a major factor in how Pakistan is governed. The major ethnic groups in Pakistan: Punjabis, Baluchis, Sindhis, and Pashtoons, all have a sub-national identity which impinges on their social and political allegiance and their political behaviour. Nowhere in Pakistan is the mix of ethnicities as great as in Karachi and it is in Karachi that the politicisation of ethnicity can be studied as emblematic of the whole nation. This paper will examine the ethnic politics of Karachi in the new millennium and discuss how the congregation into Karachi of the largest number of Pashtun-speaking people in the world has affected the politics of the city. With Pakistan's population expected to double to some 335 million people over the next forty years, and with internal ethnic rivalries being increasingly exacerbated by the play of international relations and global forces, political mobilization along ethnic lines will become increasingly prevalent. Karachi is a harbinger of this trend.