Political Participation of Pakistani Youth: Deliberate Omission?

By Gulmina Bilal

The Government recently announced the National Youth Policy for 2005-2007 and has been organizing workshops to disseminate and share the policy, which is a positive step. Having participated in one such workshop, one would like to highlight the issues involved.

According to the last population census in 1998, there were 13.2 million males and females in the age of 15-19, 11.5 million between 20-24, 9.6 million between 25-29 and 8.1 million between 30-34 years old. About 52 percent of these were male and 48 percent females of which 64 percent lived in rural and 36 percent in urban areas, while 38 percent were males and 63 percent females were illiterate.

According to these figures, about 21.3 percent of Pakistan's population fell between the age group of 20 to 24 years, with the government assessing that in 2005, Pakistan's youth population is close to 55 million -- a significant portion of the population, which needs investment of all kinds of resources. However, this investment must be based on a policy that considers youth the present, and not just the future. The youth policy in its present form perhaps does not make that distinction and has a number of contradictions within it.

The first section of the policy perspective of the National Youth Policy states: "The National Youth Policy provides a foundation for youth participation in socio-economic development recognizing that young people should be agents of their own change, transformation and development, not merely recipients of state support and benevolence."

So far so good: instead of the State doling out favours and aid, it consideres young people enterprising enough to create opportunities for themselves given the right environment and space, and reflects the belief that entrepreneurship among young people should be encouraged and facilitated. However, this message is countered by the following statement: "It is understood that youth development cannot be left to the young people alone." But if young people are not proactively involved in their progress and development then who else will?

Another glaring contradiction flows from the very vision of the National Youth Policy that begins:

A future for all youth Pakistanis which is free from any type of discriminations in promoting a democratic, enlightened and prosperous Islamic Republic of Pakistan, where young women and men can enjoy a full, abundant, free and safe life enabling them to become active participants in all those activities which fulfil their potential, hopes, dreams and ambitions leading to full integration in economic, social, cultural and the spiritual life of society.

This vision is supposed to be translated through various action plans and key strategic areas involving various departments and civil society actors, but what's missing from it is the political participation and growth of youth. The vision talks about the youth's "full integration in economic, social, cultural and spiritual life of society" but not political life. If this is a deliberate omission, it suggests that 55 million Pakistani are being facilitated to integrate in all sectors but politics. A particularly surprising view, considering it is drafted by a government that reduced the voting age to 18.

Perhaps it is an oversight rather than a deliberate omission, as the Key Strategies areas (the framework for the action plan) clearly mentions political participation of the youth as a key strategic area. However, the policy is silent on how these areas would actually be focused on, particularly political participation. The Policy talks about setting up cultural assemblies but fails to identify political participation as a key need for young people.

This ambiguity is further exacerbated by the declaration that the youth policy is being formulated because, "Pakistan is experiencing multiple upswings in its economy, politics, governance, media and civil society... Examples are of the last several years of the economic track record and neo-democratisation since 2002. This scenario calls for investment in young people."

What "neo-democratisation" means is not clear, but if it means investment in democratic political processes then the policy has to be clear on how to involve young people in these processes.

Government policies with reference to young people are being drafted and reviewed since 1989, when the Youth Affairs Division was first created. It is encouraging that the 55 million youth of Pakistan are being focused upon but this focus should be realistic and holistic. A policy that does not strategize on how to facilitate young people to be active and informed citizens is a policy that is going nowhere. This needs to be seriously addressed.

On a lighter note, the National Youth Policy defines "youth as men and women up to the age of 34." One is pleased to note that one has so many years of "youth" in the eyes of the sarkar.

The writer is a consultant based in Islamabad

Source: The News

Date Added: 05/2/2005

Date/Time Last Modified: 5/2/2005 10:46:31 AM

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