Facing severe economic crises and near bankruptcy conditions and high inflation, the citizens of Pakistan must be undergoing a stressful time now. Apart from the economic crisis brought about due to a combination of factors and wrong policy decisions, the frequent terrorist attacks in Pakistan and Islamic extremism taking deep root in the country have created an unenviable situation.

The Prime Minister of Pakistan and the army chirf have themselves expressed their distress about the financial mess facing the country and obviously feel humiliated as they have to plead for loans from other countries and also appeal for deferment of repayment schedules. Above all, the officials of the International Monetary Fund are adding insult to injury by imposing conditions that should be adopted by Pakistan to avail financial support from the IMF, even as those from the IMF know that some of the conditions that they impose would add hardship to the people.

The question uppermost in the mind of Pakistan citizens and Pakistan watchers around the world is where would Pakistan go from here. The anxious question asked is whether  Pakistan would be able to come out of this turmoil at any time soon.

A careful analysis of the strength and potential of Pakistan would only highlight the fact that Pakistan can come out of the present desperate situation if the leadership in the government, chief of army staff and enlightened people can reformulate their priorities and chalk out a  time -bound action plan in a  pragmatic way.

 Certainly, other countries would respond to Pakistan’s need in a variety of ways, if the Pakistani government and people are able to convince them about the sincerety of their actions and sound policy making. 

Pakistan has a reasonably strong agricultural base and mineral resources that can stand the country in good stead in future if only the government were to exploit them properly with good agricultural and mineral policies.

Need for friendly relations with India 

The first proactive approach for Pakistan should be to restore peaceful, friendly relations with India. Prime Minister Modi is fully focused on developing India industrially and economically and a war with Pakistan would be his last option.  India and Pakistan are spending excessive resources on building their military warfare due to mutual suspicion. This helps neither India nor Pakistan.

Obviously,  some people in Pakistan are obsessed with the Kashmir issue and a generation of citizens has grown up in Pakistan thinking that  Kashmir should be part of Pakistan at any cost. This is totally a counterproductive approach, failing to view the issue in proper and perspective, keeping the thought process in both countries in view.

Whatever has happened in the past, a certain portion of Kashmir is now with Pakistan and the rest is under the control of India. Let it remain the same way and let both countries decide accordingly.

With a strong and forward-looking leader like  Narendra Modi in charge in India, a pragmatic solution to Kashmir is possible. Pakistan's government has to explain to its people the inevitable need to resolve the Kashmir issue peacefully in one way or the other.

By having meaningful cooperation with India, Pakistan can profitably gain by fostering a trade relationship in a variety of ways that can benefit both countries. 

Need to emulate other Islamic countries

Pakistan should learn from other Islamic countries like UAE, Qatar, and Egypt and maintain a healthy respect for other religions like Hinduism and Christianity, even as Pakistan remains a devoted Islamic nation.

A strong public opinion has to be built in Pakistan against Islamic extremism by soliciting support from well-intentioned Islamic scholars who understand the spirit of Islam which is amity and equity and not animosity and violence.

Pakistan is a democratic country and a deeply religious one. There are liberal journalists who are known to have the courage of conviction and progressive views based on ground realities. 

The media can play a very big role in restoring the glory of Pakistan by moulding public opinion and thought processes in a positive manner and even reforming the politicians through constructive criticism and providing corrective recommendations.

People-to-people relationship between India and Pakistan

The first step in enabling Pakistan to bounce back is to build a cordial relationship with India by amicably settling the Kashmir issue, and strongly thwarting the terrorist elements from creating trouble in Kashmir. 

The recent visit of Javed Akhtar, a well-known lyricist and poet from India to Pakistan and his interaction with Pakistani citizens give some hope for the future relationship between both countries. One of the observations during the interaction was made by a Pakistan citizen that almost amounted to saying that  Pakistanis love Indians and bear no ill will.  Akhtar responded that Indians cannot be blamed for suspicions about Pakistan since  26/11 attacks in Mumbai were carried out by terrorists from Pakistan who killed innocent people. No is known to have protested against this candid remark. 

C. Rajagopalachari, one of the greatest thinkers of India, said several decades back that the best way of building a good relationship between India and Pakistan is to encourage and facilitate citizens from both these countries to visit each other and build a cordial relationship between the people. I think now is the right time to follow this approach.

(The writer is a Trustee, NGO Nandini Voice for the Deprived, Chennai. Views are personal. He can be reached at nsvenkatchennai@gmail.com)