The Challenge of a Pakistani Spring
This post was published on Global Policy Institute, London's website as a winner of students' voice in student think tank section on 17 August, 2011. A link to the original post is here . Many Middle Eastern regimes have fallen due to the recent surge in youth-driven movements for rights and democracy. This change, the so called Arab Spring, is propagating on its own terms. A recent law passed in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for punishing those who criticize the regime points to restlessness in one of the most conservative states of the world. It is increasingly clear that no regime is now secure from public protests spurred on by recent events. Pakistanis consider themselves to be very close to Middle East Arab nations, mainly due to their religious connection. In contrast to many Arab states, the Pakistani government has not been able to recognize Israel as a sovereign state due to the fear of public backlash. Such are the sentiments regarding Middle Eastern territ