The British Council has compiled a report highlighting the political perspectives of the Pakistani youth and how they shape the dynamics of the upcoming general elections. Formulated over a period of time, “The Next Generation Goes to the Ballot Box” effectively conveys the chaotic state of affairs Pakistan is currently facing as inflation, terrorism, unemployment are on the rise and basic infrastructure, security and job opportunities continue to plummet. According to the report, “In 2007, 50 percent of the youth thought the country was heading in the wrong direction, today that figure is 94 percent.” Such statistics would tend to indicate that young people in Pakistan, who form the backbone of our society, are desperate for change and are actively seeking to vote. However, having witnessed their country, weathered by one political storm after another, from corrupt democracies to military dictatorships, “only 40 percent out of the 25 million registered youth voters are certain to vote, while 21 percent are undecided.”

Perhaps one of the most significant findings of the report is that Pakistani youth is facing an ideological divide. It would take an essentialist to claim that a single political party can appeal to the younger generation at large. Factors such as urbanisation, class divide, gender inequality and differences in education, shape individual voter’s political views. While the urbanised middle class would rally for democracy, the growing conservative elements favour an Islamic Sharia and individuals belonging to politically unstable zones prefer military rule. According to the statistics cited in the report “29 percent choose democracy, with men slightly less enthusiastic than women”, “32 percent choose military rule and 38 percent choose Islamic Shariah”, clearly indicating the lack of an overbearing majority preference. Although such a divide can ignite a debate about the political future of Pakistan, in the short term it indicates that any new form of government will be met with heavy criticism and disapproval.

In addition to people who actively refrain from voting, the report indicates that certain groups are alienated from the electoral process due to a lack of awareness. According to statistical data, underprivileged housewives, referred to as “char-diwari housewives” make up a substantial “third of the next generation”. Yet, being mostly uneducated, “disconnected from the outside world” and stifled by discriminatory gender norms, these women remain “politically disengaged” and have little or no intention of voting. For them, the energy crisis and mounting inflation are of paramount importance and broader issues such as corruption and nepotism take a back seat. In other words, any government that can provide them with the basic necessities of life will be favoured above all others. But first they need to be convinced to vote.

In its conclusion, the report suggests that political parties can determine their fate at the ballot box by mobilising a number of ambivalent, young, potential voters. However, politicians must “set out a transformative agenda, while connecting on an emotional level and speaking to people who have lived lives of deep insecurity”. As Pakistan stands on the brink of a demographic disaster—now is the time to deliver.

http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/editorials/

Mudassar Nazir, Manan Aslam & Shafqat Rasool

It is a fact universally acknowledged that the trend of mobile phone is increasing in the world at a tremendous speed. The popularity of mobile phones has increased in the ongoing era. The people from all walks of life are appreciating its use. They find it very convenient and easy to handle. Millions of the people are using cellular phones around the globe and the number of people is increasing rapidly every year.

The use of mobile phone has recently been increased by the youth of the world because they find it very convenient and a source of entertainment as well. The results of the study conducted in Norway shows that the 16 years old people have a 100% mobile phone possession and in 2001 only 20% of the young people belonging to the age group of 16 year old had mobile phones. Like the wallets cellular phone has become a very necessary thing. The users of cellular phones throughout the world are increasing both in the cities as well as in the rural areas due to the interest of the efforts of the service providing companies. It has been discovered that in 2011-2012 the users have purchased 119.860 million connections.

Cellular phones have acquired the shape of symbol for the autonomy of the adolescence. They claim that cellular phones help them to extend their own language and communal cum cultural groups far from the searching eyes of their parents. Now, the use of mobile phone has become a status symbol. The people who use mobile phones are of the opinion that the cost, color, and other features increase their social and economical status. They feel proud over it.

The people use mobile phones according to their special needs; some persons use them in order to increase their business; the youth for entertainment and gossiping with their friends. We are aware that the cellular phones are compulsory for the relation building among the people of different categories belonging to different walks of life. As far as the youth is concerned the uses of mobile phone have increased with them due to the enchanting offers of the mobile phone service providing companies.

They provide free night packages to them without any interruption and the people engage themselves in the long conversations with their friend and the persons they like most. Bed room conversations have become very common because it provide them an opportunity to talk with their partners in complete solitude where they are free to talk what they want. It has also been noted that the family ties have also been broken due to the increasing trend of mobile phone usages.

The people like to find social gatherings away from their family members. The family atmosphere has been shattered due to the increasing use of mobile phones because the people consider it a useful instrument in order to maintain their privacy. The cellular companies are also aggravating the situation by introducing latest mobile phone models having attractive features along with internet facility.

The youth is, now, busy in utilizing the services of face book and twitter - the social networks for the people to share and exchange their ideas and feelings. Now, almost all the family members have their own mobile phones and they do not allow anyone to poke nose with their gadgets.

It has become a taboo to read the messages from the inbox of any one. The family size is decreasing and the people have no any extra time to sit in the company of the elders. The spare time they find they utilize it in conversing with their friends. The cellular companies have introduced night packages for the users and we are aware that the young people remain busy in talking to the opposite sex in order to develop their romantic ties without any fear and hesitation.

They keep themselves engaged in romantic, vulgar, and obscene conversation with the female partners ending in masturbation and fingering respectively. They waste their time, spoil their health, and become diseased and sexual beasts. They behave like the tigers trying to catch their own shadows in order to gain nothing.

The people from different walks of life are raising their voices via mass media and print media in order to stop such types of the offers provided by the cellular companies because the future of the youth is at stake. Because, the youth is becoming morally corrupt by adopting a showy behavior.

They want to buy the latest models of the cellular phones in order to maintain their social and economical status. They feel that without the mobile phones their life is not complete and they do not like to go outside without taking their mobile phones. On the other hand the cellular companies are using attractive slogans in order to instigate the sense of competition among the people.

They are using film stars, international players of cricket and other reputed persons from different social and political spheres of life in order to provoke the youth to spend their precious time in valueless and meaningless conversation. The provincial assembly of the Punjab Province has passed a resolution that the late night packages offered by the cellular companies should be banned because they are spoiling the youth.

It is very convenient for the people to call by using packages on very cheap rates. On the other hand if we call at the normal rates without using the night packages we have to consume more money. Due to this factor the duration of the calls become shorter as compared to the late night packages. In order to promote their packages the cellular companies are utilizing very attractive slogans. Some of the slogans are given below. The tagline used by the Jazz is “rat shuru baat shuru”; Zem, “infinite craze”; Djuice, “jagtay raho” etc.
There are so many evils due to the presence of mobile phones and some of the disadvantages are going to be listed below; the flow of the sms, mms, and free access to the porn websites provided by the facility of the internet, late night packages provided by the cellular companies, vulgar and obscene taking, sexual emotions leading to the sexual assaults, rapes, court marriages, masturbations, fingering on the part of the girls, homosexuality, lesbianism, and other allied neural problems are due to the presence of mobile phones
The parents allow their children to have mobile phones without analyzing the situation that either they are in need of the mobile phones or not. They have some vague notions that they can keep their children under custody and they can track their children whenever they want.

The results are positive because the children have to respond their parents on the mobile phones. The children have to disclose their real destination due to the fear of their parents. The parents know very well that the coming age is the age of information technology and computer. They know very well that the dependency of the people will increase on the electronic devices with the passages of time.

The students can utilize the services of the mobile phones in order to increase their learning. They can share useful information with the fellow students via text messages and long phone calls. They can speak English; learn useful information via internet access without any fear or hesitation. But, the mobile phones are like a double edge weapons if not used properly, can destroy the moral of the students as well. In this regard, parents can play an imperative role by understanding the needs and requirements of their children whether their children are doing the right or worse use of it and may also take preventive action against their worse usage.

http://www.thefrontierpost.com/category/40/

The previous democratic government made history by completing its five-year tenure. The current interim administration led by a reputed former judge is perhaps the most neutral caretaker government the country ever had. The election commission finally seems to be exerting its independence from politicians.

But just when things appear to be at the precipice of a historic turn vis-à-vis democratization, a recent British Council survey reveals that the country's youth are actually not in the favour of representative rule. The results of the poll imply that the biggest component of Pakistan's population - over 60 per cent of its 176 million people - don't support the idea of popular elections. In fact, they prefer military dictatorship as a political system over democracy. Conducted from among 5,000 participants between ages 18-29, the study shows that approval ratings for the military were roughly 70 per cent compared with just 13 per cent for the government. And an overwhelming 94 per cent said Pakistan was going in the wrong direction - a drastic rise form the 50 per cent in 2007.

However, the results of this survey - which are making headlines in the global media - warrant a critical evaluation. Firstly, its scientific credentials need to be scrutinized: How was the sample of 5,000 people selected from a youth population of millions? The income levels, educational and regional background of the sample ought to intimately affect respondents' answers. For instance, if such a survey sample comprises people from middle-class backgrounds in an urban centre like Lahore or Karachi, then the results will most likely reflect support for democracy. Pakistan is a highly diverse country, ridden with ethnic, lingual, socioeconomic and ideological difference. To conduct a poll among only 5,000 people and make sweeping generalizations about the large youth population of the country is certainly misleading.

In fact, if the current political developments are any indicator, Pakistan's youth appears to be mobilizing itself for an exciting election that will most likely witness the rise of a new political force, the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf. The previous Pakistan People Party's government might have greatly disappointed them, but gauging from their messages on social media and their active participation in rallies led by democratic leaders, electing a representative government is exactly what Pakistan's youth is looking forward to.

(Khaleej Times)

Pakistan is a blessed country as a large part of its population consists of young people. It has a big population that can be categorised as falling within the UN's definition of youth.

Blessed in the sense that this huge part of the population has the potential of creating a faster growth through seeking modern-day knowledge and carrying out hard work by virtue of the nascent energies they are endowed with by nature.

However, this blessing may become a curse if the governments, policymakers and civil society at large fail to play their role with regard to the youth of the country.

According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) statistics, an estimated 103 million Pakistanis, or 63% of the population, fall under the age of 25 years. The total population of Pakistan is 164.6 million, and 36 million of them are in the age group of 15-24 years (2007).

According to conservative estimates, the number of people in the young age group (15-49 years) and the total labour force are projected to nearly double by 2050 in Pakistan.

Andrew Mason, an economics professor at the University of Hawaii and a senior fellow at the East-West Centre, says in a research paper that an increase in the labour force is favourably linked to the economy. He has co-authored an Asian Development Bank 2011 study, Population, Wealth, and Economic Growth in the Asia and Pacific Region. The study highlights the support ratio in Pakistan (effective number of workers per effective consumer) will grow at about 0.6% per year.

Recently, a research paper, authored by political economist Dr. S. Akbar Zaidi for Oxford Analytica, also analysed the demographic transition in Pakistan. The study noted that the transition had led to two different views: "one celebrates the emergence of a young and dynamic population as a harbinger of prosperity; the other expects that an inability to house, feed and provide jobs to the youth will pave the way for instability, possibly even anarchy."

Dr. Zaidi believes that a young population is considered a harbinger of prosperity because it can be put to better use with its education and skills and contribute to the economy and society. However, he doesn't subscribe to the theory that unemployment will lead to social upheaval in Pakistan, or that it leads to 'Talibanisation'.

The study says that while unemployment is officially an estimated 5.6%, the figure is unreliable and the presence of a large informal economy - including in the agricultural and services sectors - conceals actual unemployment figures.
Social theorists also argue that an excess of young men in a population can stir social unrest and terrorism, if not provided with extensive supervision and guidelines. Several studies show that youth populations in developing countries are associated with higher unemployment and, therefore, a greater risk of violence and political instability.

Pakistan has also suffered from this problem on a large scale during the past decades. The year 1979 and the decade following it gave Pakistan a new identity- incubator of Mujahideen, with its periphery loaded with people who could be used to combat war on the strength of Islam against the proposed and, at times, designed enemies.

Through those years, the young lot of the country, in the absence of any direction, flew into the ranks of those who could afford them not only direction, but board and lodging as well, minimising the burden of poverty laid on the parents of these youth by the misplaced financial priorities of the government of Pakistan.

In fact, in those times the aim of life designed for the young recruits was simple: Obeying the decree of Allah, which actually meant standing against any force that could be a threat to Islam. The definition of threat was defined by the providers. In the same tone, in the urban setting, in the absence of government intervention, the universities like Punjab, Karachi and Peshawar became heavily radicalised. On the one hand, the University of the Punjab got into the tangles of Islamisation, and on the other, Karachi and Peshawar varsities brewed ethnicity.

In the following years, the large number of adolescents entering the workforce created unemployment and alienation, as no new opportunities were created. That did not bode well for a country already troubled by violence and unrest.
It is a pity that successive governments in Pakistan failed to make a comprehensive national youth policy. The youth were not provided with appropriate opportunities to put their natural talent to creative, productive and useful channels. The only National Youth Policy of Pakistan was presented in 2008. However, that policy too offered wrong solutions to problems.

The policy, regrettably, failed to offer any solution to genuine and real problems of the youth of Pakistan, especially those 80% young people living in rural areas of the country. The policy placed a good level of emphasis on skill development through need assessment, but there was no reference to research and development. If one is to prepare the youth for the 21st century, how could it be possible without provision of research and development facilities? Science, research, and technology are the prerequisites for the youth to join the global scientific revolution.

According to a research article by Durdana Najam, the policy offered a hazy employment strategy. Training and preparing youth for the job market was missing. Provision of skills does not ensure job opportunities (as suggested in the report) it can only raise the chances of getting a job. In the absence of a job market, no skill set can be helpful in making ends meet.

Experts believe the youth policy should intersect at some point with the education policy. As has been envisaged in the National Education Policy of Pakistan (2009), the education budget awaits revision from 2 to 7% of the GDP. Policymakers, both inside and outside Pakistan, should give careful consideration to whether and how education investments can promote peace and stability, taking into account what we now know about the state of education sector and the roots of militancy.

It is a good sign, however, that almost all political parties have started focusing on the youth lately, thanks to the pro-active approach of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf towards the younger generation of the country. The PTI has placed emphasis on the concerns of the disillusioned youth, and pledged to build a better economic environment with more job opportunities for the youth of Pakistan.

The other parties following in the PTI footsteps are the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the Pakistan People's Party. With the changing scenarios, it is hoped that whosoever will form the government after the May 11 elections, the youth will get the due share of attention from it. The youth of Pakistan does not need only free computers or empty slogans, but solid policies that could provide them with better education and job opportunities.

http://www.weeklycuttingedge.com/front%20story01.htm

What is being billed as Pakistan’s ‘youth election’ will take place in the midst of an unprecedented level of pessimism among young people.

This is among the key findings of a report that should be a wake up call for the country’s political leaders.

The report Next Generation Goes to the Ballot Box by the British Council is based on a nationally representative survey of 18-29 year olds conducted recently. It offers compelling evidence of a young generation afflicted by a crisis of confidence, who are losing hope in the future and in the country’s political institutions — parliament, government and political parties.

The report, however, acknowledges that young people’s enthusiasm for the country remains undiminished. But this patriotic fervour is not being leveraged by political leaders by giving them an opportunity to play a role in the country’s destiny.

The report’s stark findings have added importance as the country prepares for general elections on May 11. While young Pakistanis constitute over a third of all registered voters, the majority seem disillusioned and disconnected from politics.

This presents a challenge — and opportunity — to those contending for power: reach out to the nation’s disenchanted youth, respond to their needs and inspire them to participate, not opt out of the democratic process. Any party able to do this will reap rich electoral dividends. Political parties however will have to try hard to persuade young voters to overcome their deep scepticism. The survey says only 11 per cent of young Pakistanis have a favourable view of parties.

The report’s two most striking features are the depth of despair among young people and the indication that Pakistan is on the road to a demographic disaster – unless urgent policy actions are taken to resolve the educational ‘emergency’ and create opportunities for the young. On the first finding, the survey shows that an overwhelming 94 per cent of young Pakistanis feel their country is headed in the wrong direction. This suggests that pessimism has reached a dangerous level with potentially far reaching consequences for social stability. In 2007 this was 50 per cent.

The findings are unsurprising in the sense that these views are consistent with those other recent opinion polls have recorded of all age groups.

In the British Council survey young people regard the issues of jobs, rising prices, and access to housing and energy to be paramount. This echoes a recent poll conducted by the International Republican Institute, in which two- thirds of respondents cited economic challenges as the most important facing the country.

There is another telling area of agreement between people of all ages. This is in their approval ratings for the country’s institutions. Like the IRI survey, the Next Generation report finds that non-political institutions are regarded more favourably than political ones. Young Pakistanis have the highest confidence in the army (77 per cent), followed by religious centres (74 per cent), media (63 per cent) and the judiciary (60 per cent). But approval ratings are very low for the government (14 per cent) and national assembly (14 per cent).

The report finds that young people’s confidence in the democratic system has been eroding significantly. Fifty-eight per cent disagreed with the statement that “democracy has been good for Pakistan” in the past five years.

The conclusion that can be drawn from this is that young Pakistanis have an instrumental view of democracy and evaluate it in terms of what it delivers. Thus for all the present emphasis on democracy’s procedural progress (the government completing a ‘full’ term), young citizens clearly want this to be matched by substance and good governance.

Another far reaching message of the report is that Pakistan is failing to use its demographic window by investing in education and creating employment. This pivotal issue is hardly ever debated and barely figures in any government’s priorities.

Unless this is seriously addressed, the intersection between demographic change, economic stagnation and persisting education and gender gaps will confront Pakistan with the specter of chronic instability, even social breakdown in the years ahead.

(Dr Maleeha Lodhi served as Pakistan’s ambassador to the US and United Kingdom)

http://www.thefrontierpost.com/category/40/