Pakistan/Temp

The Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a nation in south-central Asia bordering Iran, Afghanistan, China, India, and the Arabian Sea. Pakistan is home to around 140 million people, most of whom are Muslim, which is the state religion.

Pakistan is an Urdu term meaning land of the pure, but the name was also selected for the country because it formed an acronym of the chief geographical and ethnic components of multi-ethnic Western Pakistan (but not Eastern Pakistan, which seceded to form Bangladesh): the P represents the Punjab; the A stands for the Afghan tribes of the North-West Frontier Province; K represents Kashmir; S is for Sind; and TAN is the last part of Baluchistan, the region along the southern border with Iran. The suffix -istan, common to many countries in the region, means "land of" in Persian (e.g Afghanistan = Land of Afghans).

Although officially a federal republic, in October 1999, General Pervez Musharraf overthrew the civilian government and assumed executive authority. He declared himself president in 2001. A new parliament was elected in 2002 and Zafarullah Khan Jamali[?], a loyal follower of Musharraf, has been appointed Prime Minister.

History Main article: History of Pakistan

The people of Pakistan are predominantly Muslim. Prior to 1947, Pakistan was a part of British colonial India. As they withdrew control of India, the British partitioned it into two countries: India, which had a Hindu majority, and Pakistan, consisting of most of the Muslim-majority territories of colonial India. However, more Muslims reside in India than in Pakistan, making India the country with second largest Muslim population in the world. From 1947 until 1971 the nation consisted of West Pakistan and East Pakistan, separated from one another by India. In 1971 East Pakistan rebelled, and with the help of India became the independent state of Bangladesh.

Politics Main article: Politics of Pakistan

(Subdivisions) Main article: (Subdivisions) of Pakistan[?]

Geography Main article: Geography of Pakistan

A country slightly less than twice the size California, Pakistan is located in Southern Asia. It borders the Arabian Sea to the south, and is positioned between India to the east and Iran and Afghanistan to the West. Its Northern border is shared with China.

Economy Main article: Economy of Pakistan

Pakistan is a poor, heavily populated country, suffering from internal political disputes, lack of foreign investment, and a costly confrontation with neighboring India. Pakistan's economic outlook continues to be marred by its weak foreign exchange position, notably its continued reliance on international creditors for hard currency inflows.

Demographics Main article: Demographics of Pakistan

Culture Main article: Culture of Pakistan[?]

Miscellaneous topics

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