Pakistan began the year with the military establishment having tightened its grip on political institutions, but as the year progressed, opposition parties sought to reassert themselves and challenged both the PTI government and military leaders. Political movements took center stage as religious extremists as well as regionalist movements drew strength from the challenges to the PTI government. Feminists demanded action after a series of sexual assaults, and religious minorities continued to be targeted by violence. The COVID pandemic upended the economy, which was already straining under low growth and high debt and deficit conditions. Foreign relations provided many challenges as the government sought to target India for its mistreatment of Kashmiris, while the Pakistan–China relationship remained strong.
Skip Nav Destination
Article navigation
January/February 2021
Research Article|
February 01 2021
Pakistan in 2020: The Opposition Fights Back
Sahar Shafqat
Sahar Shafqat
Sahar Shafqat is a Professor in the Department of Political Science, St. Mary’s College of Maryland, St. Mary’s City, USA. Email: <[email protected]>.
Search for other works by this author on:
Asian Survey (2021) 61 (1): 183–193.
Citation
Sahar Shafqat; Pakistan in 2020: The Opposition Fights Back. Asian Survey 1 February 2021; 61 (1): 183–193. doi: https://doi.org/10.1525/as.2021.61.1.183
Download citation file:
Sign in
Don't already have an account? Register
Client Account
You could not be signed in. Please check your email address / username and password and try again.
Could not validate captcha. Please try again.