Transcript Nations of South Asia - McCook Public Schools

Nations of South Asia
22-1
Independence and Partition
• Indian nationalists had demanded independence
since the late 1800’s. After World War II, Britain
finally agreed to those demands. As independence
neared, a long-simmering issue surfaced.
• Muhammad Ali Jinnah, leader of the Muslim
League, insisted that Muslims have their own state,
Pakistan. Riots between Hindus and Muslims helped
persuade Britain to partition, or dived, the
subcontinent.
Two Nations
•
In 1947, millions if Hindus and Muslims crossed
the borders of India and Pakistan in both directions.
• During the mass migration plunged northern India
into savage violence.
• Sikh and Hindu mobs killed Muslims fleeing to
Pakistan. Muslims massacred Hindu and Sikh
neighbors.
• Estimated of 10 million refuges fled their homes.
One million or more, mostly Muslims may have died
India: World’s Largest
Democracy
• India built on the legacy of British government,
including its system of law and government.
• With a population of about one billion, it is the
world’s largest democracy nation.
Unity and Diversity
• To achieve independence, Indians had united behind
the Congress party. Still, the new nation was deeply
divided. It included hundreds of princely states that
had survived British rule.
• India’s constitution set up a federal system like that
of the United States
The “Nehur Dynasty
• For 40 years after independence, members of the
Nehur family led India. From 1947 to 1946 ,
Jawaharlal
• Nehur worked to build a modern, secular state
dedicated to promoting social justice.
• His daughter then his grandson ruled, both were
popular and loved.
• Both fell victim to violence, in 1998 Sonia Gandhi
became leader of the Congress party.
Ongoing Divisions
• In the 1990’s, support deepened for the Hindu
fundamentalist Bharatiya Janata party (BJP).
• AS the BJP rose to power, conflict between Hindus
and Muslims increased.
• Other divisions affected the prosperous Punjab
region of northwestern India.
• A third center of conflict lay to the south, on the
island nation of Sri Lanka.
Industry and Agriculture
• British-built railroads gave India its basic
transportation network.
• To turn out the educated work force essential to a
developing industrial economy, the Indian
government built schools and universities.
• Seeking to make India self-sufficient in food
productions, Nehur took advantage of the Green
Revolution.
The Population Issue
• Rapid population growth hurt efforts to improve
living conditions.
• AS the population boomed and the Green
Revolution eliminated many agricultural jobs,
millions of people streamed into cities like Calcutta
and Bombay to find work.
• The government encouraged family planning but did
not impose harsh population control measures, as
China did.
Economic Reform
• An economic slowdown and pressure from
international lenders forced India to make reforms.
• By the 1990’s, India had a significant role in textiles,
technology, and other industries.
• Computer experts at India’s soft ware center at
Madras gained a worldwide reputation.
Reforming the Caste System
• Discrimination based on caste continued.
• In the 1930’s, Gandhi had campaigned to end the
inhumane treatment of untouchables, whom he
called harijans- children of God.
• Despite such programs, deep prejudice persisted.
Women
• At independence, women gained the vote along with
other legal rights.
• Yet, because of class and caste differences, many
girls from poor families receive little or no
education.
• Indian women have formed organizations and
movements to meet their needs.
A Divided Nation
• West Pakistan and East Pakistan were separated by a
wide swath of India territory.
• As tensions mounted, Bengalis broke away.
• To escape the bloodbath, millions of Bengalis fled
west into India.
• India responded by attacking and defeating the
Pakistan army in Bangladesh.
Government
• For years, Pakistan alternated between civilian and
military governments.
• By 1999, Pakistan’s elected government faced
economic woes, widespread corruption, and other
severe challenges.
Economy
• After independence, Pakistan moved to improve
agriculture.
• Deforestation, or destruction of forest land, caused
terrible floods when monsoon rains were heavy.
• Yet debt service, paying interest on loans, takes 40
percent of the nation’s budget, leaving little for
development.
Trails of Bangladesh
• Since 1971, Bangladesh has struggled to rise out of
poverty, but geography often stands in the way.
• Cyclones, fierce circular windstorms, are another
frequent threat.
• Explosive population growth has strained resources
still further.
• Large amounts of foreign aid have brought little
relief, in part because various military government
have misused the assistance.
Conflict Between India and
Pakistan
• Fear and mistrust have marred relations between
India, with Hindu majority, and Pakistan, with its
Muslim majority.
• Indian military units , in turn, have repeatedly
savaged Kashmiri Muslims.
The Nuclear Issue
• After India tested a nuclear bomb in 1947, Pakistan
felt threatened and began to develop its own nuclear
capability.
• In 1998, both India and Pakistan tested nuclear
weapons.
• Both countries faced strong nationalist and religious
pressure to use at least the threat of nuclear conflict
in future confrontations.
Afghanistan
• This Central Asian country has suffered years of
civil war.
• The Soviet exit did not end the fighting.
• The Taliban was also condemned for supporting alQaida, the international terrorist group led by
Osama bin Laden.
• In response, an international coalition led by the
United States invaded Afghanistan.