It might be too lapsed in time, but the policy makers in the United States might learn a lot from the history of the British Raj in India. The British ruled the region we now call Pakistan and India for over a century. However, in a recent poll that I conducted, over 88 percent of the people had a positive view of the United Kingdom compared to only 12 percent positive view about the US, even though the former has been an active ally of the latter, is an active supporter of Israel, participated in the War on Terror and the Iraq war. Then why is it that people despise the United States, but feel completely the opposite for the United Kingdom?
Understanding Pakistan and its people is really not that difficult, if one makes a real effort. What has been missing in the United States’ foreign policy towards Pakistan in the past several decades is the will to understand the society and culture of Pakistan. As long as the military in Pakistan supported the US strategic plans against the Soviet Union, or the Taliban, the policy makers in the US had little interest to understand the dynamics of Pakistani society and engage with the civil sector. That, however, is changing now, and it requires the US to understand how the British ruled this region for over a century without people hating the Raj.
The way the British ruled India for over a century is a marvellous feat of efficient administration and understanding of the local culture and society. Even before the British formally ruled India, they carried out extensive research studies of the entire geographical regions of India and published them under the title British Gazette, detailing each and every aspect of the people, ethnicities, religions, customs, and economy of the area.
The British understood that if they had to rule foreign people, they had to first understand them and this is exactly what they did. It was on the basis of these research studies that they chose to have Pashtuns and Punjabis in their military, and Hindus and Parsis in their financial and administrative government machinery.
What the US really needs to understand from the British history is how the British directly ruled these people for over a century, while still maintaining its approval rating and love of the people who looked up to the British as a ‘civilised nation’. While some might argue that it is Orientalism and the colonisation of mind at play, the fact is that the British connected with the people, and they delivered to the people exactly what the people desired — something that affected the daily lives of the people. The British Raj was calculated in investing in those things that would yield the most benefit for its strategic goals of enriching the United Kingdom, and keeping the natives happy with the British rule so that they would not revolt. In other words, they invested in ‘real things’ that affected the daily lives of the people.
For instance, if you look at the top educational institutions in Pakistan even until today — Government College Lahore, Aitchison College, Karachi Grammar School, St Patrick’s School, Convent of Jesus and Mary — were all established entirely or in connection with British support. A total of more than 300 higher education universities and colleges were opened throughout India to cater for more than 150,000 people, and that too, in a span of only a few decades.
Another thing that the British invested heavily in was something of utmost importance to the people, i.e. healthcare. The British government, by funding and partnering with local philanthropists, established massive hospitals like Mayo Hospital and government general hospitals throughout the country providing for the medical needs of the people, which was not there before the British. The hospitals are still in service even after a century.
Moving a step ahead, the British invested in communications by establishing the modern day postal service in the region, something that was non-existent in India. Investments in transportation is also something that the British are respected for in the region, since they developed the entire rail network in India and modern day Pakistan, which is still functioning and delivering to hundreds of millions of people.
This piece is by no means an apology for British rule or an attempt to present a flowery picture of the British Raj. The purpose of this piece is to understand what exactly the British did in India that still make them favoured and respected by the people of the region, specifically in Pakistan, and what, perhaps, could the US learn from the British in order to win hearts and minds in Pakistan.
So, what exactly can the US do? It is fairly simple and straightforward: focus on the things that affect the people in Pakistan the most. Instead of wasting American taxpayer dollars through USAID in community building, de-radicalisation, gender empowerment projects, the results of which nobody actually sees on the ground, the US must understand what really affects the people, and what, if delivered, would change the perception about the US amongst the people. Development of infrastructure, roads, and specifically the railway network, energy sector, could overnight make the US a respected nation in Pakistan, giving it the same status the British in Pakistan enjoy ever since the partition.
Also, instead of spending millions of dollars in the Fulbright Foundation programme, which sends a few hundred lucky students every year to the US, it would be better to establish schools and universities in Pakistan that would, for the same money, educate thousands of students locally. The educational institutions, hospitals, railroads, and other infrastructural developments will not only get quick results, but will also be the monument and signature of the US’s effort to help the people of Pakistan, something that the people would actually see and feel on the ground.
However, these efforts require a long-term commitment to Pakistan, and should be kept separate from the defence and security ties between the two countries. Also, these efforts must be accompanied by a pressure on the Pakistan army and political parties to stop propaganda against the US for domestic political gains. For long, the Pakistan army and politicians have capitalised on creating hysteria and propaganda against the US among the people. In order to change the perception of people, the United States will have to ensure that it is not played into the domestic power struggle of Pakistani military and political actors. People need to see the positive outcomes of the US presence and relationship with Pakistan. There is no need to spend an extra dollar; what is going to matter is how and where the dollar is spent. A little redirection in the aid money together with less negative propaganda against the US can radically redefine the perception of the US in Pakistan. The British did it, and so can the Americans.
The writer is the Visiting Scholar of Asia Programme, Woodrow Wilson Centre