GB 0101 PP.PK - Pakistan: Political Parties, Trades Unions and Pressure Groups Material

Identity area

Reference code

GB 0101 PP.PK

Title

Pakistan: Political Parties, Trades Unions and Pressure Groups Material

Date(s)

  • 1940- (Creation)

Level of description

Extent and medium

1 box

Context area

Name of creator

Biographical history

Pakistan gained its independence in 1947 and its political system has since been characterised by instability and frequent reversions to military rule (from 1958-1970, 1977-1988 and 1999 onwards). The political parties covered here include the Pakistan Muslim League (PML), which provided the country's early leaders and the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) of Zulfikar Ali and Benazir Bhutto. The failure of the latter party to form a coalition government with the Awami League of East Pakistan after the 1970 elections led to civil war and the creation of Bangladesh in 1971, but also to the resignation of the military's Yahya Khan and the promotion of Zulfikar Ali to president, the country's first non-military chielf martial law administrator, but following the 1977 elections he was deposed by General Zia and executed. In the 1990s both Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif (of the PML) were removed from the prime ministership, though they did not face the same draconian fate. The majority of the materials held here orgininate from the 1950s and 1960s, during the first period of democratic government and reflecting the protests against the imposition of military rule, but there are also items dating from before partition and later materials concerned with the dispute with India over Kashmir.

Archival history

The Commonwealth Political Parties Materials collection was begun in 1960-61, with special emphasis being placed then, as now, on 'primary material such as party constitutions, policy statements, convention reports and election manifestos.' (ICS, Twelfth Annual Report 1960-1961). Since then, the main method of gathering material has been to appeal directly to political parties throughout the Commonwealth, though contributions from Institute members and staff following visits to relevant countries have been significant. More recently material has been collected by means of downloading documents from the websites of the major parties.
GB 0101 PP.PK 1940- Collection (Fonds) 1 box Institute of Commonwealth Studies

Pakistan gained its independence in 1947 and its political system has since been characterised by instability and frequent reversions to military rule (from 1958-1970, 1977-1988 and 1999 onwards). The political parties covered here include the Pakistan Muslim League (PML), which provided the country's early leaders and the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) of Zulfikar Ali and Benazir Bhutto. The failure of the latter party to form a coalition government with the Awami League of East Pakistan after the 1970 elections led to civil war and the creation of Bangladesh in 1971, but also to the resignation of the military's Yahya Khan and the promotion of Zulfikar Ali to president, the country's first non-military chielf martial law administrator, but following the 1977 elections he was deposed by General Zia and executed. In the 1990s both Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif (of the PML) were removed from the prime ministership, though they did not face the same draconian fate. The majority of the materials held here orgininate from the 1950s and 1960s, during the first period of democratic government and reflecting the protests against the imposition of military rule, but there are also items dating from before partition and later materials concerned with the dispute with India over Kashmir.

The Commonwealth Political Parties Materials collection was begun in 1960-61, with special emphasis being placed then, as now, on 'primary material such as party constitutions, policy statements, convention reports and election manifestos.' (ICS, Twelfth Annual Report 1960-1961). Since then, the main method of gathering material has been to appeal directly to political parties throughout the Commonwealth, though contributions from Institute members and staff following visits to relevant countries have been significant. More recently material has been collected by means of downloading documents from the websites of the major parties.

Institute of Commonwealth Studies

Pakistan pamphlets, leaflets, speeches, reports, conference reports, letters, newsletters, and miscellaneous materials, from 1940 onwards issued by the All Pakistan Federation of Trade Unions, the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (Jammu and Kashmir, India), Jamiatiattehad-Ul-Ulma, the Muslim India Information Centre, the National Awami Party of Pakistan (London), the National Democratic Movement (Pakistan), the National Progressive League (Pakistan), the Pakistan Democratic Party, the Pakistan Muslim League, the Pakistan National Movement, and the Pakistan People's Party.

Further accruals are expected, some in electronic form.

Alphabetically by organisation, and then in rough chronological order.

Open to all for research purposes; access is free for anyone in higher education.

Copies can usually be obtained - apply to library staff.
Mostly English, some items in Urdu, Bengali and Sindhi

Records at item level on library catalogue (SASCAT)

See also Aden: Trades Unions Material (TU.AD) and Aden: Pressure Groups Material (PG.AD), as well as Political Party, Trades Unions and Pressure Group Materials for other Commonwealth countries and related material in the library's main classified sequence, all held at the ICS.

Description compiled by Daniel Millum, Political Archives Project Officer at the Institutes of Commonwealth and Latin American Studies.  Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.  Created 16/08/2004 AIM25 Ancient religions Commonwealth countries Groups Interest groups Internal politics Islam Labour relations Moslems Pakistan Political parties Political science Political systems Politics Religions Religious groups South Asia Trade unions

Immediate source of acquisition or transfer

Institute of Commonwealth Studies

Content and structure area

Scope and content

Pakistan pamphlets, leaflets, speeches, reports, conference reports, letters, newsletters, and miscellaneous materials, from 1940 onwards issued by the All Pakistan Federation of Trade Unions, the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (Jammu and Kashmir, India), Jamiatiattehad-Ul-Ulma, the Muslim India Information Centre, the National Awami Party of Pakistan (London), the National Democratic Movement (Pakistan), the National Progressive League (Pakistan), the Pakistan Democratic Party, the Pakistan Muslim League, the Pakistan National Movement, and the Pakistan People's Party.

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling

Accruals

Further accruals are expected, some in electronic form.

System of arrangement

Alphabetically by organisation, and then in rough chronological order.

Conditions of access and use area

Conditions governing access

Open to all for research purposes; access is free for anyone in higher education.

Conditions governing reproduction

Copies can usually be obtained - apply to library staff.

Language of material

  • English

Script of material

  • Latin

Language and script notes

Mostly English, some items in Urdu, Bengali and Sindhi

Physical characteristics and technical requirements

See also Aden: Trades Unions Material (TU.AD) and Aden: Pressure Groups Material (PG.AD), as well as Political Party, Trades Unions and Pressure Group Materials for other Commonwealth countries and related material in the library's main classified sequence, all held at the ICS.

Finding aids

Records at item level on library catalogue (SASCAT)

Allied materials area

Existence and location of originals

Existence and location of copies

Related units of description

Related descriptions

Notes area

Alternative identifier(s)

Access points

Place access points

Name access points

Genre access points

Description control area

Description identifier

Institution identifier

Institute of Commonwealth Studies

Rules and/or conventions used

Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

Status

Level of detail

Dates of creation revision deletion

Language(s)

  • English

Script(s)

    Sources

    Accession area