PUNJABIPERILS
In Mianwali district, the Mountains of the Northwest Frontier Province cast shadows over the plains of the Punjab, Pakistan's wealthiest and most populated state.
Of all the bad outcomes that have been imagined of Pakistan's future, probably the most plausible "worst case" scenario is the fall of the Punjab. Punjab is Pakistan's industrial heart and houses over half of it's population. It borders India on one side and the Tribal Regions on the other. Over the course of the last year, suicide bombings and brazen assaults have been fairly commonplace in Lahore, the cultural capital, and in the gigantic rural areas to the South west, along the Saraiki belt, an area nearly as lawless as the frontiers.
Despite being the Industrial and Cultural centers of the country, the Punjab lacks in the most basic infrastructure. The government school system is near defunct. Rundown facilities, ancient textbooks, corrupt teachers and overcrowded classes have created a massive education void. Unregistered Madrassas, that provide free food and shelter for students of the Quran, are ideal recruiting bases for Jihadi fighters. The police, mostly considered corrupt and poorly trained, are being brazenly attacked by Militants in the both the capital city Lahore and in the incredibly rural and almost lawless Southwest, known as the Saraiki Belt. The Punjabi Police lack the training, the weapons or the personnel to make any concerted effort to push back. The void of government and security has allowed relationships to be built and rebuilt between Punjabi militants, hard line Muslims, Al Qadea and the Taliban. In previous cases, places with similar circumstances have proven to be ripe and ready for a Taliban takeover. Unlike other cases, no place with the size and power of Punjab has ever been under direct threat from Islamic Militants and never before has so much been at stake in the process.
