India's neighbor Pakistan continued to make headlines in 2023. Be it economic crisis, food crisis, mass protests, political arrests or turmoil over election dates – Pakistan experienced it all in this one year. Here is a quick recap of everything that happened in Pakistan in 2023:
1. Economic crisis
In 2023, Pakistan experienced new lows. The Pakistani rupee hit an all-time low and crossed PKR 300 against the US dollar in August 2023. The country's foreign reserves with the State Bank of Pakistan (SPB) also fell to an alarming level – to $3.1 billion in January 2023.
The financially strapped country had difficulty accessing funds from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). To achieve this, the SBP raised the interest rate by 300 basis points (bps) to 20 percent – the highest since October 1996. The country introduced taxes after increasing gas and electricity prices.
According to the CEIC database, Pakistan's Consumer Price Index (CPI) growth reached an all-time high of 38.0 percent year-on-year in May 2023. In October 2023, it was 26.9 percent year-on-year, compared to a rate of 31.4 percent in September. Inflation rose so much that a liter of milk was sold for more than 100% ₹200 in Pakistan.
To combat inflation, a free flour program was introduced in Pakistan under the Ramzan package, particularly for the poor in the Punjab province. Around April to March, a deadly stampede in Karachi, Pakistan killed over 10 people at a free food distribution center in Karachi, Pakistan.
Pakistan eventually reached a staff-level agreement with the IMF on a $3 billion “nine-month Standby Arrangement (SBA).” The IMF's Executive Board will finally meet on January 11, 2024 to consider final approval to disburse the next $700 million tranche of its loan program to Pakistan.
2. Imran Khan's arrest sparks political drama
The crisis in the political arena of Pakistan was no less than the economic one. In May 2023, a key political leader was arrested in the country: Imran Khan, the former cricketer and former Prime Minister of Pakistan. He was accused of, among other things, corruption, the unlawful sale of gifts from foreign dignitaries and divulging state secrets. Khan has been barred from taking part in Pakistan's upcoming general elections.
Massive protests and violence broke out following the dramatic arrest of Imran Khan in Islamabad. There were reports of clashes between police and Imran Khan's supporters. Following the arrest, supporters of Imran Khan had also stormed the Pakistan Army headquarters in Rawalpindi and the corps commander's residence in Lahore.
Despite his arrest, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-insaf (PTI) announced that its founder and jailed leader Imran Khan would contest the 2024 general elections with at least three seats.
3. Pakistan Assembly dissolved, dispute over new election date
In August 2023, Pakistani President Arif Alvi, on the advice of outgoing Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, dissolved the National Assembly, marking the end of the government's term and paving the way for the next general election.
An interim government then took power and months later, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) announced that general elections would be held on February 8, 2024.
National elections should have taken place within 90 days of the dissolution of Parliament. However, the ECP said it needed time for the delimitation process after the last census.
4. Nawaz Sharif is making a comeback!
Another dramatic step was the return of former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to Pakistan in October 2023 after a four-year self-imposed exile to lead his party in the general elections. He is the only Pakistani politician to have become prime minister of the coup-prone country three times in record time.
Nawaz Sharif is once again preparing to contest the 2024 elections from the Mansehra region of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, his son-in-law Captain (retd) Muhammad Safdar was quoted as saying by PTI. He could also contest from Lahore.
However, Nawaz Sharif faces a major hurdle as he continues to be barred from holding public office by the Supreme Court in the Panama Papers case, PTI reported.
Earlier this year, changes were made to the 2017 Election Act by the government led by Sharif's younger brother and PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif. In a significant step, the disqualification of MPs was retroactively limited to five years.
The Supreme Court then decided to form a larger chamber to decide once and for all whether disqualified candidates can take part in elections in light of the 2017 changes to the electoral law. The case is expected to be decided before elections scheduled for February 8.
5. Terrorist attacks in Pakistan
This year, several terrorist attacks and suicide bombings rocked Pakistan. At least 271 militant attacks took place in Pakistan in the first half of 2023, leaving 389 people dead and 656 people injured, news agency ANI reported, citing a statistical report by independent think tank Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (IMAGES). .
In September, suicide attacks occurred at two mosques in Pakistan, killing at least 57 people. In July, a suicide bombing at a political rally in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa killed over 40 people. The Islamic State militant group the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed responsibility for the attack in July, Reuters reported.
Militant attacks in Pakistan have increased since 2022 when a ceasefire between the government and the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella organization of hardline Sunni Islamist groups, failed.
(With contributions from agencies)
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