Reflections from Pakistan XI: Islamabad is a foreign city

Islamabad is Pakistan's custom built capital. A city built on an empty piece of land during the 1960s. Until recently, Pakistanis were not 'from' Islamabad – they just happened to live in Islamabad. (Until recently, only bureaucrats and diplomats lived in Islamabad.) However, today a new generation of 'Islamabadis,' with their own culture and lifestyle has emerged.

Islamabad's location on the Potohar Plateau surrounded by the Margalla Hills was no accident. Despite sitting astride an earthquake fault line, President Ayub Khan selected the location due to its proximity with Rawalpindi, Lahore and Peshawar. As a bonus, nearby hill stations like Murree, standing at a comfortable 2,300 meters above sea level, are just about one hour drive north. From the capital, Lahore is several hours drive south while Peshawar is a road journey of a couple of hours northwest.

Daman-e-Koh park in the Margalla Hills which surround Islamabad

Islamabad is home to Pakistan's Parliament and civil bureaucratic leadership. The country's lawmakers and senior mandarins live in nice, leafy neighbourhoods dotted across the city's 900 square kilometer area. Despite being the country's capital, many Pakistanis feel Islamabad is a foreign city; not a part of the 'real' Pakistan. It is easy to understand why such a belief is so widespread.

Islamabad has a sense of order and logic absent from Pakistan's other cities. The 'grid' design of Islamabad city streets helps reinforce the perception of order. In stark contrast, Pakistan's other cities have developed with little or no urban planning. Cities like Karachi and Lahore are breaking under the weight of the country's ever expanding population.

Islamabad's order is far removed from the problems of 'real' Pakistan. Thus, by residing in Islamabad, Pakistani lawmakers and senior mandarins have little practical understanding of the life experienced by most Pakistanis.

Given Pakistan's multitude of serious problems, it is easy to understand why the Pakistani political elite might wish to insulate itself from the rest of the nation by sticking its head inside Islamabad's hallowed ground.

Unfortunately, Pakistan's problems are compounding to the extent that Islamabadis cannot hide from them any longer. Islamabad has electricity rationing like the rest of the country. Extremist mullahs make noise in Islamabad – even violently such as during the 2007 Lal Masjid incident, 2008 attack on Islamabad's Marriott Hotel, or most recently during protests in September 2012 against an allegedly blasphemous film – as in the rest of the country. Other ills plaguing Pakistan, including crime, inflation and unemployment, ultimately find themselves seeping through Islamabad's sterilized door.

Certainly, Islamabad is a nice showcase for Pakistan. But Islamabad is a foreign country. Pakistanis can only hope Prime Minister designate Nawaz Sharif's government will remember there is more to Pakistan than Islamabad (and Lahore).

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Imran is a business and management consultant. Through his work at Deodar Advisors and the Deodar Diagnostic, Imran improves profits of businesses operating in Singapore and the region. He can be reached at imran@deodaradvisors.com. 

Singapore’s jungles, MacRitchie’s monkeys and modern ‘homo urbanus’

Almost twenty-five centuries ago, the Greek philosopher Aristotle wrote, "Man is by nature a social animal." Today, Aristotle may have instead said, "Man is by nature an urban animal."

Singaporeans know too well the travails of urban living. Sometimes it seems there are no 'rural areas' in Singapore - or hardly any. Ironically, one does not have to look very hard to find green spaces. There are many dotted across the island.

MacRitchie's monkeys (photograph: Imran Ahmed)

One such space is MacRitchie Reservoir Park. Originally constructed in 1867, the reservoir was expanded in the 1890s. It was renamed MacRitchie Reservoir in 1907. Presently, the MacRitchie Reservoir Park acts as a green haven in the midst of Singapore's concrete jungle.

Although I have lived in Singapore for over one decade, this was my first trip to MacRitchie Park. Better late than never, I suppose.

A view of MacRitchie Reservoir (photograph: Imran Ahmed)

Perhaps it took me so long because I am the proverbial 'homo urbanus.'

My free time is typically spent wandering aimlessly around Singapore's many shopping malls. Variety is provided by judiciously alternating from the menu of malls available – and visiting a public library from time to time!

Homo urbanus is a species found in large numbers in Singapore.

Surprisingly, there is also a population of monkeys living alongside Singapore's homo urbanus. I came across many of their numbers at MacRitchie.

I saw monkeys pilfering garbage, swinging from trees, enjoying high energy drinks or just sauntering around their playground. MacRitchie is, after all, the monkeys' home ground. Humans are visitors encroaching on their land.

According to the United Nations, more than half the world's population now lives in urban areas. By 2030 the number of people living in cities is expected to grow to almost five billion. These are big numbers – maybe not as large as the US budget deficit but there is nothing trifling about measuring humans in billions.

'Monkey fruits' at MacRitchie (photograph: Imran Ahmed)

Urban sprawl and concrete structures will continue to grow, horizontally and vertically. Singapore, in many ways, is a laboratory case for fitting more and more humans in a limited space, thus making an even stronger case for preserving the many small and large 'MacRitchies' all across this island.

A little piece of green serenity right in my backyard, I will be visiting MacRitchie again soon. Even homo urbanus needs to recharge energies and visit the jungle from time to time.

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Imran is a business and management consultant. Through his work at Deodar Advisors, Imran improves the profitability of businesses operating in Singapore and the region. He can be reached at imran@deodaradvisors.com.