Neoliberalism in Pakistan

Neoliberalism is the reverse of the Robin Hood ideal, in which the vulnerable are robbed for the benefit of the powerful—its end result is plutocracy, or the rule of the rich.

Neoliberalism affects the most vulnerable sections of society (Source: DFID — UK Department for International Development)

by Owais Arshad

Ideologies, especially fanatical ideologies have been plaguing Pakistan since its inception, contributing to its present dystopian gloom. While the dark nature of the threat, as posed by religious obscurantism, is well studied, the morbid embrace of another equally pernicious fundamentalism, neo-liberalism, has received as frequent critique.

Neo-liberalism consists of the policy prescriptions informing the ‘thinking’ of supra-national organizations, such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, and is an important component of Western foreign policy. According to this political/economic framework, desirable ‘social outcomes’, such as democracy, freedom, economic growth, and stability are best ensured by ‘liberating’ markets, facilitating the free flow of capital, and reducing government ‘footprint’ in the national economy.