The Thirty Years’ War and the Peace of Westphalia, because of their religious overtones, are illuminating for today’s imbroglios in the Middle East and Southwest Asia. Some observers believe these regions are reverting to the religious and political chaos that infected Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries. Pakistan is a case in point: religion is used both to substantiate and to supplant civil government, with the latter view becoming more general throughout the Islamic world. This does not necessarily signal the collapse of the Westphalian system and the order it has given the world, but it does put a stress on the long-accepted sanctity of state sovereignty. Yet Pakistan needs to survive as a political entity to ensure international acceptance of its tenuous borders. Europe ultimately rejected religious militancy and moved on; Pakistan will need to do the same. Especially, it must restrain its use of Islam as a policy instrument |