Reviews for China's Governmentalities

The average rating for China's Governmentalities based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2017-06-26 00:00:00 Joey Dif Brigadier AR Siddiqui was head of ISPR (inter-services public relations) in 1971, so he had a ringside view of the events leading up to the surrender of Eastern command in December 1971. This is not a detailed history of the period, but rather a personal account, based entirely on the author's own experiences and direct observations. Siddiqui sahib is not a classical PMA-paknationalist (his mohajir background and it's later identity issues seems to have prevented full adoption of the Pakstudies idea-set) and he tries his best to be fair and balanced. He reports the outrageous theories prevalent in the military leadership (they all believed the Bengalis were insufficiently "Muslim" and dreamed of getting rid of the Bengali script and all cultural expressions that seemed remotely "Indian" or Hindu to the West Pakistani military mind) and does not hide the fact that rape, loot and random killings were commonplace and widely tolerated (and even encouraged). Non-Pakistani readers may still find the tone a shade too sympathetic to the army (soldiers who rape and kill are always described as "lonely and under great stress" and their bravery and loyalty are stressed) but the author is clearly trying his best to be fair to all concerned. Overall, the book is an interesting window into the mindset and conversations of the senior leadership of the Pakistani army in those turbulent times and is full of interesting and telling anecdotes, but it is not sufficient as a stand-alone history of those times. You will have to read a few other books to get the full picture. Still, well worth a read for anyone who is interested in how things looked to someone who was hanging around the top brass. The quotes from Niazi ("will the soldiers go to Jehlum to have sex?"), Rahim Khan and Jilani are chilling, especially when one considers that the same mindset is still being promoted in Pakistan studies classes (and no doubt, in dozens of army messes)..

Review # 2 was written on 2021-01-30 00:00:00 Brandyn Lawhead Not the best book on the 1971 war,didn't hold my interest.He was not directly present in the theatre of operations,but observing events as head of the ISPR and only making occasional visits to the theatre of the operations. But,he could observe the top brass at GHQ.Still,his personal views colour the narrative.He had migrated from India to Pakistan as an adult and had encountered issues of his own trying to adjust in the new country,before joining the army. More a personal and distant view than an actual history of the war.