ISLAMABAD, May 3: The government on Wednesday rejected as faulty, rubbish and a shoddy piece of political propaganda the report released by a US-based journal rating Pakistan as a failed state.

The government said in contrast to the report Pakistan was a law enforcing state committed to the welfare of its people and had a resilient and vibrant economy.

The list drawn up by the US-based Foreign Policy and the Fund for Peace showed Pakistan as having plunged from 34th place on the list of failed states to ninth this year. The top ten failed states according to the journal are: Sudan, DR Congo, Ivory Coast, Iraq, Zimbabwe, Chad, Somalia, Haiti, Pakistan and Afghanistan. India was ranked 93rd.

The government lashed out at the research methodology adopted by the report and termed it defective.

The report said scores in the index were based on data from more than 11,000 publicly available sources, mainly media reports, collected from July to December 2005.

The government spokesman said the report, in case of Pakistan, itself admitted that the massive October 2005 earthquake had a significant impact on the results because it occurred in the middle of the analysis window, “contributing most to Pakistan’s tumble in scores” from the previous year.

The government sees the ratings as an index of country risk and not of countries that have already failed. “Even strong and stable states like the US and France have been identified with pockets of failure,” the spokesman said.

“The truth of the matter is that the well-organized relief and rehabilitation efforts of the people and the government have been appreciated all over the world,” the government said. The overwhelming international response is a testimony to Pakistan’s standing in the world community, it added.

An economy with 8 percent GDP last year, the second best after China, the government said, could only be described as a resilient economy and not a failed state. “This year it is expected to be close to 7 percent. Investment is at all time high, both local and foreign.”

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) last year was $1.5 billion.

This year, it will be $3 billion, a record increase in any fiscal year, per capita income has risen to $800 and is still growing, the spokesman said as he counted the economic successes.

“The government is functioning in accordance with the Constitution. Parliament is supreme and elected government is answerable to parliament. Civil liberties have been fully upheld and strengthened by President Musharraf. The number of women’s seats in parliament and in local governments has been increased manifold,” the rejoinder stated.

It said security outfits of the government were functioning in accordance with the law of the country.

It is the sole responsibility of the government to maintain law and order and the security agencies perform in the achievement of this objective while remaining within the given parameters under the law.

“The war against terror by the country’s security agencies remains a big success story. The state has established its writ of law-enforcement with great grit and planning.”