Swat Peace Deal - The Aftermath

[Always Neutral]

President signs Nizam-e-Adl Regulation: Bilour​

Updated at: 2100 PST, Monday, April 13, 2009
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has signed Nizam-e-Adl Regulation 2009 after it was approved with majority by the Parliament, Senior Minister Bashir Ahmed Bilour said on Monday.

The National Assembly passed the resolution with majority in support of Nizam-e-Adl Regulation 2009 for implementation of Shariah in Malakand Dvision.

The resolution recommends approving of Nizam-e-Adl Regulation by President Asif Ali Zardari.

Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani speaking on the occasion said the Parliament was taken into confidence in the above matter and added: “We respect the mandate of the provincial government and congratulate the people.”

Earlier, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) representatives staged a walk out from the session.

The Prime Minster at the time of presenting the Regulation before the Parliament said Asfandyar Wali and Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman had been taken into confidence.

Awami National Party (ANP) had protested on tabling of the Regulation 2009 at the Parliament.

Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs presented Nizam-e-Adl Regulation 2009.
President signs Nizam-e-Adl Regulation: Bilour

I hope this does not turn out to be the biggest blunder Zardari has ever made.

Regards

 

[TruthSeeker]

I have to say I am amazed that the political class of Pakistan seems to treat such a serious issue as a game to be played for advantage in the next election. I have total sympathy with the Pakistani people who do not seem to be able to be given a choice of an honest and patriotic leader to vote for. But, just as here in the US, you get the government you deserve, for large part. We have a political culture that favors the "rich and famous". Unfortunately, we get a whole lot of greedy people in charge of our institutions. In Pakistan it looks like the issue of how to achieve the right balance between secular civil rights and the desire to be a Muslim nation is existential.

A civil war may have to be fought over constitutional protection for freedom of (and from) religion. In the US there was a fifty year process of, first, a geographical separation into "slave" states and "free" states. After this geographical separation was achieved, we could have a real civil war fight to the death that followed the traditional outlines of warfare where territory is captured and the winner imposes his vision of the Nation on that territory by force. Fortunately for the US, the "free" states won. Pakistan may need to first separate into "free" and "Islamic slave" states (regions) geographically. And then, either accept partition or fight to the death for a unified national vision. You can already see FATA and NWFP (and maybe Balouchistan) becoming one geographic side (Wahabi Pakistan) in a civil war with "free" Pakistan.

 

[RabzonKhan]

Life in Swat after the peace deal

Monday, April 13, 2009
Farhat Taj

On Feb 16 a peace agreement was signed between Sufi Mohammad, leader of the Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi (TNSM) and the government of the NWFP with complete blessing of the PPP-led federal government. Sufi Mohammad reached Swat with a promise to convince his son-in-law, Maulana Fazlullah, and his fighters to surrender weapons for the sake of peace. Two months after the peace deal, how is life in Swat? What is happening to people? Is the peace deal working?

‘The peace deal is not working and will fall sooner than later,’ veteran ANP politician Afzal Khan Lala tells me. He is the only politician who is still standing up to the barbaric Taliban in Swat despite several death threats and the demands of his old age — the rest of the ANP leadership has fled the area. During a telephone conversation, he elaborated: ԒThe peace deal has been made by non-Swatis. People of Swat have not been taken into confidence on the deal. Also, I was never consulted by the ANP government in making of the peace deal.’

Day-to-day happenings in Swat clearly indicate that the apprehensions of Afzal Khan Lala are not misplaced and the peace deal has been strengthening the writ of the Taliban over SwatÕs 5,337-square-kilometre area. The Taliban have made the 1.7 million people of Swat hostage, and the people continue to suffer. The government in Swat seems helpless and paralysed. I will elaborate it with some examples.

Fazlullah, the leader of Swat Taliban, led the prayer at his home village, Mamdirai on Friday, April 3. He was warmly received by his followers, as well as military officials and officials of the district administration. Those who prayed behind him were key military and civil officers—including Brigadier Tahir Mubeen, Syed Javed Hussain, the commissioner of Malakand region, Khushhal Khan, the DCO of Swat, Danishwar Khan, SwatÕs DPO and the man in charge of Operation Rah-e-Haq. After the prayers Fazlullah gave an emotional and threatening speech which was heard with zeal and respect by all, including the military and civil officials, like obedient subjects. How funny is it that key state functionaries are praying behind the terrorist who killed soldiers of the Pakistani army, NWFP police officers and civilians of the Valley. During the telephone conversation with this writer Afzal Khan Lala said: ‘There cannot be two swords in one sheathe. There cannot be two kings of one land. In Swat one king is Fazlullah and the other the government.’ The conduct of the state functionaries in Swat showed who the real king of Swat is.

The people of Swat owe an explanation from the Pakistani army and the government of the NWFP. Would the army care to explain why its commander in Swat was offering namaz behind the terrorists who killed soldiers of the army and policemen? Would the ANP government care to explain why its senior-level government servants pray behind a terrorist who killed civilians in the very constituency that elected the ANP to power? It is also pertinent to mention that police in Swat have registered at least 60 cases related to suicide bombings, kidnappings, attacks on civilians, police and armed forces and damage to public and private property against Fazlullah.

Taliban have created their own income-generation sources in Swat. They have taken over the possession of the famous Mingora emerald mines. Mingora city is the district headquarters and a busy commercial centre of the valley. The Shamozai emeraled mine, some 25 kilometres from Mingora and now the Gujaro Killay emerald mine in the adjacent district of Shangla are also under the control of the Swat Taliban. Mining is in progress in these mines and precious stones are auctioned in the premises of the Mingora mine every Sunday, where the dealers from all over Pakistan come for shopping. Federal and provincial governments have kept silent over this looting and plunder of State properties.

The Taliban are in league with the timber mafia. They are mercilessly cutting the forests of Malamjaba, Fatehpur, Miandam and Lalko. They also cut the fruit orchards of the landlord opponent to them. The fruit orchards in Barabandi, on the main road and near to army check post, have been cut down in broad daylight. Barabandi is some six kilometres from Mingora.

The Taliban have plundered the Training Institute for Hotel Management (Paitahm), a joint venture of Pakistan and Austria, and the Malam Jaba tourist resort. The Taliban have carried away its furniture, Computers and electric appliances, even its doors, windows and ventilators. They have established a warehouse in Barabandai where all these things are auctioned. The Taliban call it mal-e-ghanimat (war booty). This is another of the income-generation sources of the Taliban.

The Taliban militancy is spreading towards the lower part of Malakand. The Taliban have banned women from markets and bazaars in Batkhela and Thana towns in Malaknd. ThanaÕs Mina Bazaar, a famous market popular with women, has been razed to the ground.

There are several new training camps in Swat where the Taliban train teenage boys for militancy. The boys belong to the schools that have been destroyed by the Taliban. Lack of occupation and the jihadi preaching of the Taliban turn SwatÕs young men to jihad. Their schools are destroyed. The Taliban have banned TV and music and playing of cricket. The young men have no activity and the Taliban constantly invite them to jihad. Hundreds of boys have joined the training camps, most of them without the permission of their parents. According to the TalibanÕs version of jihad, parentsÕ permission is not needed at all. The helpless parents have nobody to ask for help in order to stop their children from joining the Taliban. The Taliban threatens parents who stop their children from joining the so-called jihad.

Some months down the road Pakistani right-wingers and so-called liberal leftists obsessed with anti-Americanism will say that the Taliban are popular in Swat and the proof is that their ranks have grown. But today no one is paying attention to the plight of the helpless parents who earnestly wish to stop their children joining the ranks of the Taliban but have no one in the entire Pakistan to help them.

The Swat Taliban sent 350 fighters to strengthen the Dir Taliban. People in Dir have made a local peopleÕs army against the Taliban. To combat the local peopleÕs army the Dir Taliban sent an SOS call to the Swat Taliban, who sent armed Taliban to Dir to slaughter the people of Dir.

More than a hundred Taliban crossed from Swat into the adjacent district of Bunair on April 5. Arms clashes have been reported between the militants and the armed lashkar. The army has vacated many check posts on the demand of the militants in Swat. The Taliban are not allowing the army to enter the areas that they were occupying. Commenting on this situation Afzal Khan Lala said: ‘The army will meet tough resistance and will suffer a great deal when retaking the area because the Taliban have strengthened their positions in Swat.’

 

[S-2]

Is there anybody here from Pakistan that would care to refute this gentleman's point-by-point description of recent events in SWAT?

In sum, it's a damning indictment of all involved.

America's civil aid money will be directed where and by whom again? These guys?

I don't care how bad things may be in Punjab or Sindh, I'd really like any accepted civil aid from America directed to FATA, Baluchistan, N.A. and NWFP before the remainder.

How to do so with military and civil leaders in crony obiescence to Faizullah? However needy those sad folks may be, that money would be destined straight for the pockets of these men and their military/civil cronies.

NGOs aren't safe up there after the murder of three elderly female workers and their driver.

This is crazed.

 

[Patriot]

Is there anybody here from Pakistan that would care to refute this gentleman's point-by-point description of recent events in SWAT?

In sum, it's a damning indictment of all involved.

America's civil aid money will directed where and by whom again? These guys?

I don't care how bad things may be in Punjab or Sindh, I'd really like any accepted civil aid from America directed to FATA, Baluchistan, N.A. and NWFP before the remainder.

How to do so with military and civil leaders in crony obiescence to Faizullah? However needy those sad folks may be, that money would be destined straight for the pockets of these men and their military/civil cronies.

NGOs aren't safe up there after the murder of three elderly female workers and their driver.

This is crazed.

They will probably say author is a Zionists/Mossad Agent.

 

[duhastmish]

Crime rate in Swat down, claims commissioner
???????
Crime rate in Swat down, claims commissioner

SLAMABAD: The scenic Swat valley has seen phenomenal decrease in crime rate since the start of peace process in February and there has been no incident of bomb blast, suicide attacks or killing of innocents by the Taliban, claims Malakand Commissioner Syed Muhammad Javed.

He said things have dramatically changed in Swat after the peace agreement was signed between the NWFP government and Maulana Sufi Muhammad of Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi (TNSM), adding girls’ schools and even colleges have started functioning while government offices and the vast majority of the police stations have become operational.

The News correspondent in Swat Essa Khankheil when contacted endorsed what the Malakand commissioner has said but only disagreed to the extent that while the police presence in Mingora and other cities in Swat were visible but in certain rural areas the police have been restricted to their respective police stations and chowkis.

Essa said he has recently conducted a survey, which reveals the people of Swat were desirous of peace and does not want derailment of the peace process. He said closing of the peace camp by Maulana Sufi Muhammad and the uncertainty surrounding the signing of Nizam-e-Adl Regulations by President Asif Zardari has caused fears about return of lawlessness in Swat.

Essa said killing of civilians from either side — the Taliban or the security forces — has stopped altogether since Feb 16 and business activities in the Malakand division and Swat have also returned to normal. He said most of the people in Swat do believe the US does not want this peace process to succeed and warned if Nizam-eóAdl Regulations were not enforced, it would lead to complete destruction of Swat.

The Malakand commissioner acknowledged there have been few incidents of the Taliban-backed kidnapping but argued these incidents fall in the category where the Taliban and the kidnapees have some personal grudge or enmity. Even these cases, he said, are being settled through Jirga. Essa endorsed the viewpoint of the Malakand commissioner but said the number of kidnapping incidents by the Taliban is not few but several.

According to Syed Javed, out of 800 policemen, who had deserted their respective duty stations in and around Swat before Feb 16, have started returning back. The commissioner disclosed almost half of these policemen have rejoined their duties while others were asked to return as soon as possible. “We have already offered enhanced pay package to the local police,” the Swat commissioner disclosed, adding because of inadequate police force some police stations or police chowkis were not fully operational. The commissioner also said all government offices, including health, education, Wapda, etc., are operational.

The Swat commissioner said almost all girls’ schools and even colleges have been opened. He said owing to some administrative problems, the government has yet to setup tent schools in areas where school buildings had been destroyed. But Essa said girls have yet to start going to schools in those areas as there was no tent facility.
-------------------------------------

????????????????????? WOOOOOTTT ??????????????????????????

 

[RabzonKhan]

Is there anybody here from Pakistan that would care to refute this gentleman's point-by-point description of recent events in SWAT?

She's a Lady.

 

[RabzonKhan]

We don’t accept Taliban sharia: Altaf

April 14, 2009

LAHORE: Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain has said his party does not accept Taliban’s “forced sharia”, a private TV channel reported on Monday. In his telephonic address to a protest rally in London, Altaf said the time had arrived to come forward and save Pakistan. He said he was not against the Pashtuns or Punjabis, but against Talibanisation, adding that religious extremists were defaming Pakistan. The MQM has declined to prop up the Nizam-e-Adl Regulation 2009, he said. Speaking at the floor of the House, MQM leader Farooq Sattar said the MQM would not speak in favour of the Swat deal. daily times monitor

 

[AgNoStiC MuSliM]

Originally posted By FM sahib elsewhere:

insight: Costly peace —Ejaz Haider
​

The prognosis therefore is not easy, given the wickedness of the problem. But it is a foregone conclusion that if the presidential order is not signed, the fighting at some point will restart

President Asif Ali Zardari,
reluctant to sign the Nizam-e Adl Regulation 2009, sent it to parliament for review, which approved it Monday evening. A beleaguered ANP government in the NWFP had threatened to walk out of the coalition at the Centre if the president did not sign the document.

Earlier, on April 9, Sufi Muhammad, chief of the Tehreek-e Nifaz-e Shariat-e Muhammadi (TNSM), left his peace camp in the district of Swat, saying that if anything unpleasant happened in the area, President Zardari would be responsible. However, Sufi was careful in stressing that the “peace deal with the provincial government is intact”.

Now that the parliament has approved the signing of the regulation, where do we go from here?

Before attempting to answer this question, it is important to clarify two issues about Swat which had become conflated and caused much confusion: the peace deal and the Nizam-e Adl Regulation 2009.

Deliberations on what is now termed the Nazim-e Adl (Shariat) Regulation 2009 had begun as far back as 2007, in fact before the army operation in the valley had started.

To think that that document is the peace deal is therefore incorrect.

When the recent round of troubles began in Swat and the army was deployed to the area after the police, the Frontier Constabulary and even Frontier Corps elements were found inadequate before Fazlullah’s men, the operations resulted in much civilian internal displacement and casualties.

The army operation, which began in November 2007, continued until February 2008. It is a measure of the success of the first phase of the operation that elections were peacefully held throughout the valley and people overwhelmingly voted for the ANP and the PPP, the two major partners in the NWFP coalition government.

After the elections, however, the Taliban began striking sporadically again. The second phase of the army operation resulted in more collateral damage. At that point the ANP government began lobbying for a political solution. The policy resulted in a dual-track strategy: make legal arrangements for the implementation of shariat in the area through Sufi Muhammad’s TNSM and use that to force the Taliban into a peace deal.

The thrust was to blunt the Taliban who were using the absence of shariat in the area to accomplish their agenda. Sufi Muhammad, Fazlullah’s father-in-law, with his TNSM was thought to be the best bet to achieve this.

Sufi was released from jail in Dera Ismail Khan and allowed to reclaim his bailiwick. Simultaneously, the government offered a peace deal to the Taliban who were presumed to have come under pressure because of Sufi Muhammad’s release and his statements that given the government’s sincerity in implementing shariat, there was no reason to continue fighting.

The fighting stopped. But the policy had come under tremendous pressure for several reasons. It is a measure of the divide on the issue that President Zardari refused to take a presidential decision on it and thought fit instead to send it to parliament. The video showing a girl being flogged had contributed further to undermining the two-pronged policy.

So, is this the best course of action
in Swat?

Critics say the government has surrendered to the Taliban and conceded territory; they warn that other groups would replicate this; they chide the government for showing up the state to be weak and challengeable; there are already reports that the Swat Taliban have moved in to the adjoining district of Buner in the south and are leapfrogging and extending their reach etcetera.

Supporters point to the ground realities; the fact that fighting has stopped, qazi courts are dispensing justice and even taking the Taliban to task; human lives are not being lost and people have started returning to the area.

This is the point in the debate, what should or must the state do, where we are reminded of what social scientists and policy planners call a “wicked problem”.

A wicked problem is generally one that is either difficult or almost impossible to solve because of contradictory and changing requirements and where information is incomplete. To add to the degree of difficulty, a wicked problem involves complex interdependencies, such that tackling one aspect of the problem can create other problems.

Essentially, this means that no course of action can be based on a definitive formulation because a wicked problem successfully eludes one; courses of action cannot be correct or incorrect or true or false but only relatively better or worse; every attempt is a one-shot experiment which may or may not work; stakeholders have different frames for understanding and solving the problem; there are multiple value conflicts and so on.

Going by this, Swat is as wicked as a wicked problem can get. Not only that, given the pressures of getting to the end-state, a solution, even as how to get there remains highly disputed, the planner is not cut any slack when he goes wrong!

The liberals say the state must act as the Leviathan. Sure. But can the state do so in relation to one problem when its capacity to act as the Leviathan is undermined because of the fragility of the social contract which is presumed to have brought it into being, and which the liberal enclave never tires of pointing to otherwise?

The question is important because the same set of liberals talks about the necessity for the state to dialogue with Baloch sub-nationalists because the Baloch non-acceptance of the social contract is owed to the state’s highhandedness and its unacceptability!

In a way they are right because a state can act ruthlessly only when its writ is accepted by the majority of the people. A violent expression of state writ, paradoxically, requires the stamp of legitimacy even more so. But if that legitimacy is absent in relation to one set of dissidents, it is equally absent in relation to all sets of dissidents. Neither liberals nor the state can cherry-pick targets for the exercise of internal sovereignty.

The prognosis therefore is not easy, given the wickedness of the problem. But while the parliament’s approval of the draft and the president’s subsequent signing of it might sustain the current peace in Swat, it is a foregone conclusion it will not be able to stop the domino effect that has begun in the area, Buner being an example.

The immediate question then is, and we can’t go beyond the immediate: where will the state draw the line; or will it?

Ejaz Haider is Consulting Editor of The Friday Times and Op-Ed Editor of Daily Times. He can be reached at sapper@dailytimes.com.pk

Daily Times - Leading News Resource of Pakistan

 

[Always Neutral]

Crime rate in Swat down, claims commissioner
???????
Crime rate in Swat down, claims commissioner

SLAMABAD: The scenic Swat valley has seen phenomenal decrease in crime rate since the start of peace process in February and there has been no incident of bomb blast, suicide attacks or killing of innocents by the Taliban, claims Malakand Commissioner Syed Muhammad Javed.

When the criminal becomes the judge crime comes down automatically. Here is an article which strengthens AA's arguments and is pat on the back of All Taliban lovers who have been telling us on this forum that once sharia is imposed the Talibani's will also face justice for the slaughter they have committed. READ THE FINE PRINT PLEASE OF THIS SELLOUT DEAL BY GOP / PA.

Regards

DAWN.COM | + Pakistan | Swat deal gives Taliban immunity: Sufi

Swat deal gives Taliban immunity: Sufi
Tuesday, 14 Apr, 2009 | 09:34 PM PST |


ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's imposition of Islamic law to blunt a gathering Taliban rebellion will protect militants accused of brutal killings from prosecution, a hardline cleric who mediated the peace plan said on Tuesday.

 

[S-2]

If anybody is on top of the issue and history of events since 2006 leading up to this debacle there remain no further questions.

For anybody remembering the incredibly heartbreaking video that sohailbutt posted on the "war documentary" sticky, there remains the image of the Pakistani officer on his knees with hands tied, talking without fear and seemingly oblivious to the man standing behind and drawing back a sword.

We know what came next.

What's left to say but to permit the dissemblers a non-stop voice?

Please take it. You do so as patriotic citizens. Why do I know so? No element of your society has so dissembled this deconstruction of Pakistan's west as both of your last administrations and your army. All three are culpable and any who do so here would be no worse.

My mind became fully firm three weeks ago. You're at civil war and now the only question is whether the army decides to sit it out or weigh in. If weighing in, on whose side is the largest of questions.

 

[muse]

Sufi says disarm, TTP says enforce sharia first

* TNSM chief says sharia goal met, Taliban should participate in welfare
* TTP says will surrender arms after seeing ‘practical steps’

By Ghulam Farooq

BATKHELA: Tehreek Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Muhammadi (TNSM) chief Sufi Muhammad asked the Swat Taliban on Tuesday to lay down arms after President Asif Zardari approved the Nizam-e-Adl Regulation, but Taliban spokesman Muslim Khan said in a tepid response his men would surrender arms only after they see sharia enforced in Malakand.

“The Taliban should lay down weapons after the signing of the sharia regulation by the president,” Sufi said while talking to reporters.

“We will do that when the sharia is enforced and we see changes on the ground,” Muslim Khan told Daily Times by telephone from Mingora.

“When we are satisfied with the practical steps, we will lay down weapons,” he said. He asked the Taliban to avoid displaying weapons in public in major towns of the division.

But Sufi said the Taliban should now “play their role in development of the people and the area”. “Their demand for the imposition of sharia has been met,” he said, “and carrying weapons has no logic now.”

He welcomed the National Assembly’s approval of the regulation.

Meanwhile, Qazi courts began functioning in Swat with full legal powers. The courts had started functioning on March 12 in six tehsils of Swat, but had limited authority.

Qazi courts: However, the new qazi courts would not hear cases against the Taliban, The Associated Press quoted the TNSM chief as telling a private TV channel. “We intend to bury the past,” he said.

 

[S-2]

"We intend to bury the past..."

Along with a few key bodies able to witness their transgressions. Don't forget, there's a list being waved about of those who've committed "anti-islamic" crimes.

Oh boy.

 

[ajpirzada]

Pak Govt. to act against Taliban if they don’t disarm
Pak Govt. to act against Taliban if they don’t disarm

after this regulation gov will have the moral high ground to take any action against talibans if they dont disarm. this was the rit way fwd.
you have to have locals on ur side to win any battle or war and this is wat the gov has done.

 

[Ratus Ratus]

Pak Govt. to act against Taliban if they don’t disarm
Pak Govt. to act against Taliban if they don’t disarm

after this regulation gov will have the moral high ground to take any action against talibans if they dont disarm. this was the rit way fwd.
you have to have locals on ur side to win any battle or war and this is wat the gov has done.

I enjoy your optimism but I unfortunately feel it won’t happen as you would hope.
The locals will stay looking after their own personal safety which means don’t criticise the hand that may kill you.

Note this from your source reference:
Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan spokesman Muslim Khan had said that their men would surrender arms only after they see Sharia enforced in Malakand division of the Sawt Valley

This is the start of many excuses for them staying as is, fully armed and expanding.