Why Pakistanis oppose US drone attacks

There is a strong resistance in Pakistan against the US drone attacks in Fata. In fact, as the drone attacks have increased in 2010, so has the opposition. The drone attacks, besides hardcore militants, are killing innocent people. Several hundred people have died in such attacks, including men, women and children. But there are three other major reasons why Pakistanis, at all levels, strongly contest these attacks.

First, the attacks violate Pakistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. After all, Fata, comprising a group of small administrative units, has been a part of Pakistan for the last 63 years. The people there are true Pakistanis, serving in all government departments and the armed forces. The only difference is that these people live in an area that shares a 373-mile border with Afghanistan known as the Durand Line and due to some peculiar arrangements, necessitated by history and culture of the region, live in an area that is administered directly by the federal government. So, by all means, they are Pakistanis. Unfortunately, it is the most impoverished part of the country. While it is home to 2.4% of Pakistan’s population, its share to national economy is only 1.5%. In 2010, only 34% of households managed to rise above the poverty level.

Second, the attacks violate human rights conventions and international laws. On June 3, 2009, the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) presented a report, which stated that the US government had failed to keep track of civilian casualties of its military operations, including the drone attacks. It said the American government had also failed to provide means for citizens of affected nations to obtain information about the casualties and any legal inquests regarding them. Such information held by the US military is allegedly inaccessible to the public due to the high level of secrecy surrounding the drone attacks program. On October 27, 2009 UNHRC investigator Philip Alston called on the

US to demonstrate that it was not randomly killing people in violation of international law through its use of drones on the Pak-Afghan border. “Otherwise you have the really problematic bottom line, which is that the Central Intelligence Agency is running a program that is killing significant numbers of people and there is absolutely no accountability in terms of the relevant international laws.” Alston criticised the US’s refusal to respond to date to the UN’s concerns.

On June 2, 2010 Alston’s team released a report on its investigation into the drone strikes, criticising the United States for being, “the most prolific user of targeted killings” in the world. Third, drone attacks are contributing to terrorism in Pakistan. When the terrorists are pounded from air, they take on innocent Pakistanis, including the armed forces personnel.

In 2006, 657 terrorist attacks, including 41 of sectarian nature, took place, leaving 907 people dead and 1,543 others injured according to a Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS) security report.

It said that in 2007, 3,448 people died in 1,503 terrorist attacks and clashes, including suicide attacks, killings, and assassinations while 5,353 were injured. These casualties were 128% and 491% higher as compared with 2006 and 2005, respectively. The report stated that Pakistan faced 60 suicide attacks (mostly targeted at security forces) during 2007, which killed at least 770, besides injuring another 1,574 people. In 2008, the country saw 2,148 terrorist attacks, which caused 2,267 fatalities and 4,558 injuries. HRCP in its annual report indicated that there were at least 67 suicide attacks across Pakistan killing 973 people and injuring 2,318.

The PIPS report says in 2009, 2,586 terrorist, insurgent and sectarian-related incidents were reported that killed 3,021 people and injured 7,334. These casualties were 48% higher as compared to 2008. On the other hand, the rate of suicide attacks surged by one third to 87 bombings that killed 1,300 people and injured 3,600, it has reported. The year 2010 has not ended yet but the terrorist attacks are continuing. So, it is about time the US government took the drone attack issue seriously and put an end to such attacks, once and for all.