Fata operations and the evolving situation

Eliminating militants and militancy does not mean conquering Fata again and again. This has been the practice since 9/11, a glimpse of which was again seen in North Waziristan recently where the common people suffered the most. They hoped the operations would somehow bring peace to the region, and peace in turn would lead to development of the area but that has proved to be nothing more than an illusion.
Neither has peace returned nor has development taken place. What the future holds for them, and whether Fata will continue to suffer as the battleground, is anybody’s guess. But the way events are unfolding across the border certainly does not bode well for the region.
In order to meet these challenges we first need to address the problem of militancy at home. The president was kind enough to acknowledge the bravery and sacrifices of the people of Fata in his address to parliament. However, he failed to offer even a word of sympathy for the bereaved families whose near and dear ones have been killed in the ten long years of operations including the recent one in North Waziristan. Neither did he indicate whether any framework had been charted out by the government for expeditious development of the area.
A deeply alarming factor in military operations is the killing of innocent civilians in the recent so-called ‘targeted operation’, a factor to which everybody there can testify. The deaths of late Sharif Khan of Mosaki village and 16 members of his family, including women and children, and a retired soldier is a case in point. This has sent a wave of alarm in the inhabitants of the area and they are being forced to leave for safer places in order to safeguard their lives. Many of them have reportedly crossed over into the adjoining Afghan province of Khost where they were warmly welcomed and treated far better than mere refugees. This will certainly encourage others to follow suit.
It is now for the government to decide whether it should continue with operations and make more people refugees in an environment in Afghanistan where their loyalties can also be subverted by those inimical to Pakistan or to revert back to proper negotiations as sought by the people of that area.
When Sardar Mehtab Ahmed Khan took over as new governor of that strife-torn region the general impression of the people there was that being a seasoned politician and senior in the PML-N hierarchy he would not continue to follow the failed and abhorrent methods of the establishment but would resort to traditional tribal ways in order to solve the problem of militancy there. He seems either to be too busy trying to understand the complexities of the area or perhaps he has not been permitted by the ones who matter to enter that sensitive area.
Whatever the reason for his inaction, the killing of innocent civilians, both prominent and common, continue unabated. For instance Malik Qadar Khan a notable leader and chief of the Wazir tribe of both North and South Waziristan was killed on the road near Miran Shah in broad day light and the authorities there did nothing to apprehend the culprits despite the fact that most of the time that road remains under curfew.
To my knowledge no senior functionary of the government bothered to visit his home to offer condolences leave alone offering any assistance to the family as is done elsewhere in the country. This shows the apathy of the government towards Fata and the lack of importance it attaches to the people there. Had Malik Qadir Khan been a citizen of any settled area in Pakistan dozens of senior government functionaries including cabinet members would have made a beeline to his place to offer every sympathy and support to the ones he left behind. His only fault and that of so many others who have met a similar fate is that they belonged to Fata, an area about which nobody in the country is really bothered.
While people in North Waziristan were hoping for positive results from the ongoing negotiations with the Taliban, all hell broke loose in the name of a targeted operation against militants. According to eyewitness accounts it was more random than the specific targeting of militants with the consequence that there were countless innocent casualties. Anyone with doubts about this should visit Mir Ali and Miran Shah, the two major towns of North Waziristan, and see for themselves the destruction wrought on houses and other properties in the villages and towns and decide whether it was targeted killing of militants or something else.
If one is to resort to such ‘targeted operations’ then Karachi should have been the first place – long ago – for visits by our jet fighters, gunship helicopters and long-range artillery for weeding out those who have been murdering common Karachiites on a daily basis for so many years. But that is not to be done unless the area stands abandoned like Fata without any presence of civil government and everything left to the security forces to resolve in any manner they please.
We used to protest against the use of US drone attacks not only because they were against international law but also because of collateral damage. Now what our own forces are doing in the garb of a targeted operation is unheard of; the government using jet fighters against its own people on its own soil, not in a conquered country. This reminds me of Imran Khan’s statement on return from one of his visits to Delhi where he was reminded by Rahul Gandhi of the Pakistani government using jet fighter against its own people. This is a very dangerous course of action and will have disastrous repercussions if we fail to stop it. There are claims that there are reservations among some air force officials also on this policy.
Before starting this operation we should have learnt from our past mistakes and undertaken it in such a way so as not to jeopardise the lives of innocent people causing panic among them thereby forcing them to desert their homes and hearths for safer locations either in Pakistan or to a foreign land. It would have been far better to make a serious effort for resolution of the problem through a dialogue first before undertaking the operation.
It is still not too late to correct the situation but for that a patient hearing needs to be given to the advice of the inhabitants of that area rather than acting upon the recommendations of those who see the area from a different angle and have nothing at stake there. The situation in the region is fast changing and we are stuck with the same old mantra of sorting out the militants through military force. We have to discard this mindset and face the changing realities as a nation united in difficult times.
Let us leave our differences to one side and unite in the quest for peace. Let us give the locals there a chance and extend our wholehearted support to them. They are capable of resolving the problem. If we still do not wake up to face the realities and challenges around us there is much more trouble in store for us.
The writer is a former ambassador. Email: waziruk@hotmail.com