People rise against militancy, again
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Recent days have seen extraordinary developments in Pakistan’s northern areas. Thousands of people took to the streets in the picturesque valley of Swat to say no to militants threatening the region’s peace and stability. They were the biggest demonstrations in Swat’s history and involved people from all walks of life – political leaders, teachers, students, transporters, lawyers, doctors and civil society activists. Protests also erupted in Haripur and Battagram districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Speakers at the Swat rallies, from the Pashtun Tahufuz Movement (PTM), Awami National Party (ANP) Jamaat-e-Islami and others, said they will not allow Swat’s hard-earned peace to be lost to the return of terrorists to the region. They accused both the PTI-run provincial government and state agencies of failing to provide people security. In a statement, the association of private schools pointed out that the law and order situation in Swat had been deteriorating for months but that “security forces were helpless against a few so-called terrorists.”
The immediate spark for mass protests was an unidentified gunman’s firing on a school van that killed the driver and injured two children. But public resentment and panic had been building for months over a resurgence of violence seen to be the result of activities by the outlawed Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other elements, who were accused of being engaged in extortion and extracting ransom money from people. This was happening not just in Swat but in various places across KP province including Peshawar. There were several reported incidents including an army officer and policeman taken hostage who were later freed after negotiations. But instead of taking action to stop such incidents, the provincial government acted as a silent bystander. No minister of the provincial ruling party surfaced. A spokesman of the KP government went so far as to implicitly defend TTP, saying all terrorist incidents cannot be laid at its door.
Two factors seem to lie behind the revived threat posed to peace and security in Swat and beyond. The first has to do with failed talks with TTP that Pakistani military officials conducted in a bid to bring an end to the armed group’s 14-year war on Pakistan. Talks broke down months ago when it became clear that an intransigent TTP’s demands were non-negotiable. They have not resumed since. But an unintended impression given to TTP during these negotiations had serious consequences. Members of the group perceived that they had been given a concession they could cross the border and resettle in Pakistan. Many made their way via an unfenced part of the border from Kunar into Bajaur and on to Swat. They then started, with local sympathizers, to take violent actions. That emboldened other elements who had dispersed and gone into hiding after the successful military operation of 2009 which cleared the area of terrorists.
It is instructive to recall what happened 15 years ago to understand why there is so much public fear and resistance to any return to a dark era. Then too, a series of flawed and failed peace deals with militants and government procrastination delayed state action and emboldened the Taliban.
Maleeha Lodhi
The second factor was inaction by the provincial government and police. For months their paralysis in the face of actions attributed by residents to militants served to unwittingly encourage them. Worse, some officials succumbed to blackmail by reportedly paying extortion money. This persuaded the militants to step up activities as evidenced in growing incidents of violence and extraction of ‘bhatta’ or protection money. Thus, the provincial government’s weakness and police inaction contributed to worsening of the security situation in Swat and other KP areas, including Bajaur district. The KP chief minister’s absence from the scene further signaled his administration’s infirmity. Also, no provincial minister bothered to visit Swat.
The ongoing protests against militancy are fired by public anger and resolve to prevent Swat from relapsing into the past when violent extremists managed to overrun the area and seize control of much of Swat valley. It is instructive to recall what happened 15 years ago to understand why there is so much public fear and resistance to any return to a dark era. Then too, a series of flawed and failed peace deals with militants and government procrastination delayed state action and emboldened the Taliban to make an audacious power grab and impose a reign of terror on the people. Under Maulvi Fazlullah’s leadership, his militant group carried out public beheadings of officials, barred girls’ education, banned polio vaccination and imposed a brutal and repressive regime. During 2007-2009 fierce fighting raged between militants and security forces for control of Swat. A combination of internal and external pressure then forced a full-scale military offensive that drove the TTP and its allies out of Swat, dismantled their base and re-established government control in 2009.
Then as today a public outcry made government authorities wake up to the threat. But what is needed in the weeks ahead is a confluence between public rejection of militancy, determination of law enforcement agencies and political consensus to prevent militants, who at present are relatively small in number, from gaining ground in Swat and elsewhere in KP.
- Maleeha Lodhi is a former Pakistani ambassador to the US, UK & UN. Twitter @LodhiMaleeha
