For peace in Swat

DAWN, Editorial
May 23, 2008

ONLY a cautious welcome can be extended to the Frontier government’s signing of a peace deal with the militants operating in Swat under the command of the clerics Fazlullah and Sufi Mohammad. We say ‘cautious’ because the bargain struck by the ANP entails permission for the clerics to continue their radio broadcasts in exchange for the writ of the state to prevail in Swat and Malakand Agency. Even as the deal was being clinched between the government and the militants’ representatives on Wednesday, girls’ schools, picnic spots and a gas pipeline were targeted in Swat. It would be unfortunate if the erstwhile errant clerics, indemnified as they are now, were to look the other way and terrorist assaults to continue, ostensibly by tertiary, splinter groups of the militants. The demand ceded to the militants by the government for the enforcement of Sharia needs to be vetted more carefully: while barbers may be allowed to continue their business, it has yet to be made clear what the clerics think of schooling girls, for instance. And what on God’s earth has a gas pipeline got to do with enforcing or not enforcing the Sharia? The ANP did not get the mandate it got from Swat to enable the people there to become better believers.

We hope the terms of agreement reached with the militants include carrying out development work in Swat without hindrance, creating gainful employment for the embattled people, reviving the tourism industry which was the economic lifeline of the Swatis, and not restricting development to establishing an Islamic university in the valley. Swat was never known as a hotbed of extremism. On the contrary, the traditional Swati ethos wholeheartedly embraced tolerance, welcoming hundreds of thousands of Pakistani and foreign tourists, and taking pride in its pre-Islamic Gandhara heritage. Swati women, too, contributed equally to the economic mainstream by putting out exquisitely embroidered textiles. In bigger towns like Mingora and Saidu Sharif, both men and women attended colleges without any fear of intimidation or bars placed on their movement to and from the institutions.

It is hoped that the deal signed with the clerics in Swat is not seen by militants elsewhere in Fata and other areas vulnerable to Talibanisation as the government’s buckling under pressure to establish a parallel justice system. The final test of the success of the agreement reached will come from how the two sides honour the pledges made and the return of normality to the troubled valley. Verifiable indicators of peace enduring in the region will be the cessation of hostilities and unlawful acts committed by the militants as well as withdrawal of the security forces. Unless these conditions are met, resumption of development work in the valley cannot be ensured.