President Asif Zardari while stressing continuation of reform process in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) on Wednesday said the people of these areas needed to be given their due rights, as they have suffered immensely at the hands of criminals, Taliban and drone strikes.
Addressing a convention of people belonging to FATA here at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, the president said he fully understood the pain of the people living in the tribal areas, as he himself had witnessed deaths of his close family members in incidents of terrorism.
“Our family has suffered, we have sacrificed our lives, we understand your pain and will always stand by you,” the president reiterated.
He said the people of the area were facing innumerable challenges due to the activities of local and foreign elements, including those of criminals and terrorists.
President Zardari termed the reform process as “far reaching” and said it would now enable the political parties to have some presence in the area that would allow them to participate in elections and serve the masses.
He said the reforms initiated in this regard were not complete, but hoped the process would continue with the assistance of subsequent governments.
Vowing to stand by the people of FATA, the president said he was proud to have done away with the archaic system prevalent in the area that was replaced with one that was reforms-oriented and democratic to the core. He further said that during his tenure his focus was on serving the underprivileged, deprived, minorities and the women.
Moreover, President Zardari said, “The rights given to the people of FATA can neither be withdrawn nor curtailed.” He expressed the hope that the current government would carry forward the reform process initiated in one of the country’s most impoverished areas.
The President was addressing participants comprising tribal elders and elites, lawyers, educationists, students, women representatives and journalists who had prepared the 19-point FATA Declaration that was approved by a grand assembly in Peshawar last month.
The declaration urged full implementation of the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) 2011 at the earliest, delivering fundamental rights to the people of FATA as enshrined in the Constitution, establishment of Local Government system and setting aside reserved seats for women.
Furthermore, President Zardari said the amendments made in the FCR were aimed at empowering the people of the area and to ensure a bright future for the same. He recalled that suggestions were made that the reform process should be initiated once peace returned to the area, however he did not agree and went ahead with the reform package, along with taking measures for the establishment of peace.
He said the process of change in FATA was in line with the policy under which women, youth, senior citizens and minorities have been empowered and due to which the province got the name Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The president also said he believed in serving the masses and was not inclined towards grabbing power for the sake of power. He added he empowered the parliament as he believed in the supremacy of the people and made public his desire to leave his office with dignity and honour on the completion of his term.
Meanwhile, Shaheed Bhutto Foundation Chief Executive Officer Khalid M Shafi said that FATA reforms were aimed at bringing the area into the mainstream.
