FATA after the war

By
Taimur Shamil
-
21
265

The tribal culture needs to be revitalised

Operation Zarb-e-Azb has entered its final phase. According to the ISPR most areas have been cleared of the terrorists and their outfits have been eliminated. The Shawal Valley still needs to be cleared thus vulnerability remains high. The next challenge would be to bring the culture of FATA back to its original shape. As the IDPs plan to go back to their areas, it is essential to provide them with social and political security.

With the nearing end of Zarb-e-Azb many hope for the return of the customs that were once the part of Waziristan, both north and south. The tribal codes of Mehsud and Wazir tribes have been infected. Clearing them might take years. Military operations can do it alone and in addition to that military operation is a short term solution to the problem. The long term solution would be to restore the customs of the people of the area. Akbar S Ahmed, a renowned anthropologist and author of ‘Thistle and the Drone’, suggests a Waziristan model to cope with the present situation. His model posits three interdependent sources of authority: (1) the tribal elders (2) the religious leaders; and (3) the political agent representing the central government.

People familiar with the area are aware of the fact that every tribe is represented by the elder. The long standing debate still continues on how tribal areas should be ruled or represented. The debate between the Kashars (Youth) and the Mashars (Elders) also holds its place in the ever evolving tribal regions. Many tribal elders were killed in the aftermaths of the Afghan war and later in reaction to Pakistan’s war on terror. For centuries the elders had authority in the tribal matters. Disputes between the tribes were settled by the elders in Jirga (the council of elders) and expressed through Pukhtoonwali (the tribal codes). The prayer imam and the clerics were appointed by the elders at the mosques and the seminaries to teach their children.

“The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the call for ‘Jihad’ against the ‘godless’ enemy by General Zia-ul-Haq involved Waziristan” says Professor Akbar. The government’s rhetoric at that time that Islam was under attack hauled in the mullahs and the seminaries from Waziristan. Many students were recruited from these areas to fight in Afghanistan. “The Mullahs now had money and weapons and consequently means of mobilising fighting men. The government would often bypass the other two pillars—the elders and the political agent — and go directly to the religious leaders.” Overnight, the mullahs were elevated to the leadership role in the most significant war in the region in the living memory.

The mullahs who once looked to the tribal elders for support were now seen as the custodians of Islam and controlled the politics of the agency. This new change began to shake “the delicate balance between the three pillars of the agencies – the elders, the mullahs and the political agent.”

Much like the Soviet invasion, the US troops in Afghanistan had an instant and damaging impact on Pakistan. Many fighters again came to the tribal regions fleeing US bombing and brought once again their weapons and drugs, this time to stay till the present times. It is said that in 2002 the tribal elders asked the Pakistani government to let the elders handle the situation before taking any military action while the then Pakistani government under the international pressure launched the attack which further aggravated the situation.

In the consequences of such events emerged the notorious Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). TTP wanted to demolish the whole structure of the traditional society; Pukhtoonwali, Ulema, elders and political agent. In this, the tribal elders became the primary target. Primarily for the reason that they posed the strongest threat to TTP supremacy. Many of the elders were either killed in suicide blasts or kidnapped and beheaded.

The religious clerics, the second source of authority were also challenged by TTP. Clerics who were close to the elders or the government were made targets. In 2010 a suicide bomber killed Mullah Noor Muhammad, a former Wazir member of the national assembly, along with twenty-five others in a Wana mosque.

The third pillar, the political agent, was considerably weakened by the war. Many of the senior PAs escaped near death experiences while others lost their lives. Their future was thrown to vagueness after the civil service reforms, introduced by the then government.

If Pakistan wants to eliminate TTP and similar groups then the pillars of tribal authority need to be rebuilt with adjustments for adequate democratic enfranchisement. Changes should be brought in; unchecked power of political officers, the role of elders who, at times, make compromises with the government against the wishes of the locals, lack of people’s involvement in the electoral process and, the most crucial, sense of isolation and seclusion must wane away. However, wise tribal guidance, educated religious intellectuals and well-organised political officers are direly needed for the reconstruction of Waziristan.

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