Fallout of military operation
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Dawn, Pakistan
By Zahir Kazmi
Saturday, 30 May, 2009
A FEW weeks after the military offensive was launched in Swat it is time to take stock of the issues that have cropped up as a result of it. The army’s success in Operation Rah-i-Raast has come at a great cost — the displacement of an estimated 2.5 million people from the war-torn areas.
This is a great challenge not only for the government but also for the people of Pakistan as they have to provide for the latter. The army is straining to keep vigil on two fronts: an active hunt for militants in Swat — in which many soldiers have laid down their lives — and trying to avoid civilian casualties.
Is there an end in sight? Will we be successful in ridding the country of the cancer of militancy? Will the emerging broad-based political resolve last or fizzle out? No one has a crystal ball to predict the future regarding Pakistan’s fight against extremism but an empirical view of such conflicts indicate that the people have to brace themselves for more sacrifices and a long-drawn campaign that should also aim at defeating the Taliban on an ideological plane besides physically humbling them.
This battle cannot be won by the government and its military instrument alone. In fact it calls for a synergistic approach marked by the declaration of ‘jihad’ by every individual in this country against those who have distorted religion — be it the Taliban, their supporters within our ranks or outsiders who provide them with needed material support.
The ongoing battle to regain control of Mingora is taking place in the form of a bloody house-to-house clearance that is showing signs of success as the Taliban have reportedly started retreating to regroup elsewhere. According to the director-general ISPR, this Taliban stronghold may take some more days to demolish and destroy. The army faces the challenge of plugging the holes from where these militants can withdraw and fight elsewhere later.
It is difficult to tell apart a Taliban from a common citizen except if he is a Tajik or Uzbek. There have been claims of some non-state actors and non-Muslims amongst the Taliban ranks, fighters who are well-trained mercenaries and who stand their ground and fight until their last breath.
While most of Buner has been cleared and the citizens are relieved due to fewer hours of curfew, Dir and Shangla are reportedly still under Taliban influence. The long hours of curfew have created enormous difficulties for the poor inhabitants of the area. These are places that are in urgent need of resources for the survival of locals. The police and district management of these areas are in a dysfunctional state and need to be replenished to bring some semblance of peace and order to the conflict-hit areas.
The army and paramilitary forces will have to reinforce and support them in wresting control from the Taliban. The already Spartan civic facilities have been razed to dust by the Taliban. Thus the army will not only have to help rebuild these structures but also keep their engineers and medical services in these areas for a longer period of time.
The key political and military challenge will be to not let the impetus of these operations die. If this happens it will give the Taliban some much-needed space and allow them to regroup and fight elsewhere. While the army may be able to milk its resources and extend its operations to Waziristan and other areas; will the government, media moguls and the general population have the appetite and stamina to do their part? Such operations will be dictated by resource constraints like the handling of the growing number of IDPs.
The present crisis situation of provisioning the IDPs demands generous public support. The displaced people need to be sheltered, fed and psychologically supported. While the people have managed to absorb the shock of displacement due to natural disasters like the 2005 earthquake, in this case of conflict they can easily become disaffected. One would not like to see these embittered people fall into the Taliban’s fold and it is incumbent on all to stand with the displaced families in their hour of need. These people are not acclimatised to harsh summers and hence donations should include electricity generators, fans and adequate shelter.
Let us understand that this crisis cannot be handled by the military
alone, which can only clear and secure Swat and other areas. It asks people to leave the comfort of their homes and help their countrymen displaced by war. We will be worse than the Taliban if we fail to support them until conditions allow them to return to Swat and make a fresh start — lest there are more Taliban ready to drive us out of our abodes.
Source
By Zahir Kazmi
Saturday, 30 May, 2009
A FEW weeks after the military offensive was launched in Swat it is time to take stock of the issues that have cropped up as a result of it. The army’s success in Operation Rah-i-Raast has come at a great cost — the displacement of an estimated 2.5 million people from the war-torn areas.
This is a great challenge not only for the government but also for the people of Pakistan as they have to provide for the latter. The army is straining to keep vigil on two fronts: an active hunt for militants in Swat — in which many soldiers have laid down their lives — and trying to avoid civilian casualties.
Is there an end in sight? Will we be successful in ridding the country of the cancer of militancy? Will the emerging broad-based political resolve last or fizzle out? No one has a crystal ball to predict the future regarding Pakistan’s fight against extremism but an empirical view of such conflicts indicate that the people have to brace themselves for more sacrifices and a long-drawn campaign that should also aim at defeating the Taliban on an ideological plane besides physically humbling them.
This battle cannot be won by the government and its military instrument alone. In fact it calls for a synergistic approach marked by the declaration of ‘jihad’ by every individual in this country against those who have distorted religion — be it the Taliban, their supporters within our ranks or outsiders who provide them with needed material support.
The ongoing battle to regain control of Mingora is taking place in the form of a bloody house-to-house clearance that is showing signs of success as the Taliban have reportedly started retreating to regroup elsewhere. According to the director-general ISPR, this Taliban stronghold may take some more days to demolish and destroy. The army faces the challenge of plugging the holes from where these militants can withdraw and fight elsewhere later.
It is difficult to tell apart a Taliban from a common citizen except if he is a Tajik or Uzbek. There have been claims of some non-state actors and non-Muslims amongst the Taliban ranks, fighters who are well-trained mercenaries and who stand their ground and fight until their last breath.
While most of Buner has been cleared and the citizens are relieved due to fewer hours of curfew, Dir and Shangla are reportedly still under Taliban influence. The long hours of curfew have created enormous difficulties for the poor inhabitants of the area. These are places that are in urgent need of resources for the survival of locals. The police and district management of these areas are in a dysfunctional state and need to be replenished to bring some semblance of peace and order to the conflict-hit areas.
The army and paramilitary forces will have to reinforce and support them in wresting control from the Taliban. The already Spartan civic facilities have been razed to dust by the Taliban. Thus the army will not only have to help rebuild these structures but also keep their engineers and medical services in these areas for a longer period of time.
The key political and military challenge will be to not let the impetus of these operations die. If this happens it will give the Taliban some much-needed space and allow them to regroup and fight elsewhere. While the army may be able to milk its resources and extend its operations to Waziristan and other areas; will the government, media moguls and the general population have the appetite and stamina to do their part? Such operations will be dictated by resource constraints like the handling of the growing number of IDPs.
The present crisis situation of provisioning the IDPs demands generous public support. The displaced people need to be sheltered, fed and psychologically supported. While the people have managed to absorb the shock of displacement due to natural disasters like the 2005 earthquake, in this case of conflict they can easily become disaffected. One would not like to see these embittered people fall into the Taliban’s fold and it is incumbent on all to stand with the displaced families in their hour of need. These people are not acclimatised to harsh summers and hence donations should include electricity generators, fans and adequate shelter.
Let us understand that this crisis cannot be handled by the military
alone, which can only clear and secure Swat and other areas. It asks people to leave the comfort of their homes and help their countrymen displaced by war. We will be worse than the Taliban if we fail to support them until conditions allow them to return to Swat and make a fresh start — lest there are more Taliban ready to drive us out of our abodes.
Source
Labels: Extremism, Militancy, Military Operation, Swat Operation, Taliban
posted @ 11:32 AM,
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