Pakistan in Media

The News International, Pakistan

Tuesday, June 09, 2009

Indicators outside of the major state and international actors are the people of Swat, who are themselves looking to a time in the not-far future when they will return to their land and homes. And businesses. And farms. Already there are reports of residents discussing how to revive the tourism industry in Kalam, and an understanding that foreign tourists may be a couple of years hence, but domestic tourism should be up and running again next season. Tourism may be the easier nut to crack – putting farms back on their feet and replacing lost livestock will be much harder. Local strains of cattle, sheep and goats cannot be replaced easily; land which has been fought over and perhaps mined – and is anyway bound to contain unexploded munitions that present a danger to agricultural activity – will take more than a season to get back into profit. Difficult it may be but not impossible, and the deep well of social capital within of Swati communities will help to sustain the process of post-war regeneration. But social capital is not measured in hard cash – and hard cash they need. Swat presented an overarching threat – it could again – but it may also be an unparalleled opportunity for the government and the people to remake the social contract.

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