Interior minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan addressing a press conference in Islamabad on September 10, 2013. PHOTO: PID
The government has finalised a framework that outlines the dialogue process with the home-grown Taliban, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan told a news conference on Tuesday.
Although he did not share with the media details of the framework, officials familiar with the provisional draft told The Express Tribune that the process would entail five to six stages.
First, a committee will be formed to prepare the ground for negotiations. All major political parties will be represented on the committee, which will pick out possible mediators, they said. The committee will keep the military in the loop throughout.
After the mediators are picked, the committee will seek input from representatives of militant groups. Then, a venue for the talks will be decided with consensus – this will mark the final step towards the start of dialogue.
However, interior ministry officials said the venue will be in Pakistan. A ‘neutral’ venue will not be acceptable to the government, they added.
At the news conference, the interior minister said, “The decision to hold talks with militants is homemade and is free of any foreign pressure, intervention or influence.
“Those who demand action against the Taliban should know that violence begets violence. Pakistan is in search of peace.”
Nisar did reveal that the first meeting with militants’ representatives will determine the demands from both sides.
Speaking about Monday’s all parties conferences (APC), he said: “This conference was different from the previous APCs because it enabled the political parties to come to a unanimous resolution on important issues.”
Asserting that all politicians who attended the APC believed that dialogue was the only way forward, he said a lot of homework had gone into holding the conference successfully.
Law and order in Balochistan, Karachi
The interior minister said another conference would be called to take up the issues in the strife-torn Balochistan. “An APC or an APC-like conference will be convened in Quetta,” he added.
Giving details of the Rangers-led operation in Karachi, he said the paramilitary force has arrested at least 158 suspects and seized 111 illegal firearms. Similarly, the Sindh police has arrested 516 criminals in 78 raids, general holdups and snap-checking. “A majority of criminals claimed affiliation with different political parties.”
Published in The Express Tribune, September 11th, 2013.
COMMENTS (6)
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Talking with murderers of innocent children?...is this a joke?...you think if you ask nicely and say please they will stop killing people and be good citizens of Pakistan?...I can't believe the government is so naive as to think this will be successful...
Its good to have talks. But should we expect any difference from the past? Swat is an example of what is to come. Taliban will ask for control over certain territory to govern as they wish, without oversight from Pakistan government in exchange for not killing innocent people.If the govt agrees, it will essentially agree to foregoing its sovereignty over a part of Pakistan. But the taliban will not stop there, as they used Swat in the past to regroup and expand. The military will eventually have to launch a defence and the whole thing will start over again.
Taliban will also demand strict implementation of blashphemy law and only beared people should be allowed to enter in the politics .
Militant's first demand will be implement Sharia law in its words and spirit.Rest of the demands and wishes will be met automatically.. Beware girls tough time ahead
We want Sharia Law in Pakistan !
Let us see if holding violence against Taliban,have them renounce violence.. Given their history and warped minds,it seems unlikely.