Army operation in Fata (II)

LONDON: Thanks to Ayaz Wazir on shedding some much-needed light on the reality of the people of Fata and their plight, rather than treating it as a geographical mass to be conquered or ruled over.

In his article ‘Fata should not be made a province’ of May 4, Asad Munir had claimed that the people of Fata “enjoyed” the same facilities that a village resident in any other part of the country enjoyed. Ayaz Wazir’s article goes far to debunk that view. As he points out, using the military for counter-insurgency offers short term gains at best, and no improvement in civilian lives at worst.

Now that the army is there in Fata, one can only hope that the civilian administration is using this time in the back seat to lay down plans and prepare for engagements with local populations, to foster security and development.

Published in the Express Tribune, May 12th, 2010.