Having said that for militancy and the Taliban to be stamped out completely – and at a time when Taliban sympathisers can just about be found in all segments of the population – is expecting a bit much. In the shortterm, better intelligence and improved security may help prevent a recurrence of violence. However, what is absolutely necessary is that in the longer-term, there has to be a concerted plan to not only rehabilitate the population in economic, and even psychological, terms, given that the conflict exacted a heavy toll mentally, but also to take measures that remove a militant mindset and intolerance from the population. Swat’s proven economic sectors – particularly tourism – need to rise from their ashes, the district’s schooling system needs a thorough revamp and its madressahs need to be brought under the umbrella of government regulation.
Published in the Express Tribune, May 24th, 2010.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ