Protest held outside K-P governor over use of draconian FCR law

Govt's task force to oversee merger includes those who opposed it

PESHAWAR: Despite Federally Administered Tribal Areas’ (Fata) merger into Khyber-Pakhtunkwa (K-P), the district administration is still using draconian Frontier Crime Regulation (FCR) to imprison tribal people under the collective responsibility clause.

“The government’s promise to hold local government election in the tribal districts has also not been fulfilled while the areas still await provincial assembly elections so that they get representation in the K-P Assembly,” said president of tribal students’ movement Shaukat Aziz on Saturday.

Aziz was talking to media during his protest in front of the K-P governor house in Peshawar.

He said the tribal people had been promised by the authorities at Centre and the K-P that government would hold local government election into the seven tribal districts by October, but still “we didn’t see any concrete step in this regard”.

“The government has formed a task force for the merger process and reforms in the seven districts, but the task force members include those who voted against the merger plan,” Aziz added.

He said most of the tribal districts lack basic human facilities, like education, healthcare, water and hygiene. He demanded that the Centre and the province work for making these amenities available in impoverished areas.



“We were promised by the authorities concerned that we will have representatives in the K-P Assembly after the general election, but we are still even without local government representatives. How could they fulfill their promise,” he asked.

He urged Prime Minister Imran Khan to take notice of the corruption in Fata development authority and embezzlement in minerals contracts. Other leaders also demanded special quota for tribal students in the universities of the K-P and professional campuses across the country.