PESHAWAR:
The Pakhtun people in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) and Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) have rendered great sacrifices for the international community and it is time for the latter to cooperate with them in restoring sustainable peace and stability in the region.
This was said by K-P Governor Barrister Masood Kausar during a two-day annual international conference on ‘The Dynamics of Change in Conflict Societies: Pakhtun Region in Perspective’ held at the University of Peshawar (UoP) on Monday.
The conference, organised by the UoP Political Science Department in collaboration with Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF), was attended by several national and international scholars and political analysts.
Kausar, who was the chief guest on the occasion, said that people hailing from K-P and Fata are playing a frontline role in the war against terror. Thousands of people have been forced to leave their hometowns due to the volatile situation and the despondency created by the unrest is the main reason behind the internal conflict, he added.
However, he was of the view that normalcy is returning in the region with the passage of time, where hospitals have started to become functional again.
The governor also lauded the efforts of law enforcement agencies, which are working around the clock to bring back peace and stability in the area.
He explained that the Annual Development Programme was being delayed in the tribal belt due to the non-provision of Rs15 billion by the federal government.
School of Oriental and African Studies Lecturer Dr Magnus Marsden and Abdul Basit from the Pak Institute for Peace Studies Researcher also spoke on the occasion.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 15th, 2011.
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