Achakzai’s idea: ‘Give foreign nationals Pakistan residence’
Achakzai also proposes that foreign militants should be disarmed before giving them permanent residence in Pakistan.
ISLAMABAD:
The chief of the Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) has proposed that all ‘foreign nationals’ living in the lawless tribal regions should be given permanent residence in Pakistan, if they aren’t willing to return to the countries of their origin.
Mehmood Khan Achakzai, a Pashtoon nationalist leader from Balochistan, did not use the word militant for the foreign fighters and instead called them ‘guests’ – a clear taunt to those who had brought these foreigners into the tribal areas and Afghanistan to serve their own interests.
Achakzai floated this idea in an article that he distributed at a recent seminar in Islamabad on ‘Afghanistan issue and its solutions’. Achakzai and former ISI chief Lt-Gen (retd) Hamid Gul were among the speakers at the seminar organised by Afghan students.
Before giving such a concession to these foreign militants, Achakzai said, “We should tell these ‘guests’ to stop fighting in Afghanistan and Fata because we want peace in this region.”
He added that it would be better to talk to these guests on this issue in the presence of those tribal elders who were sheltering them.
Achakzai also proposed that all foreign militants should be disarmed before giving them permanent residence in Pakistan. He suggested that the Pakistani government should persuade the United States and rulers of those countries whose nationals are sheltering in Fata to let them return to the countries of their origin. “These countries should announce a general amnesty for these militants (if they renounce violence),” he said.
Achakzai said it was a bitter fact that foreign fighters – including Chechens, Arabs, Uzbeks, Tajiks, Chinese and Iranians – either sneaked into the tribal areas or were brought here to fight a ‘jihad’.
Without naming anyone, the Pakhtun nationalist leader strongly criticised those who are responsible for bringing these foreign militants in the region.
“It’s not known as to why these foreigners and their collaborators killed over 1,000 tribal elders and religious scholars,” he wrote in the article. “The killers were never identified, let alone taken to task.”
He said it was not understandable that these militants managed to settle in the tribal areas where even local tribesmen could not take daily-use items without the prior permission of the local political administration.
“How they managed to become so strong that they are wantonly killing respected tribal elders without any accountability,” he questioned.
Achakzai also regretted that Fata was being used as a springboard for launching attacks in Afghanistan. And the United States, in retaliation, was using the tribal regions to test its pilot-less drone aircraft.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 5th, 2012.
The chief of the Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) has proposed that all ‘foreign nationals’ living in the lawless tribal regions should be given permanent residence in Pakistan, if they aren’t willing to return to the countries of their origin.
Mehmood Khan Achakzai, a Pashtoon nationalist leader from Balochistan, did not use the word militant for the foreign fighters and instead called them ‘guests’ – a clear taunt to those who had brought these foreigners into the tribal areas and Afghanistan to serve their own interests.
Achakzai floated this idea in an article that he distributed at a recent seminar in Islamabad on ‘Afghanistan issue and its solutions’. Achakzai and former ISI chief Lt-Gen (retd) Hamid Gul were among the speakers at the seminar organised by Afghan students.
Before giving such a concession to these foreign militants, Achakzai said, “We should tell these ‘guests’ to stop fighting in Afghanistan and Fata because we want peace in this region.”
He added that it would be better to talk to these guests on this issue in the presence of those tribal elders who were sheltering them.
Achakzai also proposed that all foreign militants should be disarmed before giving them permanent residence in Pakistan. He suggested that the Pakistani government should persuade the United States and rulers of those countries whose nationals are sheltering in Fata to let them return to the countries of their origin. “These countries should announce a general amnesty for these militants (if they renounce violence),” he said.
Achakzai said it was a bitter fact that foreign fighters – including Chechens, Arabs, Uzbeks, Tajiks, Chinese and Iranians – either sneaked into the tribal areas or were brought here to fight a ‘jihad’.
Without naming anyone, the Pakhtun nationalist leader strongly criticised those who are responsible for bringing these foreign militants in the region.
“It’s not known as to why these foreigners and their collaborators killed over 1,000 tribal elders and religious scholars,” he wrote in the article. “The killers were never identified, let alone taken to task.”
He said it was not understandable that these militants managed to settle in the tribal areas where even local tribesmen could not take daily-use items without the prior permission of the local political administration.
“How they managed to become so strong that they are wantonly killing respected tribal elders without any accountability,” he questioned.
Achakzai also regretted that Fata was being used as a springboard for launching attacks in Afghanistan. And the United States, in retaliation, was using the tribal regions to test its pilot-less drone aircraft.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 5th, 2012.