Cold shoulder: Mehsud tribesmen accuse government of apathy

Demand financial compensation, jobs and educational facilities.

DERA ISMAIL KHAN: Dehra Mehsud tribesmen on Monday demanded the government to protect the basic rights of Mehsuds residing as internally displaced persons (IDPs) in camps across the province.

Speaking at a Grand Jirga held at the Tank political compound, Badshahi Khan, an elder, said Mehsud tribesmen have rendered many sacrifices and withstood difficult times for the country, but the government does not take their demands seriously.



“The bloodshed of Mehsud tribe has become a business in this war on terror and the rulers are making money out of it. This needs to stop,” said Badshahi.

He added the government’s injustice can be gauged by the fact that the workers employed to work on Gomal Zam Dam were all non-locals while the local tribesmen in the region remain unemployed. “Why is the government not providing employment opportunities in the dam for the people of South Waziristan?” he questioned.

According to the elders, Governor Shaukatullah Khan promised the Mehsud tribe all their demands would be met. However, they claimed no concrete results had been taken. “If our demands are not met within a week, our next step would be to hold a sit-in outside the parliament building,” said Badshahi.

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) MNA from South Waziristan Maulana Jamaluddin said the government should be serious in pursuing peace talks with the Taliban so peace can prevail in Waziristan. “The tribesmen should also be made a part of the talks as they are stakeholders as well,” said Jamal.

The elders demanded prompt repatriation of IDPs to South Waziristan, financial compensation for those who were injured or whose family members were killed in military operations along with those whose houses were damaged. They also demanded accountability of funds provided by the government and non-governmental organisations along with a temporary building and teachers for students of Ladha and Government Degree College Tank.

The Mehsud tribe was forced out of its areas in 2009 when the army began a military operation against banned militant outfit Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan in Ladha and Sararogha subdivisions of South Waziristan, principally inhabited by the Mehsud tribe.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 1^st, 2013.