© By Kirsten Klein Schmidt
Women gateway - Islamabad, August 5, 2008
The Taliban’s control in the border areas of FATA, the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, is most evident in their oppression and intimidation of local education, women and the flow of information, despite open fighting, and a large-scale occupation of Pakistan’s security forces.
The problems have reached to the area of Swat where Taliban torched five girls’ schools on Sunday, and four more yesterday bringing the total number to 52 since unrest in the area. In Quetta over the weekend, student records and computers of a private girl’s school were set fire by suspected militants.
In Muzaffargarh, local Taliban chief, Khalid Mesud issued severe threats against “immoral and un-Islamic businesses”. Owners of Internet cafes, TV cable service, music and CD shops have received warnings to close within 15 days or face death. In other areas women not wearing the veil have received a lesser deadline of five days to ‘mend their ways’ or they will be defaced with acid, an attack that was commonplace in the 90s in the region.
Deputy Superintendent of Police, Saif Khattak said with some three- dozen threats and a protective order for unidentified people under sections 16 Maintenance and Public Order, business owners are still too afraid to become complainants in any case. In the outdoor shopping bizarre of Kot Addu businesses have already begun closing.
In Degan, North Waziristan Taliban killed a second woman accused of spying for the US. Gulzada Bibi’s body was found with a note attached to it warning to leave the body remaining there in the ditch on the Afghan border where the body has been decomposing since late last week.
The situation resembles that of the Afghan Civil War, when the Taliban overtook the capital Kabul, closing schools, confining women indoors, confiscating computers and television sets, and hanging them from electrical wires in the city centre.
FATA is believed to provide sanctuary for Taliban and Al Qaeda to refresh and train recruits for the neighbouring war in Afghanistan. According to some analysts militants are taking advantage of the weak political situation in both the US and Pakistan, given the US’s lame duck President and the increasingly weakening status of the coalition government of Pakistan.
The militants in the tribal areas have infiltrated all seven districts to more or lesser degrees, with a recent outbreak of clashes in Hangu, North and South Waziristan, and a serious operation in Swat where an exodus of civilians have been forced into the NWFP capital of Peshawar over the past week.
Following Prime Minister Yousef Raza Giliani’s recent visit to the US, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has said that combined efforts between the US and Pakistan is necessary to combat terrorists in FATA. “It’s going to take all elements of Pakistan’s power, as well as some of ours, to improve the situation”, said Ms Rice in a meeting in Aspen, Colorado. Pakistan’s position remains firm that US intervention on Pakistan soil will damage international relations and destabilize the region further.
Late Sunday night NATO troops in Afghanistan moved closer in along the border with Pakistan. A measure some claim is meant to increase pressure on Pakistan to advance their military action. Road transport to bring supplies to NATO troops has temporarily closed due to flooding from monsoon rains.