Lawlessness in KP

Author:

Sir: A number of seemingly random attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) over the last week have claimed over a dozen lives. Isolated and sporadic incidents of violence, such as the murder of three Peace Committee members in Swat, an attack that killed two Levies officials in Malakand, and other similar incidents have created an atmosphere of palpable fear in the province and point to the complete disregard of the provincial and federal governments and the military in stopping terrorism or ending lawlessness in the province. In both the above cases, ‘unidentified militants’ were blamed. Apparently armed men riding around on motorcycles with guns are such a common phenomenon that they are not even called criminals any more. Where is the provincial government that is supposed to be the first respondent to law and order situations? Does this not merit a response as a law and order problem? Sorry, I forgot, they are too busy protesting on the streets of Islamabad by day and socialising at bureaucratic parties by night to pay attention to the daily deaths of provincial employees and workers. It appears they are not so different from the parties they denigrate.

AHMED MOIZ

Islamabad