Daily Times

We are fighting the war against terror along with US after the tragedy of 9/11; in this regard our army has conducted many operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Federally Administrative Tribal Areas (FATA). The most prominent operations were the one in Swat, Rah-e-Nijat of South Waziristan, Zarb-e-Azb of North Waziristan, and Khyber I and II respectively against different Pakistani and foreign militants. Due to all these operations more than three million people left their homes, and settled in temporary shelters made for Internally Displaced People in different areas of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Settlement of the displaced people was a big issue and a challenge for our civil and military establishments. There was a lack of facilities for the IDPs, for which the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and federal government faced much criticism. However, the government has been able to achieve successful rehabilitation of the IDPs from Swat. Government is also expected to initiate the process of the return of the IDPs of South and North Waziristan. On the occasion of the visit of COAS Raheel Sharif to the North Waziristan Agency, he met with tribal elders, assuring them of army’s commitment to resettlement and rehabilitation of IDPs.

Nonetheless, according to a statement of the ISPR, there are still some issues and challenges related to the process of rehabilitation. Almost seven-eight years after the South Waziristan operation, government has so far been able to make arrangements for only 40-50 percent of the IDPs to return to their homes. This is a big challenge for government, as there appears to be an absence of a good strategy for rehabilitation of IDPs. If the returning process continues at such a slow pace, it would take a very long time for all IDPs to get resettled in their homes, or at least in the area where they had homes, once upon a time.

Moreover, those who have returned to their homes are complaining of a lack of basic facilities. As a result of increased pressure on the existing infrastructure, IDPs suffer multiple problems, medical as well as social. Food shortage, unsafe water, insufficient healthcare, poor sanitation, poor housing and load-shedding are some of the biggest issues affecting the IDPs. The IDPs also complain of restrictions on their movement, adding that they need permission from the authorities to even take a sick person to the settled areas. Moreover, according to the local people military has removed roofs from some houses to be able to easily spot militants.

People who have returned to their homes in North Waziristan, South Waziristan, Orakzai and other parts of FATA are required to have special entry passes to facilitate their everyday movement. Residents are treated as strangers in their territories, and only pass-holders are allowed to enter or leave the area. One local person said that the administration had issued rehabilitation cards to even permanent residents of that area. Similarly, entry of non-locals to de-notified areas of FATA is subject to permission from the administration.

These restrictions have forced some families to return to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa or other parts of the country. One tribesman even said that residents had to seek permission from the civil administration and army to bring patients for treatment to settled areas. Tribal people who were displaced from their areas settled in other cities, and also set up businesses there; now they feel reluctant to return and shift their entire family back because of the harsh restrictions placed on people in the area. Many people have opted to keep half of their family in the settled areas, and half in their native area because of the harsh realities in their own area. Tribal people were optimistic that the end of militancy would be the beginning of a new era when they would return to their native lands. Government’s statement of sympathy, tall claims about dignified return of the IDPs, payment of compensation, rehabilitation and reconstruction of infrastructure had raised their expectations. However, their hopes have been shattered. The almost indifferent attitude of the authorities is making them sceptical about living in a stressful atmosphere.

The most important question is what will happen after the rehabilitation of the IDPs if militants were to return to those areas. Would the government conduct another operation in the area, forcing people to become IDPs again, or would it allow militants to freely live in the area? And that if the army remains in the area, for how long would that be? These questions need honest answers from the government and security personnel who are doing the operation in FATA.

It is the prime responsibility of both civilian and military entities to restore normalcy in the lives of the IDPs who have sacrificed everything for the sake of peace and prosperity of the country.

The writer is a member of the Pildat Youth Parliament, Pakistan. He can be reached at rafimahsud704@yahoo.com, and on Twitter at Rafi.mahsud@twitter