PESHAWAR: The implementation of reforms in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas and its imminent merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have become one of the great mysteries for parliamentarians, politicians and academicians who grope in the dark as what causes the delay despite their approval by the cabinet and apparent support by the civil-military bureaucracy.

Speaking at a national dialogue on “Delaying Fata Reforms?” here on Saturday, speakers pointed the finger at civil-military establishment for creating hurdles to the implementation of report of the committee on Fata reforms that was unveiled in Aug 2016.

“We must find out causes for the delay in Fata reforms despite approval by the cabinet, support of the General Headquarters (GHQ), political parties, parliament and judiciary,” said Senator Farhatullah Babar in his keynote address at the dialogue.

Suggests steps for the merger at a dialogue on Fata reforms

Shaheed Bhutto Foundation, a think tank of Pakistan Peoples Party, had organised the one-day dialogue on the fate of reforms in tribal areas. Former KP governor Barrister Masood Kausar, Awami National Party central general secretary Mian Iftikhar Hussain, Prof Sarfaraz Khan and women rights activist from Fata Shahida Shah spoke on the topic, which was followed by the question-answer session.

The outspoken senator who had served as spokesman to former president Asif Ali Zardari said that opposition by Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl and Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party, both allies of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz in the centre, was the “visible roadblock” in the implementation of Fata reforms.

“Bu there are invisible roadblocks too,” he insisted and said that ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif had issued a message to stop reforms package in the tribal belt because of Panama Papers case.

“The first casualty of Panama Papers case was Fata reforms and the government had to roll the process back,” said Senator Babar who believed that civil-military bureaucracy did not want reforms in tribal region despite announcement that they wanted reforms.

He said that absolute control of the Presidency over the tribal people and the draconian FCR were colonial instruments to keep the people subjugated. He said that the roadblocks in empowering the people were the civil-military bureaucracy, lack of political will and those political parties who feared an erosion of their political power base if Fata was brought into the national mainstream.

He suggested extension of jurisdiction of the superior courts to tribal areas, empowerment of local people under the KP local bodies’ law, strengthening of the Levies Force, giving share in the NFC award and audit of the development expenditure during the last 10 years as steps to merge tribal areas with the province.

Senator Babar called for a review of the country’s Afghan policy otherwise there would be no peace, no development and no mainstreaming of Fata. He condemned President Trump’s one-sided tirade against Pakistan, saying that ‘it should not prevent us from some soul-searching’.

”We must condemn and denounce Trump for blaming Pakistan for the US failures in Afghanistan. But let us also look inwardly,” he said, proposing a mutually agreed mechanism for verification of cross-border allegations between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

ANP general secretary Mian Iftikhar Hussain apprehended that after the Panama leaks the recent statement of President Trump could be another impediment in the implementation of reforms in Fata. He observed that the geo-political discourse had changed in the wake of the US president’s statement.

He criticised former prime minister Nawaz Sharif for postponing the reforms process in Fata and asked the sitting prime minister to go for merger of Fata with KP. He said that his party wanted complete merger of the tribal area with the province and that the ANP would organise a conference on this topic in Islamabad on Sept 14.

Prof Sarfaraz Khan said that despite consensus among the stakeholders reforms had been delayed in Fata. He said that certain quarters argued that lack of funds and legal matters were the bottlenecks in the reforms.

“Such arguments are lame excuses,” he said, adding that delay in reforms could create more complications.

Barrister Masood Kausar said that supporters of the status quo always deprived people of their fundamental rights in Pakistan in general and Fata in particular. He said that PPP wanted to bring Fata to the mainstream, but certain forces opposed it. He said that proposed Riwaj Act was in conflict with the Constitution and the Supreme Court or high court could reject it if its jurisdiction was extended.

“Merger of Fata with KP is the only answer,” said the former governor and maintained that the government had to bring amendments to the Constitution if the area was merged with the province.

Fata Lawyers Forum president Rahim Shah advocate blamed the army for delaying the Fata-KP merger. He said that Inter-Services Public Relations had introduced the term “mainstreaming” of tribal area and warned that such tactics might delay the process.

Published in Dawn, August 27th, 2017