President Zardari finally signs so-called Nizam-i-Adl Regulation & Swat officialy given to Talibans !

Daily Times' Editorial: Getting parliament to endorse Swat laws

President Asif Ali Zardari has sent the Nizam-e Adl Regulation to parliament for a vote of endorsement before he signs it into law for Swat and its traditionally linked jurisdictions. The ANP is understandably miffed because the February 16 “peace agreement” was signed between Sufi Mohammad of the Tehreek-e Nifaz-e Shariat-e Muhammadi (TNSM) and the government of the NWFP with the approval of the PPP-led federal government.

The President had only to sign the Regulation to turn it into law. Why has he sent it to the National Assembly?Although he has not spelt it out, he may not have wanted to take responsibility for perpetuating a system in Swat that clearly promises to be “subversive” in the eyes of many people.

Objections to the Regulation are coming both from inside and outside the country although the view inside Pakistan is split and subject to violent argument. On the other hand, the world seems certain that the “deal” will bring more trouble for Islamabad in the shape of curtailment of state sovereignty and encouragement to the Taliban.

Since Pakistan is poised to receive crucial financial assistance from multilateral institutions, the President may want to be seen riding on a national consensus rather than alone on the issue of the Regulation.

Opinion is so polarised in Pakistan that developments in Swat after the February 12 agreement can hardly be presented as ominous. Facts are being juxtaposed with blind faith in the saintly person of Sufi Muhammad to transform Swat into a cradle of peace.

The Taliban, after entering Buner for tabligh (spreading the faith), have killed a number of people supporting the local jirga and are using local mosques to recruit the youth of the district. Such is the effect of intimidation that it is the fresh “mujahideen” of a victimised Buner who will now ensure that the reign of warlord Fazlullah is perpetuated. Sharia will serve as their handmaiden rather than as the guiding light.

Questions are being asked that are difficult to answer. The News (April 13, 2009) had an op-ed piece stating: “Fazlullah, the leader of Swat Taliban, led the prayer at his home village, Mamdairi on Friday, April 3. He was warmly received by his followers, as well as military officials and officials of the district administration. Those who prayed behind him were key military and civil officers — including Brigadier Tahir Mubeen, Syed Javed Hussain, the commissioner of Malakand region, Khushal Khan, the DCO of Swat, Danishwar Khan, Swat’s DPO and the man in charge of Operation Rah-e-Haq. After the prayers, Fazlullah gave an emotional and threatening speech which was heard with zeal and respect by all, including the military and civil officials, like obedient subjects.”

The warlord son-in-law of Sufi Muhammad is not only swelling the ranks of his army, he is also putting together an economic base for his satrapy that will serve as the future backbone of the Taliban invasion of the NWFP. He has taken control of the Mingora emerald industry and will soon be in the international market selling precious stones. Two mines that were a source of income to the state, Shamozai and Gujaro Kalay, are being operated by him. Every Sunday, Mingora is the scene of auction of precious stones, and dealers from all over Pakistan throng the market to buy them.

In the eyes of many, the agreement with Sufi Muhammad is the treaty of the defeated. There are others who think that the PPP must stick to the commitment made earlier by it to sign the deal. The PPP on the other hand says the presidential signature was conditional to peace and that there is hardly any peace after Sufi Muhammad’s takeover in Swat. The ANP replies by asking another question: is there peace in Punjab and Balochistan? There is justifiable cynicism too in this because the Pakistan army, in the eyes of the ANP, is either unwilling to take on the Taliban or is incapable of doing so. If Peshawar is teetering on the brink, why should they worry about Swat and get selectively killed while Islamabad and GHQ watch the mayhem from the sidelines? *

Daily Dawn's Editorial: Simply endorsing the Nizam-i-Adl in a bid to bring peace to the Malakand Division may be too little and have come too late.

DID the federal government do the right thing by placing the Nizam-i-Adl regulation before parliament for debate? We believe it did.

With a matter as complex as Swat, there are inevitably many aspects to consider. Begin with the ANP. The party threatened to pull out of the federal government if President Zardari did not sign the Nizam-i-Adl regulation immediately. But this was not the kind of politics the country needed. Granted the constitution gives the president the authority to make “regulations for the peace and good government of a Provincially Administered Tribal Area”, and the Sharia deal was struck on the understanding that the president was on board. But what the ANP and TNSM agreed to implement in the Malakand Division is no ordinary change — it effectively cedes judicial control of a part of Pakistan to a band of militants who have been waging a savage war against the state.

Surely the correct approach politically was to bring parliament into the loop on such a dramatic change to the state’s writ. However, President Zardari must shoulder some of the blame for the mess. If the pact with the TNSM was unacceptable, then why did the president originally give his approval, tacit or otherwise? And if parliament was the right forum to debate the issue, then why wait for two months to do so?The fact is that both the ANP and the president painted themselves into corner over the Nizam-i-Adl.

The ANP perhaps calculated that in caving in to the militants’ demand in Swat, the party would at least be able to govern the rest of the province and consolidate support among the electorate. Having relied on the president for backing, the ANP found itself in an awkward position vis-à-vis the militants to whom they promised much. As for President Zardari, he tried to appease all sides — an impossible contortion act always destined to leave both allies and enemies fuming. The Nizam-i-Adl has been approved by parliament and promulgated by the president. But the debate in parliament was yet another missed opportunity.

The bigger point is that the politicians still need to reach a consensus on how to counter militancy. When force is used some segments in the political spectrum erupt in anger and indignation. When peace deals are pursued, other segments denounce them as appeasement. Yet, no one seems serious about devising a credible strategy to fight militancy. The time for platitudes has passed. If Swat and the Nizam-i-Adl were a test case, then the politicians have not done justice to finding that credible strategy. Already the militants have spread to Buner. Mardan and Swabi seem to be the next likely districts. Simply endorsing the Nizam-i-Adl in a bid to bring peace to the Malakand Division may be too little and have come too late.

’صدر کی بدنامی نیک نامی میں تبدیل‘
عبدالحئی

صوبہ سرحد کے ضلع سوات میں طالبان کا کہنا ہے کہ صدر آصف زرداری نے نطام عدل ریگولیشن پر دستخط کر کے ایک ایسا کام کیا جو ماضی میں علماء کی حکومت بھی نہ کرسکی۔
دوسری طرف کالعدم نفاذ شریعت محمدی نے پارلیمنٹ کی توثیق اور صدر آصف علی زرداری کی جانب سے مسودے پر دستخط کو خوش آئند قرار دیتے ہوئے سوات میں امن کیمپ دوبارہ لگانے کا عندیہ دیا ہے۔
طالبان کے ترجمان مسلم خان نے بی بی سی کو بتایا نظام عدل ریگولیشن پر صدر آصف علی زرداری کے دستخط پر مولانا فضل اللہ کی جانب سے جو پیغام جاری ہوا ہے اس میں انہوں نے اس اقدام کا خیر مقدم کیا ہے۔
ان کے بقول مولانا فضل اللہ نے کہا ہے کہ ’مسودے پر دستخط کرنے میں تاخیر سے زرداری نے جو ’بدنامی‘ سمیٹی تھی دستخط کرنے سے وہ ’نیک نامی‘ میں بدل گئی ہے‘۔
ماضی میں صوبہ سرحد میں مذہبی جماعتوں کے اتحاد متحدہ مجلس عمل کی حکومت کی جانب اشارہ کرتے ہوئے مولانا فضل اللہ کا کہنا تھا کہ صدر آصف علی زرداری نے وہ عظیم کارنامہ سرانجام دیا جو علماء بھی اپنے دورِ حکومت میں سرانجام نہ دے سکے۔ انہوں نے یقین دلایا کہ طالبان حکومت کے ساتھ ہر قسم کے تعاون کے لیے تیار ہیں۔

جب مسلم خان سے پوچھا گیا کہ نظام عدل ریگولیشن پر دستخط ہوجانے کے بعد کیا وہ اسلحہ رکھنے کے لیے تیار ہیں تو ان کا کہنا تھا ’ہمارے پاس تو روایتی اسلحہ ہے جو ہر پشتون کے گھر میں ہوتا ہے ہم تو الٹا یہ مطالبہ کرتے ہیں کہ حکومت ہمیں اسلحہ دے تاکہ ہم امریکہ کے ساتھ حساب برابر کردیں۔‘
دوسری طرف کالعدم نفاذ شریعت محمدی کے سربراہ مولانا صوفی محمد نے پارلیمنٹ کی توثیق اور مسودے پر دستخط کو خوش آئند قرار دیتے ہوئے کہا ہے کہ وہ سوات میں امن کیمپ کے دوبارہ قیام کے بارے میں سوچ رہے ہیں۔
مولانا صوفی محمد کے صاحبزادے ضیاء اللہ نے بی بی سی کو بتایا کہ نظام عدل ریگولیشن پر دستخط کرنے پر وہ آصف علی زرداری کے شکرگزار ہیں۔ ان کے مطابق انہوں نے سوات میں امن کیمپ اس لیے ختم کردیا تھا کیونکہ وہ سمجھ رہے تھے کہ مرکزی حکومت عملی اقدامات نہیں اٹھا رہی ہے لیکن اب اس عملی اقدام کے بعد وہ سوات میں دوبارہ امن کیمپ لگانے پر غور کررہے ہیں۔
انہوں نے مزید کہا کہ صوبائی حکومت اور ان کی تنظیم مل کر اب دارلقضاء کے لیے قاضیوں کی تعیناتی پر بات چیت کرے گی جو تین علماء پر مشتمل اپیلیٹ بنچ ہوگا۔ نظام عدل ریگولیشن میں ہائی کورٹ کو دارلقضاء اور سپریم کورٹ کو دارال دارلقضاء کہا جائے گا جو صرف ملاکنڈ ڈویژن اور ضلع کوہستان میں کیسوں کی سماعت کرے گا۔
صدر آصف زرداری نے قومی اسمبلی سے قرارداد کی منظوری کے بعد شرعی نظامِ عدل ریگولیشن پر پیر کی شب دستخط کردیے تھے۔

Source: Daily Dawn, Daily Times, BBC Urdu, & Daily Express