Handling IDPs Issue Is A Challenge For Pakistan's Government
Muhammad Khurshid
June 08, 2009
There will be no denying that massive displacement of people of Malakand division and tribal areas is great challenge to the whole world. These people have left their homes as Pakistan Army has been conducting a big operation against terrorists. "The people of Malakand division has given sacrifices for the whole world as they have vacated their houses to make the army operation against terrorists more effective and easier so now this is the responsibility of the whole world to respond positively to this great human tragedy," said NWFP Relief Commissioner Muhammad Azam Khan, who is also heading the Emergency Response Unit established by the government for controlling and monitoring the relief operation for the IDPs of Malakand division and tribal areas while talking to a private TV channel during an interview. Muhammad Azam Khan has pressed the federal government to release the fund immediately as the magnitude of the crisis is very high.
According to a newspaper comment, now that certain sections of conflict-hit NWFP, specifically Malakand division, have been declared ´safe´, some of the displaced persons have started trickling back home.
This is encouraging, particularly given the federal and provincial governments´ continuing inability to cope effectively with the massive displacement witnessed in the region. The state machinery´s lack of planning in terms of arrangements for the people fleeing the conflict zones has come under severe criticism, amongst others by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan which recently noted that the government ´was totally at a loss in the first few weeks. The provincial government is beginning to stir but the federal government remains clueless and has no forward-looking strategy´.
The military operation appears to have achieved some success. Nevertheless, immense challenges still lie ahead. Amongst these is the need to restore administrative and infrastructural order in the battle-scarred areas. The returning people will be confronted by widespread devastation: public and private buildings have been ransacked and blown up, telephone, electricity and gas networks are in a shambles, medical facilities and administrative infrastructures are in a state of chaos, and desertions have been reported amongst police personnel. Dealing effectively with these challenges will require not only financial and administrative investment but also political will.
It is encouraging, therefore, that NWFP government employees – including administrative and town municipal staff, and personnel handling utility networks – have been instructed to return to duty. For some semblance of normalcy to be restored, however, it is imperative that all the returning residents be guaranteed safety. This means bolstering the confidence of the police and providing the resources required to keep the peace and restrict any potential criminal or terrorist activity. The HRCP statement notes that ´the intensity of a full-fledged military operation could have been avoided if the militants had been confronted, discouraged, deported and captured earlier´. The damage done by past blunders can be rectified to some extent if the tasks at hand are performed with diligence and planning.
According to a newspaper comment, now that certain sections of conflict-hit NWFP, specifically Malakand division, have been declared ´safe´, some of the displaced persons have started trickling back home.
This is encouraging, particularly given the federal and provincial governments´ continuing inability to cope effectively with the massive displacement witnessed in the region. The state machinery´s lack of planning in terms of arrangements for the people fleeing the conflict zones has come under severe criticism, amongst others by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan which recently noted that the government ´was totally at a loss in the first few weeks. The provincial government is beginning to stir but the federal government remains clueless and has no forward-looking strategy´.
The military operation appears to have achieved some success. Nevertheless, immense challenges still lie ahead. Amongst these is the need to restore administrative and infrastructural order in the battle-scarred areas. The returning people will be confronted by widespread devastation: public and private buildings have been ransacked and blown up, telephone, electricity and gas networks are in a shambles, medical facilities and administrative infrastructures are in a state of chaos, and desertions have been reported amongst police personnel. Dealing effectively with these challenges will require not only financial and administrative investment but also political will.
It is encouraging, therefore, that NWFP government employees – including administrative and town municipal staff, and personnel handling utility networks – have been instructed to return to duty. For some semblance of normalcy to be restored, however, it is imperative that all the returning residents be guaranteed safety. This means bolstering the confidence of the police and providing the resources required to keep the peace and restrict any potential criminal or terrorist activity. The HRCP statement notes that ´the intensity of a full-fledged military operation could have been avoided if the militants had been confronted, discouraged, deported and captured earlier´. The damage done by past blunders can be rectified to some extent if the tasks at hand are performed with diligence and planning.
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