News Analysis: Reforms plan to integrate militancy-hit tribal areas into national mainstream welcomed in Pakistan

Pakistan has introduced a draft of proposed reforms to be discussed in parliament to bring the insurgency-hit tribal regions into the national mainstream.

The seven Federally Administered Tribal Areas or FATA, inhabited by nearly 5 million people, are currently governed directly by the federal government through a governor and the reforms, in part, propose integrating the FATA into the adjacent northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province.

Such reforms, observers have said, are long overdue as the tribal regions have been plagued by insurgency for years with the state having little control over large swathes of its territory. Dozens of Pakistani international militant groups have hideouts in the lawless areas and have been challenging the law of the state and endangering national and international security.

People in the tribal areas, who have been upset at the region's reputation as being synonymous with terrorism, backed the government's plan to introduce the reforms when the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had formed a high level committee in November last year to suggest reforms.

Insurgent groups in the tribal regions began to mushroom after militants in Afghanistan started crossing the border into Pakistani tribal regions in the wake of the U.S. military action against the Afghan Taliban in late 2001. The fleeing militants took advantage of the loose border control and the absence of the Pakistani forces along the border with Afghanistan at that time.

As there had been no significant troops deployment in the tribal areas, the militants strengthened their strongholds and essentially took control of the regions, with the local administrations powerless to exert any authority.

The Pakistani military launched a limited operation in parts of the South Waziristan tribal region, the birthplace of the Pakistani Taliban group, in 2003, however, it could not achieve its objectives and the government had to sign a peace deal with the top Taliban commander Nek Muhammad in 2004.

The tribal lawmakers, who had also tabled their own legislation in parliament for reforms, threw their weight behind the government's move.

"We will fully support the reforms when the parliament opens debate," Ghazi Gulab Jamal, a member of the National Assembly, in the lower house of the parliament, told Xinhua in an interview.

Jamal, a former minister and member of parliament from the Orakzai tribal area, said that the government has included recommendations from the tribal lawmakers in the report.

Senator Hidayatullah Khan from the Bajaur tribal area, for his part, said that the reforms will bring an end to the sense of deprivation among the people in the tribal areas.

"The reforms will bring the tribal areas on a par with the rest of the country and the people will no longer feel alienated," Khan told Xinhua.

Political parties also hailed the reforms. Chairman of the FATA Political Alliance, Nisar Mohmand, has welcomed the merger of the tribal areas in KP, demanding the immediate implementation of the reforms. He said more than 70 percent of the people in tribal areas support the integration into KP.

Youths living in the tribal regions are also positive about the reforms as they are confident the move could help create more opportunities for them.

"As terrorism and violent extremism have badly affected the youth and their education, the reforms would pave the way for development, education and job opportunities," said Ibrahim Khan, a youngster from South Waziristan, who now studies at the International Islamic University Islamabad.

The reforms would be introduced in line with the anti-terrorism "National Action Plan" that was launched with the consensus of all political parties following the 2014 terrorist attack by the Taliban on an army-run school.

The most important aspect of the reforms is that the local "Rewaj" or traditions and "Jirgas" (council of elders) would remain prevalent in criminal and civil disputes.

The people, for the first time, would be allowed the right of appeal in the higher judiciary.

They were previously not allowed to appeal the decision of the local administrator, known as a political agent. The reforms being discussed would now see the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and High Court extended to the FATA. Endit