State should firmly deal with militants

A grand representative body of elders and politicians in northern region of Swat expressed its concerns over the acts of terrorism, extortion and lawlessness over the last five months and want the state to deal with militants with an “iron hand.”

This was a significant civil society initiative organised by the Dir Qaumi Pasoon (DQP) at Chakdara. The meeting decided neither to form a peace army nor fight themselves against the militants as it was the sole responsibility of the state and its institutions “to provide protection of the lives and property of the people against the elements that disrupted peace and order.”

This loud and clear message of the civil society is a clarion call for the state institutions to show zero tolerance against militancy in Pakistan.

Tariq Khosa
Director CGR
November 1, 2022.