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Pakistan’s displaced men

AMID THE military operation in Pakistan’s restive tribal north, the country is facing the soaring problem of internally displaced persons.

According to rough estimates, more than a million people are on the move and the authorities face the gigantic task of feeding and rehabilitating them. This is no easy challenge and Islamabad has to be supplemented adequately in overcoming the crisis. The army’s air strikes and the boots-on-ground operation had become indispensable as the Taleban and the like were calling the shots and operating without any impunity across the country. The daredevil attack on Karachi airport is a case in point. In such circumstances, the army’s move has to be seen in the broad perspective of war on terrorism, that the West and the United States were so zealous in fighting in this part of the world.

The preliminary results of the operation named ‘Zarb-e-Azb’ indicate that the backbone of the terrorists has been broken, and they are on the run. While some of them may have escaped across the porous borders into Afghanistan, a number of them must be in disguise in the displaced crowd. That is why it is important to closely monitor the diaspora and make sure that dreaded men do not make use of the sympathy factor to regroup. It is laudable that authorities are not only checking the national identity of the displaced persons — by registering them — but also providing them with enough ration and cash to survive these tough days of their lives. A stipend of Rs12,000 per family, along with 100kg of foodstuff and a special Ramadan package of Rs20,000 make a staggering bill on national exchequer. This is inevitably an issue for international humanitarian aid agencies, and Pakistan’s crisis is no less important than those unravelling in the Middle East and elsewhere. The fact is that Pakistan’s tribal areas and Afghanistan’s southern belt had been the theatre of activity for long and the world’s notorious lot had made it their home.

Pakistan’s offensive is achieving what Washington’s decade-long war and indiscriminate bombardment had not been able to accomplish. The sweep against terrorists can only succeed if the displaced people are taken care of by the administration while looking out for the black sheep among them and making sure unscrupulous elements won’t be able to make use of the situation to further their nefarious agenda. The devastating quake in 2005 was used by the Jehadis to penetrate the rank and file of society through humanitarian gestures. This should not be allowed to happen again. It’s time for the world to pour in aid to root out the psyche that breed’s terrorism.