Negotiations with Taliban a mechanism not end result

Islamabad: Defence analyst Brigadier (retd) Mahmood Shah has said that negotiations with Taliban are a mechanism and not an end in itself and end goal should be the dismantling of terrorist networks and their infrastructure in Pakistan. Brig Shah was speaking at a panel discussion on, ‘Dialogue with the Taliban’ organised here by Institute of Strategic Studies.Brig Shah stressed that negotiations are the optimal course for which both the federal and KP governments must take steps to begin the process. Raza Rumi, Director, Jinnah Institute, referring to constitutional illegality of Taliban as a private militia operating within the territory of Pakistan argued that their existence is organic and can be traced to the past and present policy choices made by the Pakistani state. He observed that the terms of the negotiations were not clear, nor the question of who to negotiate with, and that the Pakistani state would not be negotiating from a position of strength. A proponent of negotiations, defence analyst Brig (r) Said Nazir Mohmand, discussing failure of previous peace deals with Taliban and the problems created by Pakistan’s involvement in the War on Terror maintained that a “fragile peace” could be converted into a permanent peace through reconciliation and rehabilitation, the latter of which would involve mainstreaming Fata through development and relief packages. Outlining the legal attributes of state sovereignty, lawyer Babar Sattar stressed that North Waziristan became headquarters of TTP where Pakistani state exercises no control. According to the Article 256 of the Constitution, he said, no private organisation can form a militant group. He pointed out that the state failed to control the flow of men and material resources from Fata to the rest of Pakistan. While critically evaluating the dynamics of dialogue with Taliban, Mr Sattar said that dialogue with the Taliban is doomed from the start. The demands raised by the Taliban are unacceptable and out of question. Government can try to stop drones, but it cannot fully achieve success in that whereas releasing prisoners will enable them to be back in business. He also pointed out that there is no right interpretation of Shariah. Former diplomat Ayaz Wazir said that the major factor contributing to the problem of terrorism is our involvement in the war in Afghanistan and the administration of Fata. He inferred that use of force cannot solve this problem and negotiations should be initiated by empowering the local people. Earlier, in his welcome address, Najam Rafique, Director, ISS, said that it is not going to be an overnight process as certain mechanisms and guiding principles would have to be put in place for a constructive dialogue.