More Trouble In Swat

The Pakistani government attempted a cease-fire with the Taliban in Swat. The government gave in to the Taliban's demands to impose Islamic law in the Swat Valley. The policy has been a disaster for women's rights. The Taliban has burned girl schools and beheaded people. Residents have fled to camps in Peshawar.

The Swat Valley Taliban's leader is Maulana Fazlullah. He started a pirate radio station in 2006. Fazlullah forbids Swat citizens from dancing and music. This was the message Fazlullah delivered to music centers.

"Close within three days – or you will be blown away".

Fazlullah forbid Swat residents from getting polo vaccinations. 160,000 children did not get vaccinations because Fazlullah claimed the vaccine causes impotency. Fazlullah's radio station started the rumor that the vaccine contained oestrogen. This was proven to be false.

"To cure a disease before its on set is not in accordance with Shariah’s laws," said Fazlullah. "I have never opposed Polio vaccination, but I say if the people are unwilling for it, they should not be forced. Keeping in mind if I say “No” to Polio Vaccination, you would not find a single child to drink a drop of it anywhere in Swat."

If Fazlullah didn't oppose polio vaccinations then why did he tell his listeners health care workers were part of "a conspiracy of the Jews and Christians to stunt the population growth of Muslims"? World Health Organisation were repeatedly assaulted and Fazlullah never once complained about their treatment. The reason is many of the attackers are part of Fazlullah militia.

In March, the Pakistani government agreed to another cease-fire with Fazlullah and his followers. Once again the cease-fire was broken. The Pakistani government continues to be in denial. Hillary Clinton said the Pakistani government was "basically abdicating to the Taliban." This is madness. The Taliban have militia elements in Buner. That places Taliban forces closer to Islamabad.

The move by Taliban-backed militants into the Buner district of northwestern Pakistan, closer than ever to Pakistan's capital of Islamabad, have prompted concerns both within the country and abroad that the nuclear-armed nation of 165 million is on the verge of inexorable collapse.

On Wednesday a local Taliban militia crossed from the Swat Valley - where a February cease-fire allowed the implementation of strict Islamic, or Shari'a, law - into the neighboring Buner district, which is just a few hours drive from Islamabad (65 miles, separated by a mountain range, as the crow flies). ((See pictures on the frontlines in the battle against the Taliban.)

Residents streaming from Buner, home to nearly a million people, told local newspapers that armed militants are patrolling the streets. Pakistani television stations aired footage of Taliban soldiers looting government offices and capturing vehicles belonging to aid organizations and development projects. The police, say residents, are nowhere to be seen. The shrine of a local Muslim saint, venerated across the country, was closed. The Taliban, which adheres to a stricter version of Islam than is practiced in most of Pakistan, hold that worship at such shrines goes against the teachings of Islam.

The Obama administration needs to figure out what to do about Pakistan's nuclear weapons. South Korea or Iran isn't the big threat. Pakistan's government is going to fall. It is only a matter of when. The idea of nukes in Fazlullah's pocession is terrifying.

Update: Lara Logan has a story on the current crisis.

Taliban Cease-Fire In Swat

The Wall Street Journal reports the Taliban agreed to a ten day cease-fire with the Pakistani government. The catch is the government will impose Islamic law in the Swat Valley. This will allow the Taliban to continue to violate the the civil rights of women. 162 girl schools were destroyed by Maulana Fazalullah and Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan.

It is unlikely the Taliban will honor the cease-fire. In 2007, 72 police officers in Swat were murdered. The Taliban are beheading those that oppose them. The Taliban control the majority of Swat and are using the valley as a staging ground for attacks in Afghanistan. President Asif Ali Zardari admits his government has been in a state of denial about the Taliban threat.

“It’s been happening over time and it’s happened out of denial,” Zardari told CBS, when asked how militants had secured a foothold in the Swat Valley, only 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of the capital, Islamabad.

“Everyone was in denial that they’re weak and they won’t be able to take over, they won’t be able to give us a challenge,” Zardari said, in excerpts from the interview aired on the broadcaster’s Web site yesterday. “Our forces weren’t increased and therefore we have weaknesses, and they are taking advantage of that weakness.”

The cease-fire is another form of denial. The Taliban look at the Pakistani government as pro-America. The Taliban will not tolerate anything they deem as a Western influence.

The humanitarian crisis has grown grave. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimates 900,000 Swat residents are affected by the war. Many will be forced to flee their homes. The refugee camps have become unmanageable.

Pakistan is a country with nuclear technology and fighting religious extremists. Relations with India are hostile. Neighboring Afghanistan is unstable. U.S. policymakers need to quickly decide what to do about Pakistan. The matter is too urgent for partisan bickering.

Swat

A female resident the Swat area of Pakistan told American special envoy, Richard C. Holbrooke, her husband was murdered by the Taliban. Last year, 162 girl schools in Swat were destroyed by the Taliban. The messege is Pakistani women are not allowed an education. The Taliban will bomb or burn the cchool to achieve receive complete female submission.

The North-West Frontier Province has experienced similar violence. Yasmeen Hassan, Equality Now's Deputy Director of Programs details the suffering endured by women.

“The attacks and threats have not been confined to schoolgirls. Women and girls have been ordered to wear full veils. Directives have been issued requiring that women be accompanied by male family members in public places and forbidding women from carrying compulsory government identification cards displaying their photographs. About a dozen women have been shot for "immoral activities," including Bakht Zeba, a 45-year-old social worker committed to advancing girls' education.”

The Pakistan military has lost control of Swat. Al Jazeera's Kamal Hyder reports the Taliban is the unofficial government of the area. The Taliban has decapitated the heads of policemen. Residents are fleeing for relief camps.

Swat has long had jihadist elements. In 2001, Sufi Muhammad Khan led 10,000 followers out of Swat to fight NATO troops invading Afghanistan. His son-in-law, Maulana Fazalullah, went on a campaign against young girls going to school. Today Fazalullah is the leader of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan. He is engaged in a war with the Pakistani military.