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Taliban cement rule, sharia law after truce
Zeb Gul used to sell music CDs in Mingora but was driven out of business by the Taliban engaged in peace talks with leaders desperate to halt their march across the nation.The government insists the Taliban would not be allowed to enforce its harsh version of Islam here, but merchants like Gul know otherwise - he switched to selling poultry. "The Taliban now call the shots. We cannot do anything that offends them," he said, standing outside his shop in this once-popular tourist destination less than two hours drive from Islamabad. Leaders contend their peace talks with the Taliban in this region involve implementing a mild version of Islamic law, in which girls would still be allowed to attend school, vendors like Gul could continue to sell music and movies, and there would be no public floggings or executions. But three weeks since a ceasefire took hold, the Taliban appear to have used the pause in fighting to tighten their hold over the Swat valley, especially in and around Mingora. There is also scepticism the Taliban - who do not have to surrender any arms under the ceasefire - will modify their hard-line brand of Islam, as well as concern the region will simply become a safe haven for the Taliban. In his tiny shop in Mingora's main bazaar, Ali Ahmed now hawks cell phones - not the Pakistani pop music he used to sell, deemed sinful by the Taliban. He says only that the "situation" means his music business was no longer viable. Peace deal: Many analysts believe any final peace deal in Swat, like a previous agreement with the Taliban that failed last year, will eventually collapse leaving the Taliban in a stronger position, having been given time to consolidate. Despite the current ceasefire, violence has continued. The Taliban killed two soldiers this week who they accused of patrolling without first informing them, one of the terms of the truce. The day after the ceasefire was formalised, a TV journalist from Pakistan's most popular news channel was abducted and murdered in an area known to be under Taliban control. The government has been talking to the Taliban through Sufi Muhammad, an pro-Taliban cleric who has publicly renounced violence, but who leads a movement with identical political aims. Government officials have defended the negotiations with Sufi as an attempt to isolate armed the Taliban from non-violent movements in the valley, even if the latter have extremist views. "In America, they have thousands of laws they use, they have their own system," said Amir Izzat, a spokesman for Sufi. "Here we are Muslims. We are the supporters of the Islamic system and this is our right and we will use our right to live according to the holy Quran and the Hadiths," he said. The overall peace talks have been shrouded in secrecy: Neither the process for formalising any deal nor who would enforce it has been clearly explained. A spokesman for President Asif Ali Zardari says the Pakistani leader will not sign any changes in the law affecting Swat until peace and the authority of the government have been restored there. Residents, many of whom fled during the fighting, are simply glad of the respite from army shelling and brutal Taliban executions designed to dissuade anyone from resisting their authority. Posted by: Fred 2009-03-08 |
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