Struggling to survive
It is important that the state addresses the concerns of IDPs beyond the routine procedures normally adopted in similar circumstances
By Dr Noman Ahmed
Media reports and feedback from related government functionaries confirm that more than 1.5 million people have been uprooted from their abodes in Swat, Buner, Dir and adjoining areas. After a painful journey of days and weeks, the people end up in designated asylum sites. Most of these locations offer very tough situations for survival. The psychological, social, economic and emotional damages experienced by our unfortunate brothers and sisters are often disregarded.

Trail of tears
The whole nation needs to show solidarity with IDPs
By Sibtain Raza Khan
"Why are we here? Where are my father and brother? When will we go home?" asks six-year-old Gul Pari, whose world has been shattered because her father and brother have been killed by the militants after they refused to join the Taliban. Her relatives, after burying their loved ones, were forced to flee along with her four sisters from the Swat valley. After a tiring and exhausting journey, they finally reached the Shiekh Shehzad camp near Mardan.

The narrative that has underpinned the Sri Lankan army’s brutal offensive against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealam (LTTE) bears remarkable similarities to that which has been employed to provide a mandate for our very own ‘counter-terrorism’ operation in Malakand. Indeed it is uncanny, that such defining ‘wars of liberation’ are taking place in two South Asian countries at the same time. In both the conflicts, both sides claim to be liberators. Even until a decade ago, at least some ‘experts’ would have argued that both sides had legitimate claims to be fighting for freedom. In the epoch of the so-called ‘war on terror’, things have changed considerably.

The use of violence and terror as an explicit political strategy has been one of the defining features of the modern era. The French Revolution, seen by the majority of intellectuals as marking the onset of modern ‘civilisation’, was nothing less than an orgy of political violence. More importantly, for the purposes of the present discussion, many struggles waged by colonised people for their freedom during the twentieth century involved political violence. There were, of course, some extremely prominent national liberation movements that were predominantly ‘non-violent’, the most famous of them being that led by Gandhi in India. However, there was never ‘consensus’ that the use of political violence made national liberation movements illegitimate.

The struggle of the FLN against French colonialism in Algeria was characterised by systematic targeting of white settlers. Long drawn out guerilla wars were also fought in Angola, Vietnam, South Africa and numerous other colonies. These were brutal wars and there were excesses on both sides. But there was never any question that the whole world would depict the colonised peoples as the villain of the piece, while the French, Portuguese or American colonisers were made out to be heroic liberators. If one side’s violence was viewed as being totally illegitimate, it was that of the coloniser rather than the colonised.

That moral standards change over time is to be expected. Indeed moral standards should change over time. But with the accession of the United States to the throne of unchallenged global superpower, moral standards have been turned on their head. The US exclusively preserves the right to determine who is a terrorist (and for that matter who is ‘aiding and abbetting’ terrorists). Both through the American state’s diplomatic, economic and military power and vis-a-vis ‘international organisations’ which it effectively controls, Washington has twisted the arms of all other states into falling in line with this new ‘moral standard’. In many cases, states have not necessarily been reluctant to do so because the new discourse permits them to squeeze the life out of dissidents of all stripes simply by deeming the latter ‘terrorists’.

Whether or not one supports the LTTE or its methods is besides the point (the LTTE made suicide bombings into a regular feature of Sri Lanka’s urban experience). The new discourse does not even allow for meaningful questions to be asked about why such organisations actually come into being. For the record, the Sri Lankan state — more or less from its inception, but definitely since the early 1970s — has followed a policy of systematic racism against the Tamil Hindu minority, marginalising its language and customs

while depriving it of any meaningful share of political and economic power.

The LTTE emerged as a result of the extreme frustration of Tamil youth and it is testament to the fact that almost no attempt has been made by the Sri Lankan state to reverse its racist posture that the LTTE has continued to enjoy the support — both material and moral — of both Tamils within the country as well as the diaspora for close to three decades. It is stunning that anyone could think that the use of unprecedented amounts of state power to crush the LTTE and thousands of civilians in Jaffna represents a ‘solution’ to the longstanding conflict.

As Noam Chomsky has painstakingly shown, there has never been any clarity on the precise definition of ‘terrorism’. It is amazing that the US — which has directly or indirectly been responsible for the killing and maiming of more people than any other sovereign power in recent history — can actually be the vanguard of ‘anti-terrorism’. But it is a warped world in which we live, and until there is serious introspection about the manner in which discourse is manipulated, the already absurd epoch of ‘terrorism’ will become even more so.

A rethinking of the terrorism discourse does not mean expressing tolerance for the methods of the LTTE or, for that matter, the Islamists in Pakistan and other parts of the Muslim world. But it does mean recognising the need to come up with an objective measure of what kind of political violence can be condoned and under what conditions. In thinking about this vexed question it should not be forgotten that modern imperialism has always posited that the violence it perpetrates is necessary for ‘civilisation’ to flourish. It is, therefore, crucial to be thoroughly critical of this narrative.

On the other hand, the violence of the weak can be reactionary and exclusivist. I believe that it is very difficult to outrightly condemn political violence (even Gandhi found this difficult — in 1938 he wrote of his unconditional support for Palestinian resistance to Zionist expansion, and argued that in this particular case violence could not be condemned). Ultimately one takes sides in political conflicts, and it is important to know which side one stands on.

In the contemporary period, the American-driven ‘consensus’ on terrorism has warped the political spectrum to make it appear ‘natural’ to support the terror that is perpetrated by states in the name of civilisation and freedom. If colonialism could never suppress the political struggle of the colonised peoples by force, it should be taken for granted that American imperialism and its client states will not be able to do so either.

The methods and ideologies of those who claim to be leading the struggle against modern imperialism can be rejected, but the structural grievances that give rise to such methods and ideologies cannot be rejected. If we acquiesce to the dominant narrative and gloss over these grievances simply because the methods of the LTTE or the Taliban are not agreeable to us, we are effectively accepting the ‘necessity’ of imperialism. And by definition, then, we are setting ourselves up for a never-ending war.

Sher Mohammad Khan is a leading lawyer from the troubled region of Swat who has been forced by the prevailing circumstances to migrate to Peshawar. He was born in Mardan on June 4, 1953 Due to estranged relations between his parents, he was brought up by his mother who had to work in the house of a neighbouring rich family to make both ends meet.

Sher Mohammad Khan received most of his early education from Mingora, Swat. He started taking a fancy to the leftist ideology since his early schooldays. The level of his political involvement can be gauged from the fact that he was expelled from the school for taking part in the anti-Ayub movement. Later, he was ordered to leave the state of Swat for urging his fellow students to launch agitation against the military regime.

Sher Mohammad Khan’s family wanted him to become a doctor, but he chose to become a political worker and a lawyer. He did his LLB from Khyber Law College, Peshawar University, in 1979. Being affiliated with the National Awami Party (NAP), which was considered to be anti-state, he was sent to jail as well as exiled many times. The News on Sunday interviewed Sher Mohammad Khan recently. Excerpts follow:

The News on Sunday: Would you like to tell about the Swat of your childhood?

Sher Mohammad Khan: In those days, Swat used to be a princely state having no codified system or laws. It was ruled according to the whims of the ruler of that time, Mian Gul Abdul Haq Jehanzeb, commonly known as Wali Sahib, who enjoyed unlimited executive and judicial powers. Though the system was autocratic, the ruler himself was an educated, enlightened and modern person; he developed a modern communication system and established educational institutions in all parts of the state, besides providing health facilities to all its citizens.

TNS: Then how and why has extremism flourished in the region?

SMK: Swat remained a princely state from 1917 to 1969. During this period, it comprised of the present districts of Buner, Swat and Shangla, as well as half of the Kohistan district. It was a very forward-looking state in the sense that it had a high school (Wadudia High School in Saidu Sharif, the state’s headquarters at that time) even before partition of the subcontinent. In 1952, a degree college was established in Saidu Sharif. By the time of the state’s merger with Pakistan in 1969, two more degree colleges had been established, in Matta and Daggar. Moreover, there was a girls’ college in Saidu Sharif and girls’ schools in all tehsils of the state. Health facilities were provided to all citizens of the state free of cost. The entire state was linked through metalled roads and the law and order situation was exemplary. Tourists from all over the world used to visit Swat without any fear. In short, until its merger with Pakistan, Swat was alien to extremism, even in the name of religion. The district of Swat is part of the Provincially Administered Tribal Areas (PATA). This status has been granted to it by Article 246 of the 1973 Constitution. Article 247 (3) and (4) of the Constitution provide special procedures for extension of laws and the powers of the president and governor for legislation for good governance of these areas. After its merger with Pakistan, the state of Swat attained the status of a district. As a result, certain administrative, judicial and statutory problems surfaced. It was decided that these problems would be solved with the passage of time, so that the inhabitants of the area became acquainted with the new system and did not oppose it. However, due to certain political expediencies, the government withdrew in 1975 the powers of the courts that had started functioning only a year ago. Thereafter, it promulgated the PATA Criminal Law (Special Provisions) Regulation 1975 and PATA Civil Procedure (Special Provisions) Regulation 1975. These regulations remained operative until February 1994, when the Supreme Court upheld the judgment of the Peshawar High Court declaring some of their provisions in violation of Article 25 of the Constitution. This decision of the apex court deprived the executive authorities and the local Khans, Maliks and other influential people of their judicial powers. Therefore, they conspired with the local religious leaders to launch a movement for the enforcement of Sharia. A disgruntled leader of Jamaat-e-Islami, Maulvi Sufi Mohammad, was patronised to lead this movement. Gradually, he became popular not only in the Swat district, but also in the adjoining districts of Dir, Shangla, Kohistan and Buner, besides some areas in the Malakand division and Bajaur Agency.

TNS: How did the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) manage to win so many seats in the 2002 general elections?

SMK: In 2002, the MMA managed to win so many seats because of the support extended to it by the country’s intelligence agencies.

TNS: What about the 2008 general elections?

SMK: In 2008, all major religious parties barring the Jamaat-e-Islami contested the elections, but they were voted out by the people. In most of the cases, their candidates even lost their security deposits. This shows that the majority of the people of this area are liberal, progressive and forward looking, but they have been held hostage to terrorism.

TNS: Who do you think is promoting extremism?

SMK: If we analyse the origins of militant organisations in this area, it is clear that they were planted by the intelligence agencies after 9/11. Though Pakistan has all along been an ally of the US in the so-called ‘war on terror’, it continued to patronise the militant organisations because of India. So, in order to keep them hidden from American surveillance, the training camps of militant organisations were shifted to the hilly region of Swat, in the Peochar village in the Matta sub-division. Initially, the local people were not involved, but gradually — because of local class contradictions, and past clashes between the local Khans and the tenants — the influence of militancy engulfed the whole region, especially the people belonging to the lower strata of society. Gradually, militancy spread to other areas also, especially to those where class contradictions existed in the past. The militants consist of foreigners, local poor, timber mafia, narcotics smugglers and kidnappers for ransom. At least 90 percent of them are illiterate and have never attended any school or madrassa. Whenever they gained control of some area, they cut all the timber from the forest and either smuggled it to other areas or sold it in the local market. For the first time in the history of Swat, the crime of kidnapping for ransom started during this period. While in control of the Matta sub-division and Shangla district headquarters, they burnt the record of criminal cases, but did not touch the files of civil cases. Moreover, before leaving these places, they took with them all the furniture. Before the military operation started, around 5,000 members of the militant organisations were provided with sophisticated weapons and wireless sets. Initially, Maulana Fazlullah campaigned in public gatherings against the electronic media, and urged people to burn their TV sets, CD players, DVDs, etc. The object of this practice was to alienate the people from any source of knowledge. After that, he started giving sermons on an illegal FM channel. Maulana Fazlullah also distributed thousands of FM radios free of cost among the locals. In the beginning, he stressed on keeping beard and preached against female education and polio vaccine. However, after gaining strength, he started talking in terms of violence against the state. His first target was the security forces, including police and FC. His next target was the influential segments of society who could resist the system he wanted to implement. He never demanded of the state to enforce Sharia, because his target was to control and rule the state.

TNS: The Awami National Party (ANP) won the 2008 general elections on the basis of anti-religious sentiment, but later it made a peace deal with Sufi Mohammad. Don’t you think this is against their ideology?

SMK: The ANP is surely a secular, liberal and democratic party, but the people have not voted for its political ideology alone; they have also voted for peace. After the party came to power, and that too with the help of the United States, the intelligence agencies and military generals hatched a conspiracy to make it unpopular among the people, Therefore, the earlier military operations proved counter productive. The ANP leadership had no control over the military or the intelligence agencies, thus it decided to negotiate with the militants. The ANP sacrificed its ideology, reputation and past struggle, but could not achieve the desired results. The other option available with the ANP was to resign and stand with the people, which perhaps is not the choice of its leadership.

TNS: Don’t you think that there should be one system of justice throughout the country?

SMK: I believe that there should not only be one system of justice throughout the country, but also one system of education. Moreover, there should be equal opportunities for all the citizens in all fields.

As the government finalises the federal budget for financial year 2009-2010 (FY10), the fiscal deficit target has been revised upwards by 1.2 percentage points to 4.6 percent (Rs650 billion) of gross domestic product (GDP), from 3.4 percent of GDP as earlier agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The 3.4 percent fiscal deficit target for FY10 was based on revenue target of Rs2.521 trillion, including tax revenue of Rs1.88 trillion.

The government may also miss the fiscal deficit target of 4.3 percent of GDP for the current financial year (FY09), because the revenue target has already been reduced by around 10 percent (Rs120 billion) to Rs1.18 trillion, from the originally estimated Rs1.30 trillion. Both these revisions are understandable considering that it is difficult to attain a significant increase in public revenue when the economy is stagnant.

Containing fiscal deficit is a major macroeconomic challenge for the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) government. Fiscal deficit increases when public spending or expenditure exceeds public revenue for a given period. Contrary to popular view, fiscal deficit is not inherently a vice; whether the government should have fiscal deficit or surplus depends on the state of the economy.

As famous economist Lord Keynes remarked, the government should seek to balance the economy rather than the budget. If case of widespread unemployment and deficiency of aggregate demand, fiscal deficit is in order to stimulate the economy; whereas in case of inflationary boom, fiscal surplus should be preferred. However, at any rate, fiscal deficit needs to be kept within manageable limits; otherwise, it can destabilise the economy.

Though both developed and developing economies face fiscal deficit, the problem is more serious in the case of the latter. The major challenge for developed countries is to maintain a steady growth rate. For developing countries, it is to accelerate growth rate while maintaining economic stability. Hence, developing countries need a higher investment-GDP ratio to add to the capital stock and accelerate the rate of capital formation. The governments of developing countries also need to create the social capital — education, health, public utilities, etc — and physical infrastructure, which makes an expansionary fiscal policy necessary. On the other hand, due to low level of business activity and income, public revenue cannot match public spending.

Coming to Pakistan, the country’s fiscal deficit rose to 4.3 percent of GDP in FY07 from 4.2 percent in FY06, 3.3 percent in FY05 and 2.4 percent in FY04. During FY08, the fiscal deficit-GDP ratio rose dramatically to 7.4 percent. The total revenue collected was Rs1.49 trillion, while the total expenditure incurred was Rs2.27 trillion, resulting into fiscal deficit of Rs772.2 billion, more than double that in the preceding financial year. Similarly, the revenue-GDP ratio fell to 13.4 percent from 13.9 percent during the preceding financial year.

The increase in the fiscal deficit is due to the growing excess of public spending over public revenue. The total revenue increased to Rs1.49 trillion in FY08 from Rs1.29 trillion in FY07, Rs1.07 trillion in FY06, Rs900 billion in FY05 and Rs794 billion in FY04. Thus, the total revenue increased by 65.55 percent between FY04 and FY08. However, as a percentage of GDP, the public revenue has marginally decreased to 13.4 percent in FY08 from 13.5 percent in FY04. On the other hand, the total expenditure increased to Rs2.27 trillion in FY08 from Rs1.67 trillion in FY07, Rs1.40 trillion in FY06, Rs1.11 trillion in FY05 and Rs923.6 billion in FY04. Thus, the total expenditure increased by 144 percent between FY04 and FY08.

It may be mentioned that during the 1990s, the average fiscal deficit-GDP ratio was 7 percent, well above the current level of around 4 percent. However, decline in the fiscal deficit has more to do with fall in expenditure than increase in revenue. For instance, during the 1990s, the expenditure-GDP ratio was 23.6 percent, while the revenue-GDP ratio was 16.8 percent, well above the current levels of 14.2 percent and 13.9 percent, respectively.

In theory, the simplest way to contain fiscal deficit is to reduce expenditure or increase revenue. However, in practice, this simplicity turns into complexity; in order to reduce fiscal deficit, a government has no other option but to reduce public spending. Given the political economy of Pakistan, if there are to be any drastic cuts in public spending, these will have to be in the area of development expenditure or subsidies. The federal development expenditure for FY09 has already been slashed to Rs219 billion from the originally estimated Rs371 billion. Similarly, the government has already eliminated oil subsidy and it would phase out power subsidy by the end of the current financial year.

Despite robust economic growth, the revenue-GDP ratio has declined from 16.8 percent during the 1990s to around 14 percent at present. In order to increase the tax revenue, either direct or indirect receipts will have to be increased. Any increase in indirect taxes shifts the burden to the consumer or the final customer and results in price increase. Moreover, indirect taxes are essentially regressive because the burden is shifted equally regardless of income. Another problem with indirect taxes is the elasticity of demand; since demand for essential goods is inelastic and that for luxuries elastic, increase in taxes on the latter may reduce revenue while that on the former increase revenue.

Although economically it may be a better option to increase taxes on essential goods, socially and politically such a move is difficult, because it will further reduce disposable real income of low-income groups who spend a major portion of their budget on such goods. Therefore, any increase in taxes has to be in direct taxes. However, the problem with direct taxes is that they are easier to evade and require an efficient tax collection machinery.

The upward revision of the fiscal deficit target for FY10 will give the government additional fiscal space of Rs180 billion, which will be spent partly on developmental works and partly on increasing salaries of government employees who are already facing the brunt of high inflation. Developmental activities will also help the government create jobs. However, as in the past, if fiscal deficit is financed by borrowing from the central bank, inflationary pressures on the economy will increase, offsetting any benefits accruing to the low-income groups.

The major problem for the government is the slow pace of economic growth. Whether it is job creation or revenue generation, sustained growth in the economy is essential. Partly due to global recession, but mainly due to domestic supply side constraints and the deteriorating law and order situation, the economy is not likely to perform well during FY10. For similar reasons, the economy is projected to grow by only 2.5 percent during the next financial year.

(Email: hussainhzaidi@gmail.com)

Around 70 percent of Pakistan’s population depends on agriculture for its livelihood. The agricultural sector is becoming even more important in the wake of global food crisis and ever-rising food inflation. Because the country’s population has been growing at a fast pace for the last many decades, one feels that the federal and provincial governments should have worked harder a long time ago to ensure food security by bringing more land under cultivation. Unfortunately, however, the agriculture sector has not received the attention it deserved. Even more dangerous is the fact that the already scarce tillable land is being used for residential and commercial purposes, as a result of which under-cultivation-land (UCL) is fast depleting.

This problem has existed for a long time, but it gained momentum after 2000 when the real estate business rose to new heights. The trend continues to this day; pick up any newspaper and you will see plenty of advertisements of housing schemes that lure people to buy plots. The government is surely not oblivious of this; however, it seems to be indifferent or has possibly succumbed to the powerful real estate mafia. One needs to remember that this slumber by the government can have devastating consequences for the country. More use of UCL by the public and private sectors will mean less agricultural produce. This would, in turn, mean exposing the nation to unprecedented price-hike.

Pakistan has so far been unable to use its full land potential. According to official figures, of the total land area of 80 million hectares in the country, only 21.5 million hectares is currently under cultivation. The NWFP has also witnessed a huge surge in its population. According to the 1998 census, the province’s population was 14 million and now it is estimated to be around 22 million. The effects of population explosion in the province can be seen everywhere. New towns, villages and markets have surfaced, while the old ones have expanded. Villages and towns that were once very small have now spread far and wide. Sadly, they have consumed cultivable lands throughout the province.

The rapid increase in population necessitated more houses, which led to an unprecedented growth in the real estate business. This, in turn, led to a drastic increase in the prices of land, which enticed owners of agricultural lands to sell their properties. The closer a land to a town or city, the costlier it was. The result is obvious: the cultivable land around big towns and cities is fast depleting. Peshawar and Mardan, the most fertile divisions in the NWFP, have been affected the most by this trend. Hundreds of thousands of acres of precious agricultural land has been lost to individual or private and public sector initiatives for construction of homes, plazas, offices, etc.

Although no official figures are available of the land lost so far to this factor, it is estimated that on average 500 acres of farmland is taken out of agriculture every day due to the booming real estate business and surging population. This makes it approximately 0.19 million acres annually. It is also feared that an estimated 15-20 percent of the agricultural land in the NWFP has already been consumed by the real estate sector.

“Only 20 years ago, my village Katlang had only a few houses. It has now developed into a big town with thousands of housing units. Worst still, their number is on the rise. I fully remember the lush green pastures and fertile lands that were in abundance then. Alas, they are no more to be seen. Houses, schools, markets and plazas have been built on most of the once under-cultivation-land,” says Malik Aman, a man in his seventies.

Mushtaq Khan, the marketing manager of Rifah and Zuhaib Associates (Regd), Mardan, that launched the NWFP’s first ever private sector housing scheme, Sheikh Yasin Town, believes that the province is facing the imminent threat of falling cultivable land. “I think around 20 percent of agricultural land has already been lost in the last two decades, but it has mostly been used by the owners for their domestic needs. I would like to share my own experience here. We owned around 100 kanals of agriculture land in our village. Until a decade ago, it yielded crops and fulfilled our domestic needs for food. That land has now homes built on it,” he says.

Mushtaq Khan estimates that the number of housing schemes in the NWFP is in hundreds, but says most of them overstate their present status and future plans. “Claims of different housing schemes in the Mardan division alone come to about 30,000 kanals. This seems to be an exaggerated figure, because most of these housing schemes are paper entities. Hardly five to seven of these are actual entities that have developed their sites and might have consumed a few thousand kanals,” he informs.

Mushtaq agrees that agricultural land should not be used for residential and commercial purposes. Instead, arid land should be specified and developed to cater to the increasing population’s housing needs. He says a law banning the use of agricultural land for residential purposes exists, but it should be implemented too. “The government should not give NOC to those housing schemes that violate the law,” Mushtaq suggests.

NWFP Secretary Agriculture Attaullah Khan said no such law existed. “The federal government, being mindful of the fact that cultivable land is fast depleting due to its excessive use for construction purposes, has asked all the provincial governments to collect data and make laws for the purpose,” he informed. Attaullah confirmed that the focus on the real estate sector had considerably decreased the agricultural land in the province.

Another official, Gul Nawaz Khattak, told The News on Sunday that the province possesses 10.17 million hectares of land. “Of this, however, the cultivable area is only 2.8 million hectares. Of the cultivable area, only 1.8 million hectares is cultivated while the remaining 1.02 million hectares is cultivable waste,” he informs. This means that the total UCL forms only 30 percent of the cultivable and 10 percent of the total land in the NWFP. It may be reminded that the province is already food deficient and produces less than one million tonnes of wheat on average annually, against the annual requirement of 3.5 million tonnes.

To many in the scientific community, the threat of climate change can only be understated. The Kyoto Protocol was seen only as the first step in addressing the issue of climate change. The Marrakesh Accords laid the foundation of the global initiative and the Kyoto Protocol came out with concrete mechanisms for establishing mitigation actions. The protocol makes it binding for the signatory industrialised countries (the so-called ‘Annex-I’) to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 5.2 percent compared with 1990 levels.

Different flexible mechanisms were also devised that allow trading of emission allowances and obligations through financial exchanges. There is an exhaustive debate on the effectiveness of these mechanism and real responsibility of global warming. Nonetheless, the reality of global economics and politics make it abundantly clear that such mechanisms are here to stay.

The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is one of the financial mechanisms designed to encourage participation of developing countries (hosts) in emission reduction activities. The objective of the mechanism is two-fold: to offset greenhouse gas emissions and to contribute towards sustainable development in the host country. The mechanism ‘offsets’ the responsibility of emission reduction by introducing tradable emission reduction credits. Emission trading schemes, such as the CDM, have given rise to a thriving global carbon market; the emission trading volume was over $138 billion in 2008.

Various shortcomings of the existing CDM mechanism have been recognised and discussed: Far too many Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) came from only a few types of projects (for instance, HFC destruction). The real objective of promoting switchover to renewable energy and energy efficiency remained lagging in the first-generation CERs produced from these mechanisms. There are also serious questions about and criticism of the methods and processes for assessment of "early consideration" and "additionality".

The achievement of one of the objectives of the CDM; promotion of sustainable development, also seems marginal in many related activities. Uneven spread among developing countries is another area of concern, because most of the CDM projects are hosted by China, Brazil or India (therefore, the capital flows towards them). Moreover, there is far too laborious bureaucracy for the regulatory process that oversees the CDM; about which Marc Stuart writes that it often seems to have been designed by Kafka, with a helping hand from Dante.

In relation to the challenge of climate change, Pakistan will have to focus on the more complex issue of adaptation to climate change impacts, especially with regard to the vulnerable communities of its diverse ecological and agricultural zones. The country’s role in mitigation of climate change drivers will be limited, but it will provide opportunities to gain for its own benefit and move towards sustainable development as a result.

It is a little more than four years ago that the first CDM project was registered with the UNFCCC (the United Nations body responsible for registration and issuance of credits). More than 1,600 projects have since been registered (roughly 1.5 billion tonnes of emission reductions through 2012) and another 2,500 projects are in the pipeline. Various methodologies have been developed that cover at least 100 different project types.

Pakistan ratified the Kyoto Protocol in 2005; much later than most other developing countries. The country, therefore, missed out on the early learning opportunity and was too slow to catch up in an ever evolving carbon market. Pakistan has only three registered CDM projects to date. Roughly a dozen are at the validation stage. There may be around two to three dozen more projects at the development stage.

One of the major reasons for very slow activity at the carbon front is lack of awareness in the industrial sector. Only a few industries were able to aggressively pursue carbon-related emission reduction projects. However, most medium-sized and conventionally-managed industries have little or no knowledge about identifying and exploiting this potential. The lack of clarity about the process and dearth of reliable CDM project development companies in the local market have also contributed to the sluggish progress. Industries that could have earned carbon revenues, resulting in a considerable opportunity cost, have commissioned several projects in the last few years without caring for the CDM.

The Ministry of Environment acts as the Designated National Authority (DNA), tasked with ensuring the fulfilment of sustainable development objectives of the country. The DNA approves the projects prior to validation / registration. Many independent researchers and stakeholders have identified a very weak DNA in Pakistan with insufficient capacity and experience for evaluating CDM project documents. Systematic awareness raising and capacity building programmes are virtually nonexistent.

There has also been criticism of the DNA for taking far too long in approving the projects, though it has committed to a 30-day timeline for approval in national operational strategy. Moreover, Pakistan’s DNA requires a list of unnecessary documentation, which makes the process even slower and cumbersome, not to mention costly. An effective institutional arrangement is vital to attract investors and benefit from CDM potential. If a DNA contributes towards lowering the transaction costs, poses less bureaucratic hurdles and offers faster approval process, it indeed attracts more carbon investors.

To participate in the CDM, the industrial sector will have to play a more proactive role. The lack of initiative is perhaps an established trend that hampers the progress and growth of Pakistan’s industrial sector. Undoubtedly, it hurts the industry in more ways than only missing out on the carbon market. The CDM presents an opportunity to attract investments, while making the industry more robust and energy efficient. There is still room to capitalise on the opportunities and give a push for energy efficiency, which should also reduce cost of production and make the industrial sector more competitive in the international market.

Taking a look at the negotiations for a post-2012 agreement, it is likely that the focus will shift to new approaches, such as ‘sectoral CDM’ and ‘programmatic CDM’. These measures will be designed in the backdrop of putting more responsibility of mitigation on developing economies and also to address climate change more effectively.

(The author is a visiting researcher on energy and climate change at SDPI, Islamabad, and country representative of South Pole Carbon Asset Management Ltd in Pakistan.)

In any society, administration and dispensation of justice should be the top most priority. A society without a sound, reliable and speedy judicial system, which does not ensure effective dispensation of justice, cannot survive for long. Administration and dispensation of justice under the various laws in Pakistan need serious attention, the entire system being at the brink of disaster. There is an urgent need to ensure justice, rule of law, fairness, equity and independence of judiciary from the administration.

A significant initiative towards this goal was taken by the National Judicial Policy Making Committee (NJPMC) by announcing a policy that will be enforced from June 1. In its concluding session on May 17, held under the chairmanship of Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, the NJPMC approved the National Judicial Policy containing various short-term and long-term measures for early disposal of cases. The following are some of the significant steps proposed on this occasion:

All pre/post-arrest bail applications will be decided within seven days. Criminal cases, punishable with imprisonment up to seven years, registered after Jan 1, 2009, would be decided in the shortest period, which should not exceed six months. Cases punishable with imprisonment exceeding seven years, including punishment of death, should be decided within one year.

Special steps are suggested for improving the plight of prisoners. The provincial governments are directed to establish new jails at district level or enhance the capacity of existing jails by constructing new barracks. A high court judge, along with a district and sessions judge, will carry out inspection of prisons periodically for ensuring compliance within prison rules and giving on the spot remedy / relief to the prisoners according to the law.

In civil matters, all writ petitions under the Article 199 of the Constitution should be fixed for preliminary hearing on the next date of its institution and disposed of as quickly as possible. Writ petitions involving the service matters, including promotion, transfer and admissions of students in professional colleges and allied matters, should be decided within 60 days. All stay matters under Order 39 Rule 1 & 2 read with Section 151 CPC should be decided within 15 days of grant of interim injunction and in case of delay the reasons should be furnished to the high court.

Rent cases should be decided within four months in trial courts and appeals should be decided within two months. Family cases, including custody of minors, succession certificate, letter of administration, insolvency and maintenance, should be decided within six months. Civil appeals arising out of family cases, custody of minors and against interim order should be decided within 30 days.

Cases filed under Order 37 of CPC regarding suits upon bill of exchange, hundies or promissory notes shall be decided through summary procedure within 90 days.

Cases relating to banking and different taxes and duties such as income tax, property tax, etc, should be decided within six months.

Labour and environmental cases should also be decided through fast track. Judges of labour courts and tribunals should be appointed from among the lawyers qualified for appointment to be a district and sessions judge.

Priority should be given to quick disposal of women cases, juvenile cases, rent cases, stay orders, bail matters, small claims and minor offences under the Small Claims and Minor Offences Courts Ordinance 2002. The power of small claims and minor offences court may be conferred to all civil judges.

For clearing backlog under different categories, special benches will be constituted for each category on the principal seat and branch registry of the Supreme Court and high courts. There will be commitment of judges to decide the old civil and criminal cases up to 2008 within one year. District judges will also adopt such measures that ensure handling of 50 percent of cases from backlog (filed on or before Dec 31, 2008) and 50 percent from current cases.

The services of judiciary will not be available for conducting elections in future. The focus of judiciary will be on disposal of cases to redress grievances of the people by dispensation of justice. If the government feels that the election should be held under the supervision of judiciary, then a request may come and the NJPMC would decide as to what extent and in what form help can be extended in the conduct of elections.

The above decisions, if implemented, will certainly improve the working of existing dispute resolution system, based on conventional appeal and review system under various statutes. But, the real need is total reformation process. If causes for litigation in society are not removed, the system will remain choked. More and more judges will be required to cope with the ever increasing number of cases at all levels. Everybody is totally dissatisfied with the existing judicial system. Those imparting justice complain of lack of facilities and huge number of cases, the complainants crying for early orders but have to wait for years (sometimes decades) and the government keeps on worrying about the blockade of colossal amount of money in litigation process.

The first and foremost need is to liberate judiciary from administrative interference or control. The chief justice has re-emphasised this point knowing that until today there is ‘independence’ only on paper and in reality the separation of judiciary from administration has not taken place. Political motives dominate appointment of judges and this destroys the very working of the system.

The apex court has elaborated the principle of separation of judiciary from executive in Government of Balochistan v Azizullah Memon PLD 1993 SC 31 by holding that "separation of judiciary from executive is the cornerstone of independence of judiciary." But practically, every regime has violated this principle. The most recent appointments under the present regime speak for themselves. It was openly said in the internal meetings that "all appointments in judiciary, executive posts, Federal Tax Ombudsman, chairman and members of the federal service and other tribunals and income tax appellate courts will be made on the recommendations of the party leadership.". The same was the declared policy of the previous government.

The right of access to justice to all is a well-recognised inviolable right enshrined in the Constitution of Pakistan. It concludes "the right to be treated according to law, the right to have a fair and proper trial and the right to have an impartial court or tribunal. Justice therefore can only be done if there is an independent judiciary which shall be separate from executive and not at its mercy or depending on it." It is a matter of record that none of the successive governments in Pakistan, military or civilian, has ever followed the directions of the apex court. In the given political milieu, it is imperative that all judicial and quasi-judicial authorities should be regulated and supervised by the high court under whose territorial jurisdiction they work. This is the only way to ensure independence of judiciary in its true substance.

In the process of revamping our judicial system, there can be two choices: reform the existing system or introduce an entirely new structure. A national debate is needed on this issue. In a democratic setup, it is necessary to debate a question of such a sensitive nature having far reaching effects on dispensation of justice and independence of judiciary. The following issues must be debated vis-à-vis problems faced by the existing judicial system: quality of adjudicators / judges; selection process; delays due to heavy pendency or irrational distribution of work; ineffective controls and poor management; and cumbersome and time-consuming procedures. The objectives for change should be: need for professional adjudicators / judges; selection through parliamentary process; and simple and cost-effective procedures and rapid disposal of cases

An efficient justice system can only be established if efforts are made to produce highly competent adjudicators at lower levels. It will help produce competent judges for higher courts in future. All existing appointments of members in all the special tribunals created under Article 212 must be placed before the chief justice of the province in which the members are performing their duties. The chief justice himself or any other Judge authorised by or committee appointed by him may look into such appointments to approve or disapprove the same, which would be binding on the federal government. All existing and future appointments in appellate tribunals must be screened by the judicial organ of the state.

It is vital for the success of judicial reform strategy to go for a paradigm shift, rather than patchwork or some changes here and there. The system must be forward-looking and supportive of the modern day needs. We are still following the outdated procedures and methods, whereas many countries have adopted e-system for filing of cases and their quick disposal through fast-track follow up. The main aim of reform measures should be elimination of unnecessary litigation and facilitation of smooth running of affairs between the state and its citizens. Once both learn to act within the four corners of law, there will be no need for enormous litigation.

Media reports and feedback from related government functionaries confirm that more than 1.5 million people have been uprooted from their abodes in Swat, Buner, Dir and adjoining areas. After a painful journey of days and weeks, the people end up in designated asylum sites. Most of these locations offer very tough situations for survival. The psychological, social, economic and emotional damages experienced by our unfortunate brothers and sisters are often disregarded.

As the operation against the militants continues, the folks in the camps and other locations remain disillusioned about their future. It is important that the state addresses the concerns of internally displaced people (IDPs) beyond the routine procedures normally adopted in similar circumstances. A multi-pronged strategy is needed with very innovative ingredients.

The first step is the creation of an effective institutional arrangement to address the multifarious issues of IDPs. An authority must be enacted to plan, coordinate, liaise, implement and monitor the various activities pertinent to IDPs. A model already exists in the form of the Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA). The valuable institutional experience can be used to evolve and structure an organogram that is both potent and capable. Several benefits will be derived from this initiative. For example, IDPs will be able to receive a coordinated service on a continuous basis.

They shall also develop confidence in the state about the sustenance of the inputs, especially if the crisis becomes prolonged. Various departments and units of the government will be able to link up to the main spine of this authority for displaced people, hence enhancing the effectiveness of relief efforts. An ordinance may be promulgated to enact this body on immediate grounds. Thereafter, the same may be presented to the parliament for deliberation and approval.

There are several shortcomings experienced with respect to infrastructural provisions. IDPs have complained about the hardships faced while moving out of their homes. At present, only scanty private transport is available at a hefty price. Therefore, state institutions must respond to the crucial need of logistics to ensure a subsidised transport option for the endangered people. Different problems of camp infrastructure are also highlighted by the media. Enough technical expertise is nationally available to help in the planning, design and management of the camps. By applying the appropriate means of acquiring services of such professionals, a significant benefit can be provided to the lot of IDPs.

Health and hygiene are the foremost concerns in the present refugee settlements. While teams of doctors and paramedics are being mobilised, the preventive health care domain must be strengthened. Each settlement should possess adequate toilet blocks with pour flush latrines connected to soak pits / septic tanks. Because water is a scarce resource, recycling projects can be developed to maximise the use of water to the optimum. Multiple arrangements for power generation and supply need to be looked for. The Alternative Energy Development Board (AEDB) and other concerned institutions may be invited to develop solar parks to optimise sunlight for power generation. In this manner, the constraint of heat shall be adequately dealt.

Extension of education to children, teenagers, youth and even adults could be a most engaging activity. Experiences have proved that alternative learning strategies can help in managing trauma to a great extent. In the camps where there are little activities to keep young people busy, education can become a most useful input. In this respect, NGOs and specialised institutions may be encouraged to launch coordinated programmes for different categories of prospective beneficiaries. Female literacy and education can be greatly enhanced if suitable approaches and methods are adopted.

Caution must be applied while addressing the cultural and traditional issues. The contents of the curriculum, methods of delivery and overall management of educational process can only achieve results if care is applied across social and ethnic dimensions. Other common place needs of the people include banking services. If the comfort level and security is enhanced by subsidising service charges, a sizable number of people can acquire benefits of remittances and other options. Lessons can be learned from contexts that experienced similar circumstances.

IDPs are moving out in all directions. As common sense dictates, IDPs prioritise their choices according to financial implications and availability of options. If they have relatives and acquaintances elsewhere in the NWFP or Karachi, they move accordingly. Possibilities of friction and conflicts are rampant in such situations. As some observers have pointed out, dubious characters disguised as IDPs are also reaching different places. The only effective way of watch and ward is through cooperative means.

By close interaction with displaced people, the administrative machinery can efficiently safeguard the refugees themselves as well as the host populations that receive IDPs. Security agencies must be tasked to scan IDPs in a friendly manner to prevent terrorism and other similar instances. Finally, the state must institute a transparent mechanism of financial management of all donations received from various ends. Trust of millions of Pakistanis shall be emboldened if they find their donations ending up in the right heads of expenditure. Time is the essence of this exercise.

If the response of state does not correspond to the pace of displacement, the sufferings of the affected shall rise exponentially. Swift decisions based on forthright facts can become the starting point of such a response. The common Pakistanis are eagerly watching the leadership to stand up to the gravity of the situation, hoping that they would not be disappointed this time at least.

"Why are we here? Where are my father and brother? When will we go home?" asks six-year-old Gul Pari, whose world has been shattered because her father and brother have been killed by the militants after they refused to join the Taliban. Her relatives, after burying their loved ones, were forced to flee along with her four sisters from the Swat valley. After a tiring and exhausting journey, they finally reached the Shiekh Shehzad camp near Mardan.

Another IDP at the Sheikh Yasin camp was mourning his two sons who had been killed in the crossfire between the militants and the security forces. He did not even have the time to bury them, so he left their dead bodies in his locked house before leaving the area. He also lost his mother on the way, because she could not bear the hardships of the long journey and took her last breath in the hands of her son. They are not the only ones to have suffered such tragic losses; there are many families with similar tales to share.

Awful and shocking scenes were witnessed during the visit to the tent cities near Mardan and Swabi. The tired, sweaty and dusty displaced people have nothing but clothes on their bodies and faith in Allah. These terrified people were talking about the military operation and praying for its success; however, all of them are concerned about going back home and starting their life again.

After visiting these refugees’ camps, one can find that peace loving people of Malakand are paying the price of those sins which they never committed. One cannot stop tears after hearing their tales filled with countless woes and miseries. A large number of families covered more than 50-km on foot to get any vehicle to reach safe place. These people living in different camps are in shock and are wondering when they will be able to go back, even though they all share a sense of relief to be out of danger.

There is no blinking the fact that it is the biggest internal displacement of the people in Pakistan since 1947; nonetheless, the majority of the displaced people are staying with their extended families or else in rented rooms and mosques across the NWFP and Pakistan at large. According to the data released by UNHCR, 1.5 million people have been registered as IDPs. Of them, about 130,000 people who have no alternative are living in IDP camps established near Mardan, Swabi, Nowshera and Peshawar.

Some IDPs have lost their children on their way to safer places and a number of mothers were appealing for help. "I saved my son from the war, but lost him here," Zarat Khan at Jalala camp pleads for his lost son. Another IDP lost his five-year-old daughter while shifting from camp to school. The concerned authorities need to establish a cell for lost children as related cases are mounting.

The unfortunate people of Malakand, who are used to living in cooler temperatures, find no way to escape the heat and are cursing their fate. "The tent is so hot that one cannot sit inside it during the day, while at night it is full of mosquitoes," says Nasib Zada, a shopkeeper from Rahimabad in the Swat valley. A mother of five children, who arrived at the Jalala camp, says: "Even at night my kids cannot sleep because of the heat. They cry, but what can I do for them?"

It is high time that we unite as a nation against the menace of terrorism, which has been committed by the Taliban in the name of Islam in order to establish their control in the area. There is a need for concerted public campaign at all possible levels to create awareness against Talibanisation and extremism, before it spreads elsewhere in the country.

(Email: sibtainrazakhan@yahoo.com)