A police car attacked by militants near Peshawar. Credit: Ashfaq Yusufzai/IPS.

By Ashfaq Yusufzai
PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Mar 26 2014 (IPS)

Pakistan is in the midst of a heated debate on continuing military operations against the Taliban in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), especially after the brutal killing of 23 army soldiers last month.

Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan claims that the government acknowledges that the army’s chances of success are very low. Imran Khan, head of the Pakistan Tehreek Insaf (PTI) party, has been pressing for talks with the Taliban.“Our soldiers are fighting their own people. Militancy will never decrease through military action.”

“Militancy has increased in spite of the army’s presence. Around 50,000 people, including 5,000 soldiers, have been killed by the terrorists,” Khan tells IPS. His party is in power in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that adjoins FATA in the north of Pakistan.

“We have been urging peace talks because the military’s intervention is no solution to terrorism. The Taliban are killing our soldiers and civilians in a war started at the behest of the U.S.,” Khan tells IPS.

The government and the Taliban have formed their respective committees to hold peace talks. But the efforts came under strain after the brutal killing of 23 Frontier Corps soldiers by the Taliban in Mohmand Agency in FATA on Feb.16. The army men had been in captivity since 2010.

Khan says, “Our soldiers are fighting their own people. Militancy will never decrease through military action.”

In a TV interview last month, Khan claimed that the army chief had told Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif that military operations couldn’t root out militancy. There was much hue and cry over his claim.

“Khan’s statement aims to demoralise the army,” said Khursheed Shah, opposition leader in the National Assembly. Shah accused Khan of stabbing the army in the back.

Information Minister Pervez Rasheed said the army was capable of fully eliminating the Taliban. “The beheading of 23 soldiers is condemnable. Even India, our archrival, treated our captured soldiers in accordance with the Geneva Convention and didn’t behead anyone,” he tells IPS.

Senator Muhammad Adeel of the Awami National Party alleged that Imran Khan was trying to underestimate the army.

However, many say Khan is not wrong.

“Khan’s statement that there are only 40 percent chances of military operations succeeding against the Taliban has stirred a heated debate in Pakistan, and he is not entirely wrong,” political analyst Muhammad Shoaib, who teaches at the University of Peshawar, tells IPS.

According to the army, the Taliban have killed 460 people since Sep 9. last year when an all-party conference decided to hold talks with the militants.

Shoaib said the killing of the 23 soldiers indicated that the militants were still going strong. “They were kept hostage for four years, killed and even a video of the killings released,” he pointed out.

Analysts say the situation in FATA is far more complex today than it was before the deployment of the army.

Jalal Akbar, political science teacher at Gomal University in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said there were instances earlier of militants releasing their captives.

“In 2007, pro-Taliban militants had kidnapped 250 soldiers in FATA’s South Waziristan Agency, but released them when their own men were freed by the government,” says Akbar.

Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants have been targeting Pakistani and Afghan forces from FATA. They took refuge there after the Taliban government in Kabul was toppled by U.S.-led forces in 2001.

Many believe the army is at a disadvantage in FATA as the militants carry out guerrilla warfare.

Muhammad Rafiq, a retired army officer, tells IPS, “The majority of our soldiers are not used to fighting in the mountains and forests. The army is unable to fight the Taliban there because of the geographical terrain.”

Some Pakistanis believe military operations only provoke more brutal acts by the militants.

In Swat, a district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa where the Taliban held sway from 2007 to 2009, people still remember the gruesome acts of violence.

“Every morning we would see the beheaded bodies of soldiers hanging from electric power poles,” says Nasirullah Khan, a former police inspector in Swat.

The Taliban’s writ still runs large in FATA.

Dr Jawad Shah, a polio officer, says the Taliban don’t allow polio vaccinations in Waziristan, and the army is unable to stop them.

“Of the targeted 300,000 children, we have not been able to vaccinate even a single child because the Taliban are in full control there.”

Local leaders at a protest camp against drones in Hayatabad town in Pakistan. Credit: Ashfaq Yusufzai/IPS.

By Ashfaq Yusufzai
PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Dec 9 2013 (IPS)

More than 300 U.S. drone attacks have killed 2,160 militants and 67 civilians in Pakistan since 2008, according to Pakistani defence ministry data. But people living in the affected areas are now questioning these figures, asking why they never get to know the names of the militants or see the bodies.

Residents of Pakistan’s Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), which border Afghanistan and where most of the drone strikes have been carried out, say many more civilians may be dying in the attacks than officially revealed.

“The attacks by U.S. drones are a complete mystery. No one is sure of the Taliban or Al-Qaeda casualties, but we know the names of the locals killed in these attacks,” says Sadiqullah Shah, a 51-year-old teacher in FATA’s North Waziristan Agency.The media issues such news without any proof. Neither journalists nor local people get to see the bodies of the terrorists.

“Except for top names like Nek Muhammad Wazir, Baitullah Mehsud and Hakeemullah Mehsud, the local population has not got confirmation of the deaths of other Al-Qaeda or Taliban operatives,” Shah told IPS.

After the Taliban government in Afghanistan fell in 2001, many of its operatives crossed over to Pakistan and set up bases in FATA’s Waziristan region. These very areas are now being targeted by U.S. drones in the hunt for terrorists.

But not everyone is convinced.

“There is no evidence that the drones are killing only militants, but we know of civilian families that have lost members in these air strikes,” Dr Sherin Mazari, information secretary of the Pakistan Tehreek Insaf (PTI) told IPS.

Headed by former cricketer Imran Khan, PTI claims that more than 1,500 civilians have been killed by U.S. drones. The party, which leads the government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, has blocked NATO supplies bound for Afghanistan through the province to protest against drone attacks.

Mazari said the Pakistan government endorsed the American argument that the attacks were aimed at Al-Qaeda and Taliban members, but it was yet to reveal the names of the militants and civilians killed.

FATA comes under the federal government, and is therefore required to publish the names of the victims, said Mazari, who is also a member of the National Assembly.

Naming four victims of a U.S. drone attack in Hangu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Nov. 21, Dr Mazari said they were all students of a madrassa (Islamic seminary). The province is adjacent to FATA.

Locals say missiles fired by pilot-less aircraft have imperiled their lives.

Rafiq Rehman, a schoolteacher in North Waziristan, said in October last year his mother was killed in a drone attack while working in the fields. His daughter and son were injured.

“I visited the U.S. and testified before a Congressional Committee about my mother’s death,” he said.

Muhammad Ali, a policeman in Miramshah subdistrict of North Waziristan, said the attacks had indeed claimed innocent lives. “Drone aircraft have killed some militants, but the local population living near militant hideouts is often hit.”

In Pakistan, it is not uncommon for law enforcement agencies to show the bodies of criminals to the public, but that is not the case with militants said to have been killed by drones, say local people.

After every drone strike, most media outlets run similar news.

A senior reporter in the area told IPS on condition of anonymity, “We run whatever news is given to us by the army after every drone strike. The area is teeming with militants and curfew is in place, so going to the scene of a drone strike is not possible.”

The media therefore issues such news without any proof. Neither journalists nor local people get to see the bodies of the terrorists, the reporter said.

Adnan Khan, a 21-year-old Waziristan resident who is studying international relations at the University of Peshawar, said it was hard to tell who was attacking whom.

“We have to believe intelligence agencies when they say some Al-Qaeda leader has been killed in a drone strike. But how can we believe that the missiles hit only militants while sparing the innocent?”

Muhammad Sultan, a shopkeeper in Miramshah, said the local population was constantly afraid of coming under attack even as the drones had struck fear in the hearts of militants.

“Militants keep changing their location due to the fear of drone strikes. Drones have killed those who were out of the Pakistan army’s reach in Waziristan,” he told IPS.

The drones are believed to fly in from the Bagram Airbase in Afghanistan.

A match at the recent cricket tournament held in Pakistan's northern Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). Credit: Ashfaq Yusufzai/IPS

By Ashfaq Yusufzai
PESHAWAR, Pakistan , Jul 24 2013 (IPS)

Pakistanis are no strangers to sports-related violence; in fact, many have come to expect scuffles and conflict, especially following a major cricket match. In the country’s northern Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), however, cricket has become a tool to promote peace.

For over a decade, FATA and its neighbouring provinces, which form Pakistan’s tribal belt that doubles as the border with Afghanistan, have been a safe haven for Taliban militants fleeing the 2001 U.S.-led invasion of Kabul and subsequent occupation of Afghanistan by NATO and its allied forces.

Countless attempts to violently crush the Taliban have failed to completely root the militants out of Pakistan’s rocky, mountainous terrain.

Desperate, the local government has turned its attention to alternative coping strategies, with sports quickly becoming a popular “weapon” in the arsenal against religious extremists, especially as a means of turning tribal youth away from militant activity.

An upbeat Shahid Shinwari, secretary of the FATA Olympic Association, told IPS he was pleasantly surprised by the massive turnout at the recent weeklong cricket tournament in which Mohmand Agency – one of seven districts that comprise the tribal areas – defeated the host Bajaur Agency.

Until 2012, Bajaur Agency was a veritable war zone, witnessing a major government offensive against the Taliban in 2008 that saw the deaths of 1,600 militants and 150 civilians and close to 5,000 injured.

Of the 300,000 civilians forced to flee the fighting, only 18,000 have returned, with most of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) living in makeshift settlements with little access to the most basic services such as running water and healthcare.

That this troubled district could draw a crowd for purely civilian purposes, with residents “starved for entertainment” coming out in droves to support the 16 teams on Jul. 7-14, signals a major turning point in the search for an “elusive peace” here, according to Shinwari.

He said the celebrations following Mohmand Agency’s narrow eight-run victory stood in stark contrast to the climate of terror and anxiety that has prevailed here for years.

Buoyed by FATA’s innovative approach to fighting off terrorism, a cricket team from the northeastern Afghan border province of Kunar also participated in the tournament sponsored by the Pakistani army.

Kunar’s team captain, who asked not to be named, praised the hospitality extended to his team members, adding that such events were “vital for enhancing relations between the two countries”, whose people endure similar hardships at the hands of the Taliban.

“I only hope that sports continue to promote peace,” he told IPS.

Seventeen-year-old Taj Ali, captain of the home team, told IPS that many young people from his generation joined the Taliban in the absence of outlets for their youthful energy.

Now, he says, FATA has undergone a “sea change”, with youth reveling in this newfound opportunity to “thwart the terrorists”.

About 100 small cricket teams, by far the most popular sport among tribal youth, have popped up in remote villages throughout Bajaur Agency.

Eager to capitalise on local enthusiasm, the Pakistani government last year commissioned a 4.9-million-dollar sports complex, complete with all the necessary facilities for training young athletes such as a gymnasium, cricket and football grounds, and indoor courts for basketball, volleyball, squash and badminton.

Already some 5,000 boys and girls frequent this complex, working with several trained professionals to master the sport of their choice.

Kashif Ali, a 17-year-old kabbadi player (a South Asian wrestling sport popular in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh) from the Orakzai Agency, told IPS his brother was a militant for three years, but has now renounced insurgent activity in favour of football.

Kashif says he personally knows at least two-dozen other boys who have done the same, bringing the total of militants-turned-athletes to just over 150.

Trainers say sports also promise poor youth a decent income in the future, with many athletes from FATA joining national teams or professional organisations.

Regional governments are casting their nets wide enough to include women – long marginalised by the Taliban in Pakistan’s northern regions – in the wave of sports fever sweeping the region.

Khanum Bibi, a 16-year-old badminton player, came to Peshawar, capital of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, in search of facilities that are severely lacking in her hometown. She says women are keen to engage in sports, despite strict religious codes that have excluded them from the playing fields for years.

“Sportswomen perform better academically because outdoor activities keep them fit and healthy,” she told IPS.

Her cousin, who came to Peshawar to be trained as a table tennis player, echoed these sentiments, adding that the KP government ought to make investments in sporting facilities in rural areas so that residents can play with their “own people instead of strangers from Peshawar”.

Over 5,000 women in Pakistan’s northern provinces are part of sports teams.

KP Governor Shaukatullah Khan says the local government has now begun a hunt for 400 acres of land on which to construct a billion-dollar international sports complex – complete with grounds, courts, hostels and medical facilities – for the tribal areas, after recognising that “sports [are] the only way to defeat the Taliban.”

The governor praised FATA’s athletes for having bagged 16 medals at the recent National Games in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad, despite their lack of training.

“Our players placed second in archery and third in basketball and judo at the nationwide competition, which surprised everyone,” he said, adding that the honour spoke volumes about FATA residents’ natural aptitude for sports.

Frontier Corps Major General Ghayyur Mahmood, in charge of military operations for FATA, told IPS that sports have also been crucial in efforts to improve law and order in the region, by promoting peace and “a sense of normalcy”.

“We have several major events in the pipeline, for which we are putting in place modern indoor and outdoor facilities [capable of hosting] over 20 games,” Shinwari said.

The most eagerly anticipated of these gatherings is the upcoming 11-day all-agency FATA club tournament, slated to begin on Aug. 14, during which the winning clubs in this past April’s intra-agency competitions will vie for the top slots in basketball, volleyball, cricket, kabbadi, badminton, squash, hockey, kushti (a form of local wrestling), netball, judo and karate.

Kashif Ali and his brother are training hard for the games, hoping to bring glory to their agency and win the respect of their family and community members.

A policeman hurt in a fight with militants. Credit: Ashfaq Yusufzai/IPS.

By Ashfaq Yusufzai
PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Jan 20 2013 (IPS)

The new round of a terror campaign by Taliban militants against liberal politicians and health workers has led to fresh alarm within government and civil society. Many see this as a ploy to postpone elections due mid-2013.

“A majority of these attacks are happening in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province,” says KP information minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain.

The KP province is ruled by the Awami National Party, a staunch opponent of the Taliban. This has led to the Taliban focusing most of its activities in this province, says Hussain.

Following the killing of nine polio vaccinators in Peshawar and Karachi Dec.17 and 18, seven persons including six female workers and a male doctor from an NGO were killed in Swabi, one of the 25 KP districts on Jan. 5.

Seven aid workers were shot dead in nearby Charsadda district Jan. 3.

What has left some people surprised is that militants attacked a vehicle of the Al Khidmat Foundation (AKF), killing Dr Zakir Hussain, head of its education wing. The AKF is run by the Jamaat Islami (JI) party which is regarded as close to Tehreek Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

Its former chief Qazi Hussain Ahmed survived a suicide attack in Mohmand Agency Nov. 29 last year. But JI has refrained from blaming the TTP.

The pattern of shootings has left many confused. TTP has accepted responsibility for most bomb and suicide attacks targeting the army, police and public places. The latest attacks have gone unclaimed.

“The Taliban are employing different strategies to sabotage the general election because they don’t want the election to take place peacefully,” Kamran Ali, a political science teacher at the University of Peshawar tells IPS.

The Awami National Party (ANP), which rules the KP, one of the four provinces in Pakistan, has borne the brunt of Taliban attacks. The party has lost 600 of its workers and leaders in terrorism-related attacks, Ali says.

“The TTP is opposed to all democratic and liberal forces. It fears strict action if such parties win the election and form government, he says. The TTP doesn’t want the ANP to win the election again because it has been running a campaign against militants during the past four-and-a-half years of its rule in KP, Ali says.

A major operation was carried out in 2009 that evicted Taliban from Swat, which the TTP had ruled from 2007 to 2009.

“The TTP would like to see JI and other smaller religious parties in power in order to implement their agenda,” Ali says. “A coalition government of these two parties in KP had shut its eyes to the Taliban’s activities in Swat during their rule, and soon after the election won by ANP, the Swat Taliban started killing police and others.

“Had the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) – an alliance of Islamic parties – not shut its eyes to the Taliban’s activities in Swat, and had taken action, Swat would never have fallen to TTP,” he says. The Taliban therefore want to keep the ANP away from the election and support religious parties to get a free run, he says.

“A liberal democratic government will take action against the Taliban,” KP Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain tells IPS. “Therefore they (TTP) try their level best to block their entry to corridor of power.”

The killing of political leaders is a Taliban tactic to force opponents out of the election process and get people of their choice elected, Hussain says. “The only agenda of Taliban is to sow political chaos ahead of elections.”

The killing of an ANP leader in a suicide attack Dec. 19 shows how TTP deals with rivals, Hussain says. “Bashir Bilour aggressively campaigned against the Taliban. He turned up at the site of every bomb attack in the province and condemned them.”

Hussain’s only son Mian Rashid Hussain was shot dead by militants in April 2010.

“The recent strategy by the TTP to hit the political leaders and scare people away from public meetings is a ploy to force liberal politicians out of the elections,” he says. “The TTP would never want the ANP to get elected. The TTP knows that the ANP would create problems for it.”

The ANP leadership is prepared for talks nevertheless, he says. “We know that the militants are behind all sorts of terrorism, but even then we are ready to go to the negotiating table provided they end violence for the sake of the country.”

Taliban fighters have sanctuaries along the border areas between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Credit: Ashfaq Yusufzai/IPS

By Zofeen Ebrahim
KARACHI, Nov 6 2012 (IPS)

As shock and outrage over the Taliban’s shooting of young Malala Yousafzai – a female activist – subsides, a new question has begun to make its rounds among political commentators in Pakistan: whether or not the government should launch an offensive against militants along the country’s border with Afghanistan.

On his recent visit to Pakistan, Marc Grossman, United States’ special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, failed to make his position on the issue clear.

Though he pressed for Pakistan to “do more” to control militants from the tribal area of North Waziristan (NW) currently fighting U.S. troops stationed in Afghanistan, Grossman seemed to suggest a change of heart in Washington, now that full troop withdrawal is close.

“On (the) particular question of a North Waziristan (offensive)… that is (a) decision solely for the Government of Pakistan,” he said on a talk show aired by the state-run Pakistan Television last month.

Since the beginning of 2012, Pakistan has witnessed a spate of attacks on security forces and politicians, systematic bombing of schools (96 schools were attacked this year alone), killing of shias, and attacks on military bases – all allegedly by armed groups including the Taliban, al-Qaeda, and their affiliates.

While the government as well as the army is cognizant of the threat posed by the militants, both have been reluctant to launch an all-out offensive for various reasons.

“There exists a certain paranoia within (the Pakistan) military about India’s increasing role in Afghanistan, and therefore it is reluctant to turn against its partners, like the Haqqani Network,” Imtiaz Gul, a defence expert from Islamabad, explained to IPS.

“Once the foreign forces withdraw, who knows how useful these ties could turn out to be for Pakistan?” he added.

However, there is rising pressure on the government, mainly from civil society, to stem the religious extremism and terrorism that has gripped the country.

For years the government has attempted to foster the image that it is not “doing the bidding” of the U.S. Now, the vicious attack on Yousafzai – a young advocate of girls’ right to education – has provided it with the perfect excuse to carry out a military offensive without running the risk of losing popular support, experts say.

“The time is right (to) flush out the militancy,” Kamal Siddiqi, editor of the English daily ‘Express Tribune’, told IPS. “The militants are based in NW and need to be routed from there,” he added.

Defence expert Ikram Sehgal agrees that “something needs to be done” about religious extremism and militancy but believes it will be foolhardy to jump into the hornet’s nest by launching an army offensive. “The army does not have the manpower, or the material resources, to fight the militants in a terrain that is extremely difficult to traverse,” he told IPS.

The solution, he believes, lies in forging a civilian-led counter-terrorism force. “That would break the nexus between corruption, organised crime and terrorism since the former two provide the latter with the logistical support needed to plan terrorist attacks,” he said.

Unfortunately, said Sehgal, the politicians sitting in the parliament would never allow such a force to develop, as it would mean losing the support of religious groups. With national elections, scheduled for March 2013, just around the corner, this would not be a politically expedient move.

Mirza Shahzad Akbar, a human rights lawyer who represents victims of drone strikes, is also against an outright military offensive. Instead, he told IPS, there is a need to move towards an honest national reconciliation.

“Reconciliation does not in any way mean that we accept unreasonable demands of terrorists, but we do need to address the issue of discontent in society.

“In this process, if the (need) for surgical military intervention (arises), that can be carried out with consensus but within constitutional bounds. If we are fighting a war which is fully ours, the nation will bear the consequences no matter what they are, but so far we are facing consequences of someone else’s war,” Akbar said, referring to the U.S.’ role in the region’s conflicts since 2001.

He added, “As long as the United States is in Afghanistan, I do not see this process of reconciliation being successful.”

According to Lahore-based political analyst Hassan Askari Rizvi, the attack on 14-year-old Yousafzai on Oct. 9 seems – for the first time in years – to have produced a “discourse that is challenging the Islamist view that (has) prevailed for far too long”.

Rizvi considers the opening up of this new discourse in the Urdu media an “important and positive outcome of the tragedy”.

Yet he does not see any army offensive in the near future as inevitable, especially in the face of a weak political consensus.

“With the national elections just around the corner the right-wing parties will never go against the Taliban, not even the main opposition party, the Pakistan Muslim League-N,” he said.

Chairman of the PML-N, Chaudhry Nisar, told journalists in Islamabad on Oct. 17 that a “smell of conspiracy” was in the air, adding that a military operation in NW would “destabilise the country”.

On the other hand, the Sunni Ittehad Council, a religious organisation made up of Sunni groups, announced its support of the government, should the latter choose to launch an offensive against the militants in NW.

“We want an immediate operation against the Taliban and will completely support the government,” said the Council’s chairman, Shaibzada Fazle Karim.

“Crush the Taliban and 180 million people will be standing behind you,” leader of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Altaf Hussain, said during a telephone address from London, at a recent rally organised by his party members in Karachi.

But President Asif Ali Zardari warned of a “blowback” in the face of an army operation that did not have the support of the majority of the country.

“The idea of using force against a mindset that is widespread across various sections of society would be emotional and naïve,” he told journalists at a South Asia Free Media Association conference in Islamabad last week.

Gul, who also heads the independent Islamabad-based Centre for Research and Security Studies, said it was incorrect to assume that the “panacea” for terrorism lay in NW.

He called for a policy of “serious strategic” re-thinking. This would include, according to Gul, the government’s “categorical divorce” from terrorist outfits including Lashkar-e-Taiba, Mullah Omar’s Taliban, even the Haqqani Network, which is allegedly harbouring runaway militants, even if not directly involved in attacking Pakistan.

As a solution and a starting point, said Gul, “We must also acknowledge the real enemy lies within, not on the borders.

“The government should bring about effective legislation on terrorism that protects all stakeholders, have a strong witness and judge protection programme, (introduce) legislation that (prosecutes practitioners of) hate speech and intolerance, control mis-governance and bring about training of security personnel in forensics, law and human rights.”

(END)

Rashid was 12 years old when he picked up a gun and received armed training in Pakistan. He was caught by the Indian forces in 1992 and sentenced to two years’ imprisonment. Five years later when he wished to return to a normal life, everyone turned away from him.

His parents refused to support him, and for a long time no girl agreed to marry Rashid, who is now 40. For relatives, he was an outcast who had spent two years in jail, and for state authorities a militant who could not be given a job.

“I have struggled for years after I was released from prison. Life of militants is hell after they give up guns,” Rashid told IPS.

Rashid served his sentence in several prisons, including Srinagar’s central jail. Prison was the most dreadful phase of his life, he said. Torture, beating and interrogation, together with lack of recreation, rehabilitation and even medical facilities turned life into a nightmare.

“Our food would contain husk and sandy stones. We had no recreational facilities like sports, counseling or anything that could keep us busy.” Inmates, he said, would spend time talking or offering prayers.

After release, things took a bad turn in another way, he said.

“There was no job, no financial security to lead a good life. The state government has been repeatedly promising jobs and compensation to ex-militants in Kashmir. But no results could be seen on the ground.”

It was not just unemployment that Rashid had to fight; social stigma fenced him from a good life.

“I couldn’t marry till I was almost 40. No one was ready to marry their daughter to an ex-militant, the tag makes you alien in our society.”

Rashid was forced into manual labour which is his means of earning now.

Rashid’s associate Iqbal was driven to unemployment due to his militant background, which even brought his marriage to breakup.

“I was not able to support my children and wife. My wife grew sick and threatened to divorce me. We reached the stage of separation,” said Iqbal, 45.

Iqbal was imprisoned in 1998 and released after eight years.

“Even after giving up guns, we are eyed with suspicion by people and authorities. Whenever any untoward incident takes place in our areas, we are called for questions first,” Iqbal told IPS.

Iqbal says normal life is impossible for ex-militants because neither the government nor people help in overcoming the trauma they face.

“There is no rehabilitation, no job prospect -we are left in the lurch.”

Forty-year-old Ibrahim was jailed for 15 years. After release he not only lost his family but his normal state of mind.

“He lives alone despite a wife and son, survives on medicines and fighting an insane mental state. There is no caretaker, no family, no money, no job for him,” said Masood, Ibrahim’s cousin.

Ibrahim developed many ailments in jail, he said. “But it was the death of his father and alienation from his brothers that drove Ibrahim to an insane mental state. The government never came to rehabilitate him. He is left to die.”

Experts point to the need for rehabilitation measures such as vocational training within prisons, counseling, education and recreation.

“The behaviour and inclination of the prisoner has to be assessed and accordingly he has to be rehabilitated to keep him away from crime. But such things are completely missing in our prisons,” Prof A.G.Madhosh, educationist and psychologist told IPS.

Madhosh, former head of faculty of education at the University of Kashmir, stressed the need for job avenues for former militants.

“We don’t have to push them towards wrong but pull them away from delinquency. Without proper rehabilitation they suffer emotionally, psychologically, financially and socially,” Madhosh told IPS.

Sociologists say former militants are treated like outcasts in society.

“Thousands of youth on both sides of Kashmir suffer as they are denounced by the government, relatives, family, friends – everyone. They are the worst sufferers of the conflict,” sociologist at the University of Kashmir, Prof Bashir Ahmad Dabla told IPS.