NAMUNC VI
UN General Assembly:
[COMMITTEE]
The Swat Valley
What is
the Swat Valley?
Well, here’s a
map.
As the New York
Times aptly
puts it, “Swat is a lush and picturesque valley.” The valley lies in the
northern region of Pakistan, 100 miles northwest of Pakistan’s capital,
Islamabad. Home to 1.3 million residents, Swat Valley is rich in culture and
tourism, and remained relatively secular. That is, until the Taliban
arrived.
What has
happened?
In 2007, the
Pakistani Taliban began to fight the secular Pakistani government, targeting
officials and politicians with suicide bombs and more. 3 000 Taliban
militants currently have the upper hand against 12 000 Pakistani army
troops. The Taliban’s goal is simple: uphold strict Islamic law.
On February 16,
2009, Pakistan
agreed to a truce with the Taliban, allowing the insurgency to institute
Shariah, or Islamic law, in the Swat Valley region. According to the
North-West Frontier Province’s chief minister Amir Haider Khan Hoti,
Pakistani troops are now only in “retaliation mode,” under the terms of the
accord.
On February 24,
2009, Maulana Fazlullah, leader of the Taliban group in Swat,
declared an extended cease-fire beyond the truce of Feb. 16. The
Pakistani military, however, awaits “lasting peace” before it will pull out
entirely.
Causes?
Some blame US
drone attacks for driving terrorists out of neighboring Afghanistan into
Pakistan, especially areas like the Swat Valley, but the issue at hand only
arose when the secular Awami National Party was elected by the people of
Swat in 2007. The divide between the ultra-conservative Taliban and the
liberal, secular government began the conflict that erupted into violence.
Effects?
Since 9/11, it
has been a challenge to be a liberal Muslim in Pakistan. Now, with the
Taliban in charge, the situation has worsened.
Girls’ schools have been
shut down and burned and arts and culture in Swat have been
slowly crushed under the new government. More gruesomely, the Taliban
has carried out almost daily,
public punishments: floggings and even beheadings. Hundreds of thousands
of Swat residents have now fled the region, although many of the poor
remain.
Future
Issues?
Many fear that
the Taliban’s intrusions into Pakistani lifestyles will only worsen with
time. President Asif Ali Zardari’s truce with the Taliban has been condemned
as appeasement, and it is feared that such accessions will only make the
militants more eager to spread their control.
Who can
(and will) help?
Salman Ahmad, of
the Washington Post,
thinks that the United Nations and United States (especially President
Obama) would be instrumental in rectifying the situation in Swat. Says
Ahmad: “America must help strengthen Pakistani civil society” by
collaborating with “humanitarians and educators.” He also suggests artistic
collaboration to “empower the voices that the Taliban seek to silence the
most.” Ahmad also states that Islamic scholars, through the global reach of
the UN, must condemn the terrorists’ actions, and, by doing so, remove the
militants’ claim to Islamic (religious) legitimacy.
The
biggest help, however, is only 100 miles distant, in the capital city of
Islamabad: the Pakistani government. It is your job to decide what the
Pakistani government should do to avert this crisis. Below are some
important sources you can use to help you research your cabinet member’s
position on the subject.
Names to
Know:
Maulana Fazlullah – radical cleric and leader of the Taliban in the Swat
valley
Asif Ali Zardari – president of Pakistan
Links:
News & Opinions
Swat Valley News – The New York Times
(Hint: read Tom
Ricks’ opinion—an intriguing point of view)
Swat Valley Blues - The Opinionator Blog
(NYT)
Pakistan Makes a Taliban Truce, Creating a Haven
(NYT)
In Pakistan, Radio Amplifies Terror of Taliban
(NYT)
On Faith Panelists Blog: Rescuing Pakistan From The Taliban
(Washington Post)
Taliban Says Cease-Fire Will Continue
(Washington Post)
Pakistani Government Must Protect Swat Valley Citizens
(Amnesty Int’l)
Swat is Burning
(“Swat group
opposed to the Taliban,” according to NYT)
The News
(Pakistan’s
English-language newspaper)
