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In print | Published February 26, 2009

Last week, the Pakistani government engaged in controversial negotiations with militants in the Swat Valley of Pakistan. War News Radio’s Emily Hager spoke with Helena Malikyar, a journalist who covers Afghanistan for Radio Free Europe, to find out more about what these negotiations might mean for Pakistan and the security of Afghanistan.

The interview that aired on last week’s show, “Center Stage,” was transcribed by Elizabeth Hipple for this Q&A in The Phoenix. To hear the interview and the rest of the show visit War News Radio’s website at www.warnewsradio.org.

Emily Hager: We’ve seen this week that the Pakistani government has been in negotiations with militants in the Swat valley. They’ve actually agreed to implement Sharia law in that area, so could you tell me a little bit more about that agreement and what do you think prompted these negotiations?

Helena Malikyar: What I’ve seen in the international media for the past couple of days is a misunderstanding of the demands of the people of Swat and of this agreement in general because when usually Western listeners see anything about application of Sharia law, immediately they think this is bad, this means negative effects for women, for human rights, etc., but in fact, in this particular case, in Swat and in general in tribal regions of Pakistan, application of Sharia law would be a good thing for the local people simply because for years they have had to live with a set of laws that are different than the federal laws of Pakistan, and the application of those laws for tribal regions have been put in custody of local strongmen, which has not been good for the local people.

EH: What’ll change when this agreement goes through in terms of what’s actually going on in Swat?

HM: When it comes to the application of Sharia law and how strict it will be, that is also open to observation, if you will, because it will depend on how much the government will have a say in this. It will definitely mean some restrictions on things like women’s rights but then again, in tribal regions of Pakistan, in places like Swat, women’s rights have never been respected no matter what kind of law has been applied, and in fact if they do stick to Sharia law and the Hanafi interpretation of Sharia law, which is the dominant school of law in the area, women will have more rights than they would have now under the customary law that is being practiced.

EH: Do you expect militants to actually keep the terms of this agreement? Should we expect to see peace in the Swat region if this agreement goes through?

HM: It may have a positive effect on the less extremist groups. It may set an example for less extremist groups to negotiate for what they want with their respective governments. Now, of course that has to be distinguished with extremist elements of the Pakistani Taliban and the Afghan Taliban and the al-Qaeda, who have a political agenda to, no matter what, to fight the governments in the area.

EH: So is this the Pakistani government just throwing up their hands, saying, you know, our military approach isn’t working so we’re going to try negotiating now, or is there something more behind the decision to do these negotiations right now?

HM: I don’t think it’s a matter of either or. I think the Pakistani government is trying many different ways now, many different options. The military option, I don’t think, is completely out with the reaching of this agreement. The military presence is still there but this is one way, I think, from the point of view of the government in Islamabad, to reach a period of peace so that they can think of other strategies and they can start implementing other strategies as well.

EH: And what will this mean for Afghanistan and security there?

HM: Well in the short run, whenever there is a truce in Pakistan, that means intensification of fighting in Afghanistan, but in the long run if this ends up to be a successful arrangement it could very well spread to other regions in Pakistan and eventually will also be a model for Afghanistan.

EH: Do you think there would be Afghan support for implementing a similar arrangement in Afghanistan, or for similar kinds of negotiations with the militants there?

HM: In Afghanistan we don’t have this exact same problem, because in Afghanistan there is a constitution which is clearly based on Sharia. Right now in Afghanistan, the kind of law that is being applied is not a problem. What is a problem, in fact, is that laws are not being applied at all because the judiciary is very weak and corrupt.

EH: I know President Karzai in Afghanistan has actually talked about something kind of similar to this, starting negotiations with Taliban who are willing to lay down their arms. Is the success or failure of these negotiations in Pakistan something that could impact the election that’s coming up in Afghanistan this fall?

HM: President Karzai is actually, right now, going through the worst period of his popularity, and his call for negotiations with the Taliban – which, in fact, he has made for some time now, it’s not something new or for the sake of the, you know, winning the elections — has had supporters in Afghanistan, but then, most other Afghan politicians, and those who will be potential candidates also have the same position.

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