Factually, بیانات | December 19, 2013, 5:56 am

US drone strike sabotaged peace process - Imran Khan

mostly true

Statement

The “US drone strike sabotaged the peace process,” Imran Khan, chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), told media persons in response to the drone strike that killed Hakimullah Mehsud, chief of the Tehreek Taliban Pakistan (TTP), on November 1, 2013.

Background

The Peace Process:  On Sept. 09, 2013, an All Parties Conference (APC) was held in Islamabad and discussed national security issues. The APC, comprising top leadership from all political parties,  decided to “Give Peace (with Taliban) a Chance.” The political parties, the army chief and the chief of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), agreed on the resolution that the federal government, in support of the Khyber Pukhtunkhwa government, would initiate peace talk with TTP leadership.

The resolution stipulated, “We are unanimous that the use of drones is not only a continued violation of our territorial integrity but also detrimental to our resolve and efforts of eliminating extremism and terrorism from our country.” Furthermore, the APC recommended, “The federal government should consider the possibility of taking the drone issue to the United Nations as drone attacks are a violation of international law.”

The Check

“This was deliberate targeting of the peace process” said Imran Khan while talking to the BBC. He claimed, “The US clearly knew what was going on and everyone in Pakistan knew what was going on. We had been waiting for two months for this peace process to start, and then finally when everyone came to a consensus for peace, they destroyed the peace process.”

“This time, it was a really, really serious effort for peace talk with TTP,” Shiraz Paracha, spokesman for the chief minister of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province where Imran Khan’s party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf is in power, told Truth Tracker by phone. “But it is ruined by the drone strike.”

“It would be difficult to restore the peace process after the killing of Hakimullah Mahsud,” jouralist Rahim Ullah Yousafzai, an authority on Pak-Afghan and Taliban affairs, told to Truth Tracker by phone.

“TTP already believes that the drone strikes occur with the consultation of the [Pakistan] government and now it would be more difficult to convince them for negotiations,” Yousafzai added.

“It was harmful for the peace process, but the peace-talks themselves were doubtful,” said Mahmood Shah, security and defense analyst. He said, “We didn’t observe  practical steps on the ground and the TTP also confirmed that the government didn’t contact them in this regard.”

“People support  negotiations, as two major parties - the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and PTI - had intended to hold them.” Shah stated, on the other hand, that “the peace-talks have been fruitless as we experienced in Swat and FATA,” he added.

Responding to the question of whether TTP agreed to negotiations because that way it could get time to regroup, Yousfzai stated, “the peace-talks offer came from the government not TTP. If we presume it is true, then the option was available to both sides - the government could have also revamped its strategy. I believe, though, that the combatants have a Plan-A and Plan-B to cope with the situation as it arises.”

Paracha said, “It was not for diplomatic or trade talks but to discuss a complex and sensitive issue of the country that required more efforts and time.” He claimed, “The peace talks are required for the peace and existence of Pakistan and we need to restore them, which seems difficult at this time.”

The drone strike and death of Hakimullah Mehsud remained a hot topic over  social media. Sherry Rehman, former Pakistan ambassador to the US, tweeted “H. Mehsud should not be valourized, even if his death was at the hands of a US drone. Pakistan govt needs to set its red lines on terrorism too [.]”

However, a senior journalist and TV anchor Hamid Mir, replied to the tweet with a question, “Why Hakimullah Mehsud killed when agreed to talks? Why not before when he visited Afghanistan many times? Very valid question.”

Judgment

Taking into account the expert views and broad Pakistani public opinion, we can say that the statement is mostly true.

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Author: Most of my experiences were based on emergency and conflict reporting. Just after completing my masters in journalism and Mass communication, I worked as a humanitarian program producer with INTERNEWS Network in earthquake zone for more than a year in 2005. Being a producer of the program, I highlighted voices of the people and connected them with relief organizations. During Swat crises I worked with PACT RADIO as station manager. Establishment of FM radio in militants control area was one of my professional achievement, and with the help of my team, we successfully grabbed audience from MULLAH RADIO (Illegal radio runs by militants). The strategy was useful to encounter their propaganda and give balanced opinion to the local community. Being team leader and in charge of editorial policy in PACT RADIO, my focus was human interest stories and common people problems, especially the problems of IDPs and those who stuck in their homes due to military operation as more than three hundred thousand people stuck in their homes without medical and food facilities. I worked with IMEDIA as radio team leader for tribal area of Pakistan, and currently working as an Executive producer for INTERMEDIA; am leading a radio production team of Khyber Agency of FATA, Pakistan. I also established a local organization "Media Dimensions Swat" our slogan is "education through media". Specialties: I have the creativity to disseminate human interest stories in the light of latest journalistic approaches with international standards. I believe public voices are more attractive and interesting for audience and readers as compared to other piece of journalism. Such creative precedents of my work can be observed at BBC outlook world services. I am proud Alumni of DW- ACKADEMIE , International Center for Journalists (ICFJ), Alfred Friendly Press Fellowship (AFPF) and Daniel Pearl/Saleem Shahzad Fellowship program.
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