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FATA Merger – Developments and Challenges so Far

by Shagufta Khalique

Following a string of quick legislative moves, President Mamnoon Hussain signed and sealed the 25th Constitutional Amendment on May 31, 2018, putting an end to the British colonial legacy called the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). The Amendment finally put the region on the way to mainstream integration through the merger with the north-western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province.

The merger of seven (ex-FATA) agencies and six frontier regions generated new political, territorial and demographic dynamics and required new administrative structures to take care of the additional population from the ex-FATA regions. It necessitated several administrative, and constitutional measures such as:

  1. Replacement of the draconian Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR), a special set of laws enforced in the early 20th century, with the law of the land.
  2. Adjustments in the number of seats in the federal and provincial assemblies; 366 seats for KP in the National Assembly, 96 seats in the Senate – the upper house – while the KP Assembly members of parliament rose from 124 to 145 after the addition of 21 seats. These included 16 general seats and four reserved.
  • Creation of new district administrative structures for a population of about 17,743,645. KP’s population has swollen to 20,919,976 spread over 101,741 square-kilometers.

In order to facilitate and closely monitor the merger process, Prime Minister’s Task Force for mainstreaming the merged tribal districts was announced on September 04, 2018 with well-defined terms of reference (TORs). The Chief Minister of KP heads the task force, an advisory and monitoring body to look into the planning and execution of proposed measures for smooth transition of the process at all levels. It comprises federal and provincial ministers, advisors and secretaries. Meanwhile, at the provincial level, a seven-member committee headed by Mr. Atif Khan, Tourism Minister, was also constituted. It includes the Finance Minister, Law Minister, Information Minister and the Inspector General of Police, KP. After some reservations and criticism, Additional Chief Secretary, Mr. Shazad Bangash, Chief Secretary, Mr. Kamran Naveed, and Home Secretary, Mr. Ikram, were also included in the committee. However, the committee never officially functioned and the provincial cabinet is now looking after the post-integration scenario.

The major decisions as per the meeting on January 1, 2019 of the task force with the PM and different stakeholders set a framework for the planning and implementation of development activities for the tribal districts. However, the task force has been dissolved and the matters are now handled by the provincial cabinet. The key areas taken into consideration were:

  1. Interim Governance Regulation:

The abolition of FCR and promulgation of the Interim Governance Regulation for the interim period to provide legal cover to the transition period.

  1. Health:
    Extension of the Independent Monitoring Unit (IMU) to the merged areas to demonstrate immediate provision of staff and removal of deficiencies from 7 District Head Quarters (DHQs). Immediate recruitment will offer livelihood to 2,200 families.
  2. Law and Order:

To fill the 2,200 vacant posts of levies, training of levies to be conducted according to police standards and the police to move inside in a sequential manner. Establishment of courts for a uniform judicial system with the provision of Dispute Resolution Councils (DRCs), a method of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), which has been beneficial to the people despite the violations of human rights.

  1. Finance:

Punjab and KP, along with the Federal Government, to provide three percent of their share from the federal development budget. The provincial budget shall include a budget for erstwhile FATA in FY 2019-2020 making it the legal responsibility of the Provincial Assembly and the Cabinet.

  1. Education:

To show the immediate presence of the government, checking for absent teachers and identification of missing facilities, extension of the IMU system, fulfilling the needs of all high schools, vacant posts to be filled and sanctioning of new posts needs to be carried out.

  1. Political Participation:

Enact the Local Government Act and hold local government elections at the same time as provincial which will ensure grass-root level ownership. District level elders nominated by tribes for peacekeeping and conflict resolution in coordination with elected local bodies members.

  1. Overall Governance:

Abolition of all posts of Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) (FATA); matters dealt by the ACS to be transferred to secretary home and tribal affairs. Ministers and secretaries will start visiting merged districts to ensure the visibility of the government. The Cabinet is to take an update of the progress through a special cabinet meeting every two months for better coordination and better supervision. Vigilance by the administration so that corrupt and inefficient practices are shunned.

The guidelines set were quite comprehensive and self-explanatory. In pursuance of integration and to provide a better line of management administration, the following directorates working under FATA Secretariat were directed by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Establishment Department on November 15, 2018 to report to the respective secretary of the KP Government: the Directorate of Agriculture, Directorate of Livestock and Dairy, Directorate of Fisheries, Directorate of Forests, Directorate of Irrigation, Directorate of Sports, Directorate of Industries, Directorate of Technical Education, Directorate of Skills, FIFA Small Dams, Directorate of Minerals Oil, Roads and Infrastructure. On December 11, 2018, the Directorate of Agriculture and Research, Directorate of Local Government and Rural Development Works and Services and Public Health Engineering were merged. The notification by the Establishment Department on January 16, 2019 orders the merger of FATA Disaster Management Authority (FDMA) and Rehabilitation Unit with the KP Government which will report to the Secretary of Relief, Rehabilitation and Settlement Department. The latest press conference by the Provincial Minister of Information, Mr. Shaukat Yousufzai, on January 16, 2019 shared the developments in alignment with the targets and objectives set in the first meeting. He shared that the immediate recruitment of 15,000 employees out of 30,000 vacant posts in line departments and offices and 6,000 police constables and officers will be ensured in the first meeting.

Another major development was the notification by the Home and Tribal Affairs Department KP on January 29, 2019 declaring the seven tribal districts as session divisions and seven Frontier Regions as the subdivisions which will pave the way for setting up regular courts in the region. A recent step by Governor Shah Farman is the formulation of an advisory board with Mr. Umer Khan as the chairman and Mr. Rustam Shah, Mr. Laiq and Mr. Sangal as members; however, the board has become controversial. Firstly, this is due to the presence of Mr. Rustam Shah who has openly opposed the merger, and secondly, under the 1973 Constitution the Governor cannot exercise such authority. To ensure access to the formal justice system, Chief Minister Mehmood Khan issued the directives for the appointment of judges and support staff in the merged tribal districts.

Apparently, the overall scenario seems satisfactory after statements and news pouring in daily after the visits of Mr. Atif Khan, Minister of Tourism, Mr. Shaukat Yousufzai, Minister of Health and Information, Mr. Amjad Ali, Minister of Minerals, Mr. Abdul Karim, Advisor to CM on Industries and Mr. Zia Ullah Bangash, Advisor to CM on Education. However, a holistic approach seems to be the missing link and each department seems to be operating in isolation.

The transition period is the most sensitive period as far as rule of law and dispute resolution is concerned. Currently, a constitutional and legal vacuum exists after the abolition of FCR and IGR. The PA’s designation has been renamed as DC, yet there is confusion and the decision is being taken in the absence of legal directives following the past practices under FCR or IGR. Extension of the judiciary on emergency grounds must be handled on an urgent basis. KP Government requested the High Court for an extension in the timeline for the extension of the judicial system and a six-month extension has been granted as well. The Provincial Government has decided to carry on the traditional Jirga with modifications and the introduction of DRCs. Experienced Jirga elders have been involved in conflict resolution for decades; however, the inclusion of the members with the clarity on ADR Human Rights and Reconciliation will help as this informal mechanism of justice would not require any specific infrastructure and can be carried out in a traditional manner with some modification.

Another mega challenge is law enforcement; the Levies and Khasadar Force. Around 14,000 Levies and Khasadar personnel are working in erstwhile FATA. The Khasadars are mostly illiterate and from poor families. Their selection is based on nominations by the Maliks. Each agency had its own rules and conventions for the Khasadar service. No induction or in-service training was imparted and every tribal agency has the Khasadari system, whereas Levies are provided weapons by the government. They are recruited from amongst the indigenous tribes. Unlike Khasadar Force, Levy Force is better trained. The induction of Levies and Khasadar into KP Police would be a big challenge for the Provincial Government. It needs to be resolved on an urgent basis so that mistrust and misunderstandings are not allowed to creep in.

People of the newly integrated tribal districts of KP are eagerly waiting for the political process to start. The most recent development is the completion of demarcation/delimitation process and Election Commission’s directive expected to announce the date of local bodies’ election. One segment believes it has to start off from macro to micro. To initiate political participation, the election for the Provincial Assembly should have been the first step due to two reasons. Firstly, the elected MP will be in position to receive the funds from ADP and NFC Award in June 2019. Secondly, if the elections for the Provincial Assembly are held before the local bodies’, the voters will just have to vote for the MPA with a single ballot paper. If the local bodies elections are conducted first, the public will not be educated on the local bodies system as the KP government had introduced a seven-tier system of local bodies, and if the same model is to be opted for, it is going to be quite confusing for the voters. Also as a first step it is suggested that the simplest form of local bodies be introduced.

Health and educational rights are the topmost priority and steps should be taken on emergency basis in the newly integrated tribal districts. Almost 1,000 schools stand demolished during militancy and a host of other educational institutes have several missing facilities. As per Mr. Zia Ullah Bangash, the provincial educational policy will be applied to these districts as well. All the schools will be renovated and reconstructed.

Suggestions:

After the merger of FATA line departments with the provincial government, news is pouring in on daily basis. However, coherence and coordination among different government departments is needed to achieve the targets in minimum time with appropriate planning and use of resources. Tribal districts had informal mechanisms under the supervision of PA. Similarly, the communication system in the tribal districts need upgrading, for example Bajaur and Waziristan don’t have internet facilities yet. The Tirah Vally (Khyber, Orakzai and Kurrum districts) still don’t have mobile service.

New schools will be established on a need basis. There is news of the establishment of Army Public School in Khyber District but the monthly fee may result in dropouts due to low incomes in the conflict stricken areas. The education department should initiate simple and low-cost programs for the enrollment of students.

The capacity of both male and female teachers can be built to access the communities along with new appointments being incentivized. The health card issuance has been reassured to tribal families; however, it needs to be addressed on an emergency basis.

Sensitization programs on human rights, equal citizenry, voting, local bodies’ structures, administrative systems and procedures, and State’s formal justice system should be initiated in collaboration with the education department and civil society organizations. There are 27 civil society organizations currently active under the umbrella of FATA youth Jirga. They can be engaged in sensitization programs on electoral process and administrative issues.

The female population must be accessed as their inclusion politically, socially and economically will make a difference. Need based skill development programs can be introduced for the female population which will not only support their self-reliance but also help in the economic development of the region.

The male and female teaching resource can be involved in several programs due to their reach to the students and community. Teachers can be trained to access the female community for raising the awareness level. In a recent development, women have been deployed in Levies in Bajaur and similar initiatives in all districts can encourage female participation. As a kick start, 20 women will be recruited for the Levies Force to be appointed in Bajaur for the first time in the district’s history.

Presently, Kurram and Khyber already have female Levies personnel. The process must continue for all the tribal districts as it will be an employment opportunity and the inclusion of women will ensure rule of law and peace building process. Inclusion of tribal elders as advisors in the development plans can be one of the steps in trust building as they still have influence in the communities.