Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan announces the suspension of peace talks, February 2014. Aamir Qureshi—AFP
Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan tells journalists the government is in dialogue with groups who have never attacked Pakistan’s interests.
Interior minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said on Thursday the government was in contact with some militant groups, as talks with the main Taliban faction remained stalled.
A day after pledging to press ahead with deadly airstrikes on Taliban targets in the country’s tribal regions, Khan said dialogue was still a priority as the government tries to end its seven-year insurgency that has killed thousands.
Talks between the government and representatives of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which began earlier this month, were suspended after the militants killed 23 soldiers. The military responded with a series of airstrikes that have left more than 100 insurgents dead, but Khan said the government was still open to talks—with the right people.
“We will talk to those groups who are not against Pakistan,” he told journalists in Peshawar. “We are in contact with groups that have never attacked Pakistan’s interests, we have dialogue for them.” He gave no details of which groups he meant.
His comments could revive fears that Pakistan is maintaining a policy of distinguishing between “good” militants who can be used to further strategic goals abroad, and “bad” militants who attack domestic targets.
Pakistan has been strongly criticized by the United States and Afghanistan in recent years for sheltering and patronizing militants such as the Haqqani network, who attack NATO and Afghan forces across the border.
On Wednesday Khan unveiled Pakistan’s first-ever counterterrorism policy, seven years since the TTP rose up and began its bloody campaign against the state. The minister said every act of violence would in future be met with an attack on the militants’ bases, which lie mainly in the North Waziristan tribal district on the Afghan border.
Commenting on the status of the dialogue between the government and Taliban representatives, Khan said Wednesday that while talks have been put on hold they could “resume anytime soon and both negotiations and targeted strikes will go hand in hand.”
1 comment
The policy of separating good and bad Taliban is wrong headed. All citizens are subject universally to the same laws.
Anyone whether in the uniform of the state or in the guise of its “allies” who breaks these laws is a criminal to be treated as such whatever his/her rank or usefulness. Justice is fairly straightforward and simple until you introduce tricky sleight of hand into it. To be effective, justice should be transparent and even handed.