Pakistan Reader# 517, 14 January 2023
Abigail Miriam Fernandez
On 12 January, demonstrators in South Waziristan’s Wana agreed to end their seven-day-long sit-in after they signed an agreement with the government. This comes after the resident held a sit-in against the recent wave of terrorism and demanded the immediate restoration of peace in the region.
What was the government’s response?
South Waziristan Lower deputy commissioner while speaking to Dawn said, “We have successfully held negotiations and accepted a few demands immediately. Remaining issues of the protesters will be resolved soon,” adding that the local administration has labelled all demands of the people as genuine and that the government had already accepted them. Further, the official also assured the resident that the release of MNA Ali Wazir would be the top priority of the government.
What were the demands and who were the participants of the demonstrations?
On 6 January, the resident began their demonstration by staging a sit-in at the district headquarters Wana in favour of their demands. They were demanding restoration of peace, ending armed groups, reopening of Angor Adda border crossing with Afghanistan for business activities and a ban on vehicles with tinted glasses besides the release of Ali Wazir and recovery of abducted Jamshed Wazir.
The demonstrations were attended by people from all walks of life including political workers, social activists, traders and youth. During the sit-in, leaders from the PPP, PTM, PML-N and AWP addressed the gathering stating that the government was responsible for establishing safety and security in the region, asserting that terrorism was not acceptable at any cost.
References
“Wana people end sit-in after agreement,” Dawn, 13 January 2023
Dilawar Wazir, “Thousands take to the streets in South Waziristan’s Wana against rising terrorism,” Dawn, 6 January 2023
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