The Khyber-Pakhtoonkhwa, formerly the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) of Pakistan is a complex region. The Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA), an even more remote and radicalized state than K-P, borders it. Together they make up the provincial northwestern region of Pakistan that is technically considered a lawless area. However, this region can be more accurately described not as lawless, but as governed by its tribal population, with less corruption and more rational and systematic thinking than the officials in Islamabad. The tribes here have a sacred oath to anyone who seeks their hospitality and assistance. These obligations and responsibilities are granted unconditionally; however, the guests in question are often criminals and terrorists who have escaped from Afghanistan or other areas, seeking protection and shelter. Many countries complain that this region’s allegiance to these criminals only perpetuates terrorism in this area. This is the nexus of the problem that Pakistan has with the Northwestern region, and the government’s inability to reign in this area, is the problem the US has with Pakistan.

In 2001, thousands of Afghan Taliban and their al Qaeda guests fled to Waziristan in the FATA, and are now fighting NATO troops - successfully. Their strength and skill is unmatched against any foe. If Islamist terror has a headquarters, it is here. When the military tried to reign in this region in October of 2009, the Wazirs employed suicide bombers all around the country and killed over 500 people and injured thousands of others in major cities like Rawalpindi, Lahore, and Islamabad. The Pakistani army is truly impotent against these warriors, and seems to not have learned from the mistakes of others before them who have tried to control this group. However, even with the use of military force, there is another significant problem: there is a great deal of corruption within the Pakistani intelligence, police and government. These entities cannot be circumvented when addressing an issue as large as the Northwestern region. Many plans have already failed due to leaks, and there are also reports that many of the bombs that were planted in the other parts of the country were done so by local ISI agents. Additionally, it is very difficult for a Pakistani to consider a citizen of his state more dangerous than say, an Indian. Much of the funding that America has donated to Pakistan to support their fight against terrorism has instead been distributed to reinforcing troops and equipment on the Indian border. In this fight against the Northwest region, the Pakistani government may not be America’s strongest ally.

Currently Pakistan is facing a deluge of problems, both internationally and domestically, some independent of what is occurring in the northwestern region. Within the last few weeks alone, Pakistan has had to deal with a plane crash that killed all passengers on board, WikiLeaks accusation of the ISI supporting terrorists, floods killing about 1,500 people and displacing millions, insurgents attacking army personnel as they try to help flood victims, and accusations from The UK Prime Minister, David Cameron, about Pakistan “exporting terror.” All the while, Pakistan never seems to lose sight of their true nemesis - India. Which begs the question, how can the country prioritize the Northwest in the midst of all of these other problems?

There’s Only One Solution

The Northwest’s significance and strength has hardly diminished since the start of the war, likely due to their unrelenting support of each other in the area. The Northwest region’s tribal council conducts all judicial matters, and all punishments are based on their codes. The tribes are mostly free to decide matters among themselves, which they often do, remarkably well, through tribal customary law. In most of the tribal areas, there is no written law, and until 2001, there was not much crime either. They have a certain methodology of how things should run, and follow those rules very rigidly. And it is this sensibility that Pakistan and America must capitalize on, if they want their cooperation.

The demarcation between Pakistan and Afghanistan seems obsolete, as many people here have a stronger allegiance to the population on the other side of the border, than to their own country. They are cohesive in their approach to adversaries, and do not distinguish between the Pakistani military and foreign troops in their fight for sovereignty. This region behaves like a sovereign nation, and must be addressed from this perspective. If America and Pakistan can bring these parties together for discussions to address everyone’s needs, greater progress can be made than with combat alone. Although, the Peace jirga in Afghanistan was not successful, new efforts such as these must be made in this region, as well, in order to show the civilian population and the warring parties that the ultimate objective is to live peacefully. The populations of the tribal area are not as primitive as one might expect.