PESHAWAR: Militants in Wana who have made peace with the
government are claiming that they have been paid only Rs 4.2 million of the
promised amount of Rs 90 million to rebuild homes demolished during the
military operations.
Haji Mohammad Omar, former commander of the tribal
militants and successor to the late Nek Mohammad, also contested a statement
by Corps Commander Peshawar Lt Gen Safdar Hussain that they had demanded
money from the government to repay money they owed to al-Qaeda. "We
neither made such a demand nor were we paid Rs 50 million. We didn’t owe
any money to al-Qaeda people or to foreign militants. Besides, there is no
al-Qaeda in South Waziristan," he told The News in a phone call from his
village Kalooshah near Wana.
Haji Omar was one of the five Ahmadzai Wazir tribal
militants who a few months ago concluded a peace agreement with the
government after accepting an offer of amnesty in return for a pledge to
renounce militancy and live in peace. The other four were his brother Haji
Sharif, Javed Khan Karmazkhel, Maulvi Mohammad Abbas and Maulvi Abdul Aziz.
Talking to reporters, Corps Commander Lt Gen Safdar
Hussain had said a few days ago that the Wana militants had demanded Rs 170
million to repay loans advanced to them by al-Qaeda people but had settled
for Rs 50 million during the peace negotiations with government emissaries.
However, he claimed he wasn’t aware if the money was paid to the militants
as he referred their demand to the Governor of NWFP.
Haji Omar narrated an entirely different story. There was
no way to verify his version of events even though he insisted that he was
telling the truth. According to him, retired Colonel Inamullah Wazir and
Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) officials who negotiated with him and the
other four militants on behalf of the government paid them Rs 4.2 million in
cash. "Each of us received around Rs 800,000. My brother Haji Sharif and
myself got a total of Rs 1.6 million while our third brother Noor Islam, who
wasn’t part of the peace agreement, didn’t receive any money. This amount
was far less than the losses we incurred as a result of the damage suffered
by our apple orchards and tubewells and demolition of our four family houses
plus a hospital in Kalooshah that alone was worth more than Rs 4
million," he explained.
Haji Omar recalled that Corps Commander Peshawar had
promised on the occasion of the Shakai agreement in April 2004 that the
tribesmen whose homes were demolished or damaged during the military
operations would be paid Rs 90 million as compensation. "That amount
hasn’t been paid. Though it was only a rough estimate of the losses
suffered by us and less than our calculations at that point of time, the
government hasn’t paid even that amount," he stressed.
In Haji Omar’s view, their losses amounted to not less
than Rs 150 million or even up to Rs 170 million. He disclosed that four
government officials including an engineer were presently surveying their
demolished homes, agricultural land, tubewells and other properties in
Kalooshah and other villages including Shakai to assess the damage and to
calculate losses. "Three of our men accompany the government team and
there is work is almost complete. They painstakingly make measurements on the
ground to work out the correct costs of buildings and land and we are hoping
their survey would provide accurate figures of our monetary loss," he
said.
Haji Omar reminded that the government was also required
to compensate the families of tribes people who were killed and wounded in
the military operations and aerial bombing. "The government promised
compensation at the rate of Rs 800,000 each for the dead and Rs 300,000 for
every injured person. According to our calculations, 55 persons were killed
and around 150 sustained injuries in the military operations," he
informed.
Arguing that the militants were abiding by the peace
agreement and had not fired a single shot since it came into force, Haji Omar
complained that the government had been slow to compensate those who suffered
human and material losses in the military operations.
He also pointed out that the military has yet to withdraw
soldiers manning two checkpoints at Zam Cheena and Neeza Naray in the Wana
area and replace them with Frontier Corps militiamen despite its promise to
do so under the peace agreement. He added that seven tribesmen were still
behind the bars even though 400 others were freed after the signing of the
Wana agreement.
