• by Ashfaq Yusufzai (peshawar)
• Friday, July 16, 2010
• Inter Press Service

The threats against officials and ordinary people alike have not stopped, with yet another suicide bomber sowing terror in the district’s main town just on Jul. 15.

But residents of Swat Valley in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province say they are tired of cowering in fright and have come all out in support of the district’s first major event in two years.

'It’s a big event because we hadn’t ever thought that life would flow normal after the fears of people due to the Taliban’s presence,' 25-year-old Jamila Bibi said on the phone from Swat Valley, in reference to the two-week Amn Mela (Peace Festival) organised by the provincial government.

Begun on Jun. 29, the festival closes on July 18. Musical and acrobatic performances are among its attractions, along with a merchandise fair.

Officials of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa — formerly called the North West Frontier Province — say they decided to hold the festival to bring back tourists to Swat Valley, as well as to boost the morale of local residents.

Members of the Islamist Taliban and its ally Al-Qaeda had slipped across the border from Afghanistan years ago, after the Sep. 11 tragedy in New York and Washington triggered a U.S.-led military operation in Afghanistan.

The militants at first took refuge in Pakistan’s lawless Federally Administered Area (FATA), but gradually began sneaking into the adjacent Khyber Paktunkhwa, one of this South Asian country’s four provinces. They took particular interest in Swat, one of the province’s 24 districts and among Pakistan’s most scenic sites.

About 250 kilometres north-east of the Peshawar, the capital city of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Swat had been a favourite destination of tourists due to its cold weather, clear streams, and lush mountains. But instead of sitting back and appreciating Swat’s natural beauty, the Taliban chose to target the district’s music and CD shops, saying they were not keeping in Islam, and attacked police and army personnel.

The Taliban eventually became Swat’s de facto rulers, their reign marked by ruthlessness and extremist views. Even schools and health facilities were not spared from their rampage through Swat, which was finally stopped by the Pakistan military last year.

These days, many of Swat’s 1.7 million people are breathing a little bit easier. 'I was hungry to go to marketplace but it was like inviting death during the Taliban’s era,' said Saeeda Bibi, 26. 'Now, we are coming here every day.'

She has made it a point to visit the festival, where she said stalls of household items had caught her eye. Added Bibi: 'There is no element of fear and we do shopping confidently due to strict security measures taken the security forces.'

Jamil Chaudhry of Lahore has now also begun visiting Swat once more. 'I drive the car for 10 hours… to spend some time in Swat along with family,' he said. '(We) used to come here every year except the last two years when Taliban were at the helm of affairs.'

Swat Traders Federation President Abdur Rahim said it was the residents who actually thought of holding the peace festival as they wanted tourists to come back and pump some life into the local economy.

While the provincial government took the lead in organising it, most of the arrangements were made in consultation with local business people, hoteliers, community elders, and members of civil society.

'We are enjoying this rare opportunity with the hope that this event would go a long way to revive the dwindling tourism that has traditionally been the prime source of income for the people,' said Swat Hoteliers President Zahid Khan.

He said the Swat hotel industry suffered 90 million dollars in losses until 2009, while the district’s tourism sector suffered losses of about 420 million dollars.

Due to the lack of tourists and the destruction of hotels by the Taliban in the past one and a half years, Khan said total losses are probably in the area of one billion dollars. 'Now we hope that we can revive our falling businesses,' he told IPS.

But the festival has also done a lot to restore the residents’ confidence in themselves, as well as in the place they call home.

Jamila Bibi said that because of the festival, she dared to venture out farther from her home for the first time since July 2007. 'My two daughters and a son are enjoying the colourfully decorated shopping stalls and circus,' she said. 'It is my utmost desire that Swat stays calm.'

Sixteen-year-old Jaweria meanwhile said, 'We are taking the festival as an opportunity to heal our wounds and look for the bright and prosperous future.'

The 12th-grade student also said she was overwhelmed by the wealth of entertainment at the event. At Swat’s Grassy Ground, where the Taliban used to deliver sermons just a year ago, eunuchs danced and musicians and crooners performed. Male and female artists, craftsmen, and even stuntmen also took turns demonstrating their skills at the festival.

Noted Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain: 'There was no word by the name of entertainment in the Taliban’s dictionary and they considered music and dances against Islam. The people are rushing toward Swat in droves, which means that they have rejected the Taliban’s own brand of Islam.'

© Inter Press Service (2010) — All Rights Reserved. Original source: Inter Press Service