Swat security situation ‘improved’: survey

PESHAWAR: A vast majority of Swat residents have described the security situation in the region after the military operation as “improved” while blaming the previous provincial government of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal for “not effectively fighting” militancy, a survey released on Friday revealed.
According to the survey by Peshawar-based Regional Institute of Policy Research and Training (RIPORT), the use of illegal FM radio stations, illiteracy, religion and the new governance system introduced in 2001 had contributed to the growth of militancy in the valley where the military used full force to evict the Taliban last year.
The survey, conducted in February and March, involved responses from 384 randomly selected households scattered over 16 union councils of the district and its design had a five percent margin of error. It covers a large area of the drivers of conflict and provides a comprehensive coverage of subjects that are divided into: strategic communication, development, foreign intervention, governance, security, social tradition, religion and poverty.
Khalid Aziz, the author of the survey, said, “The survey report is a timely warning to the government to improve security and provide reforms to deal with the situation in Swat or the cycle of death and destruction that has now been brought under control will re-emerge with a vengeance once the military withdraws.” An overwhelming majority of Swat residents - 78 percent of the respondents - said the security situation had “improved” after the military deployment, while just nine percent looked dissatisfied with the current situation, the survey revealed.
The survey found 78 percent respondents agreeing that illegal FM stations helped spread militancy, while 56 percent linked communications’ effectiveness to the spread of the Taliban in the district. The survey found that 75 residents believed the Friday sermon was used for “mobilisation of support for militancy” while 19 percent disagreed.