With Unrest in Swat, Landowners Remain in Exile (The New York Times)
"The landlords, many of whom raised sizable militias to fight the Taliban themselves last year, say the army is again failing to provide enough protection if they return.
"Another deterrent to returning, they say, is that the top Taliban leadership, responsible for taking aim at the landlords and spreading the spoils among the landless, remains unscathed.
"If it continues, the landlords’ absence will have lasting ramifications not only for Swat, but also for Pakistan’s most populated province, Punjab, where the landholdings are vast, and the militants are gaining power, said Vali Nasr, a senior adviser to Mr. Holbrooke, the American envoy.
"'If the large landowners are kept out by the Taliban, the result will in effect be property redistribution,' Mr. Nasr said. 'That will create a vested community of support for the Taliban that will see benefit in the absence of landlords.'"
See also anti-caste: WHAT IS THE CLASS NATURE OF THE CONFLICT IN SWAT? (April 16, 2009) and AFTER PAKISTANI GOVT ACCEPTS TRUCE WITH THE TALIBAN... (February 23, 2009)
And see:
report on peasant uprising in Swat (Pakistan Forum, June-July 1972)
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