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More peace deals with militants in the pipeline: NWFP law minister

* Abdullah says negotiations underway with Mullah Fazlullah, other militants
* Amnesty will only be offered to Pakistani nationals, not foreign militants

By Akhtar Amin

PESHAWAR: More agreements between the NWFP government and militants are in the pipeline, NWFP Law Minister Arshad Abdullah said on Tuesday.

The law minister told Daily Times that the release of Sufi Muhammad, chief of the banned Tehreek Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Muhammadi (TNSM), was a step towards bringing peace to Malakand division. It also delivered the government’s message of peace to other militant organisations, he added.

Asked if amnesty would be granted to other militants, Abdullah said agreements aimed at bringing peace to the country in general and NWFP in particular were in the pipeline, and the government was negotiating with other militant factions, including Fazlullah’s.

Amnesty: However, the law minister made it clear that a government amnesty would only be for Pakistani nationals, not foreign militants.

Asked if the implementation of Shariah law in Malakand division was part of the agreement with the TSNM, the law minister said it was not part of the six-point peace agreement.

In the agreement, Abdullah said that “the organisation [TNSM] assured that the government of Pakistan and state institutions would be respected so that peace and the government’s writ of state could be restored in Malakand region”.

The TNSM also assured the government that if certain elements did not refrain from militancy, the government would have the right to take action against them, he added.

Asked if he felt the agreement would be abided by, Abdullah said the government had released Sufi Muhammad with a ‘changed mindset,’ and he hoped Sufi would work for peace in the troubled region.

Asked how acceptable such deals would be to the army, the law minister said the army would change its approach and back the government’s jirga for peace in NWFP and FATA.

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