Protesters block roads as South Waziristan sit-in continues

Almost all the roads leading to various destinations of the district kept blocked by the protesters as the sit-in continued for the sixth consecutive day despite chilling winter and rain in South Waziristan on Wednesday.

The protesters have blocked Wana-Angoor Adda road, Wana-Tank road, Wana-Razmak road and others to protest the rising incidents of target-killing, kidnapping for ransom, extortion, terrorism, militancy and other crimes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in general and South Waziristan in particular.

Thousands of residents, workers and activists of almost all the political parties, rights activists, civil society members, doctors, lawyers, traders, students from every nook and corner of South Waziristan are participating in the sit-in to demand restoration of lasting peace in the region.

The organisers threatened to expand the protest sit-in to other areas if the government did not accept their 10-point agenda of demands forthwith.

They said that roads for the government officials would be blocked and their movement would be restricted as a pressure tactic to resolve the longstanding issues of militancy and terrorism and other crimes of heinous nature.

The protesters have gathered at Rustam Adda Bazaar in Wana, the headquarters of South Waziristan tribal district, to make the government take notice of the poor law and order and acts of terrorism. The protesters complained that the incidents of target-killing, extortion and kidnapping for ransom had witnessed an alarming increase in recent months.

They said the lawlessness and spike in violence had compelled the local people to take to the streets.

Also, all the shops, marketplaces, filling stations and hotels in Wana have been closed since the launch of the protest movement. The shopkeepers have pulled down the shutters to record their protest against acts of subversion and volatile security situation in the South Waziristan tribal district.

The protesters are also demanding the safe recovery of a trader, Jamshed Wazir, who was kidnapped by armed men from Wana Bazaar one month back. The protesters have stayed put under the open sky despite the harsh weather and have presented a list of demands to the local authorities.

They complained that it seemed the government was least bothered to accept the demands.