The FATA Interim Governance Regulation, 2018 was a law signed by the

President of Pakistan The president of Pakistan () is the head of state of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The president is the nominal head of the executive and the supreme commander of the Pakistan Armed Forces.

on May 28, 2018, which replaces the

Frontier Crimes Regulations The Frontier Crimes Regulations (FCR) were a special set of laws of British Raj, British India, and which were applicable to the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, Tribal Areas. They were enacted by the British Empire in the nineteenth centur ...

(FCR) and outline how the

Federally Administered Tribal Areas The Federally Administered Tribal Areas, commonly known as FATA, was a semi-autonomous tribal region in north-western Pakistan that existed from 1947 until being merged with the neighbouring province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2018 through the ...

will be governed "within a timeframe of two years" as the region is merged with

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ; , ; abbr. KP or KPK), formerly known as the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Northern Pakistan, northwestern region of the country, Khyber ...

through the passage of the Thirty-first Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan. An official described the regulation as a combination of the FCR and the rejected Tribal Areas Rewaj Act. The regulation has been signed under Article 247 of the

Constitution of Pakistan The Constitution of Pakistan ( ; ISO 15919, ISO: '' Āīn-ē-Pākistān''), also known as the 1973 Constitution, is the supreme law of Pakistan. The document guides Pakistan's law, political culture, and system. It sets out the state's outlin ...

which stood to be repealed by the Thirty-first Amendment, which the President has signed on 31 May 2018.

Details

The regulation converts the office of

Political Agent Political Agent or political agent may refer to: *Political Resident, a representative with consular duties and political contacts with local chiefs * Political officer (British Empire), an officer of the British imperial civil administration, also ...

(Pakistan) into the office of Deputy Commissioner, and Assistant Political Agent into Assistant Commissioner. The tribal agencies are replaced by districts and the frontier regions are made sub-divisions. The institution of

jirga A jirga (, ''jərga'') is an assembly of leaders that makes decisions by consensus according to Pashtunwali, the Pashtun social code. It is conducted in order to settle disputes among the Pashtuns, but also by members of other ethnic groups who ...

is maintained as the Council of Elders and as the Quami Jirga. The regulation gives precedence to the 'rewaj' (local customs) determined by the Council of Elders. The establishment of new hamlets or villages, or the creation of towers or walled enclosures on the frontiers of the country, is prohibited without permission of the Deputy Commissioner. The Governor has the power to relocate settlements near the border, as long as it rewards compensation to the inhabitants. The Supreme Court and High Court (Extension of Jurisdiction to Federally Administered Tribal Areas) Act 2018 is not mentioned in the regulation.

Reception

Farhatullah Babar Farhatullah Babar (Urdu, Pashto: ) is a Pakistani leftist politician, engineer and former senator. He is a prominent member of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), having served as a spokesperson for the party. He is a supporter of the Pashtun Ta ...

, a leader of the

Pakistan Peoples Party The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is a political party in Pakistan and one of the three major List of political parties in Pakistan, Pakistani political parties alongside the Pakistan Muslim League (N) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. With a Cent ...

, said the interim regulation should be placed before the

Parliament of Pakistan The Parliament of Pakistan is the supreme Legislature, legislative body of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. It is a bicameralism, bicameral federation, federal legislature, composed of the President of Pakistan and two houses: the Senate of ...

for discussion before its approval. He also stated the regulation should have a sunset clause.

References

Politics of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas 2018 in Pakistani law {{Pakistan-stub