30 Jul, 2013
Shooting down a drone isn’t so hard to do – DAWN.COM
Numerous Pakistanis have good reason to act boldly against drone strikes. Think of tribal belt civilians who have lost family members (or homes, limbs, or livelihoods), or who have been traumatised by the telltale humming of drones.
Some of these people have sought legal assistance. Several months ago, a Pakistani court sided with them and ordered the government to end drone strikes. Yet they haven’t ended.
Their next step could be proposing a rough equivalent of Steel’s ordinance, which I’m sure some PTI official in KP province would happily support. For reasons already mentioned, those proposing the measure could conceivably find the appropriate weaponry (Steel’s shotguns-only rule would presumably not be in effect).
There’d be nothing symbolic about this measure in Pakistan. Blessed with sufficient interest, capacity, and support, it could well bring down a low-flying drone (witnesses report that drones may hover at low altitudes for hours).
Unsettling? Absolutely. Yet this all underscores the understandable lengths to which citizens — American and Pakistani alike — may be willing to go when grievances arecontinuouslyignored.
Read the rest: Shooting down a drone isn’t so hard to do – DAWN.COM.
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