TRUST IN THE STATE UNDER SIEGE: ANALYZING INSTITUTIONAL TRUST IN THE FACE OF RISING TERRORISM AND COUNTER-TERRORISM IN SWAT

Abstract

Following the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan, the district of Swat has witnessed an upsurge in terrorist instances. The region once plagued by a decade-long insurgency post-9/11, the resurgence has sparked widespread concern among civilians, casting a shadow of doubt in the state’s strategies to curtail it. The present study aims to conduct an inclusive examination of how the resurgence of terrorism and state counter-terrorism policy influences the trust relationship between civilians and the state. Guided by the institutional trust theory, the study uses a quantitative research design. Scales are developed applying factor analysis while the data is analysed using simple linear regression analysis. The findings depict significant negative relationships between the dependent and each of the independent variables, confirming the hypotheses of the study. These determine that the resurgence of terrorism and the state counter-terrorism policy have significantly eroded the trust relationship between the state and society. In light of the findings, the study recommends deep considerations of the perception and will of the public for devising effective countering strategies that go beyond kinetic measures. It calls for engaging the victim communities in counter-terrorism efforts to rebuild trust, which if not heeded, may result in the state’s legitimacy crises.