Jirga condemns official negligence; demands peace, Tirah returns; allies warn against politicizing victims
PESHAWAR:
Bara Political Alliance has announced a protest sit-in in Peshawar on May 7 demanding resolution of issues faced by the displaced people of Tirah Valley, ensuring their dignified return and protesting against rising unrest in Bara Akakhel.
The decision was announced in a communique issued after a joint jirga of Afridi tribes, organized by the Bara Political Alliance. The jirga was attended by alliance president Hasham Khan Afridi, leaders of various political parties from Bara and Tirah, social activists, officials of social organizations and trade unions and local elders and notables.
Speaking on the occasion, Amir of Khyber branch chief of Jamaat-e-Islami Shah Faisal Afridi said that Bara Political Alliance had been begging the government for peace for the last four years. “We have held scores of protests and peace marches but unfortunately peace could not be established in our region due to the negligence and carelessness of the federal and provincial governments,” he added.
Shah Faisal Afridi accused the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister of misleading the public by claiming that decisions taken behind closed doors were unacceptable. “The reality is that he himself is part of those decisions in closed rooms,” Afridi charged.
Meanwhile, young leader Khan Wali Afridi told the jirga participants that the time had come for them to unite. “The issue of peace is our common problem. Our children and women are daily victims of mortar shells,” he said.
Khan Wali Afridi added that the constitution and the laws of the country allow them to demand their rights. “We are demanding peace through peaceful protests. To live in a peaceful environment is the right of every citizen and we will come out on May 7 for this right,” he asserted.
Separately, Tahrik-e-Mutasireen Tirah announced its support for the May 7 protest demonstration in Peshawar. The movement’s spokesperson Sohbat Khan Afridi told The Express Pakinomist: “We, the Tirah victims, support the protest demonstration to be held in Peshawar on May 7 under the auspices of the Bara Political Alliance.”
However, he added a warning: “If at any time we feel that the Bara Political Alliance is just doing politics over us and compromising on the issues of Tirah victims and their dignified return, we will immediately withdraw from this protest sit-in and announce a boycott. But if they only speak for the dignified return of Tirah victims, we will stand with them and we will restore peace with them.”
It may be recalled that a Tribal Loya Jirga (Grand Council) was convened at the Chief Minister’s House in Peshawar under the chairmanship of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi. The jirga was attended by parliamentarians elected from tribal districts along with local elders, notables and youth.
Chief Minister Sohail Afridi released the jirga’s decisions and said that the Loya Jirga strongly condemned the killing of women, children and elderly people in drone strikes. All participants required negotiations with stakeholders.
