The Hazara concern

The Hazara concern

Tensions in the Hazara belt are failing to diminish. Sunday witnessed a massive outpouring of residents from Abbottabad, Mansehra, Battagram, Kohistan and Haripur where men, women, children and the elderly engaged in peaceful protests to demand the creation of a separate province. Demonstrations originating from Abbottabad have been a regular feature since the declaration of the NWFP-renaming clause in the 18th amendment, whereby the whole region is now to be referred to as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a name that is unacceptable to the Hazarawals. The April 12th protests, where about seven demonstrators were killed when police fired indiscriminately into the crowds, further fuelled anger. Citing a revolution instead of a resolution to assert their provincial claim, Haider Zaman Khan, the leader of the Tehreek-e-Hazara movement, threatened a long march to the capital if the demand for a new province was not met. The entire situation is a lesson in history revisited. It stems from a mega trust deficit of the past that has seeped into the present to disrupt the functioning of the federation. Historically, relations between the Pakhtuns and the Hazarawals have been strained at times. At the time of partition, the colonially imposed Durand Line sought to demarcate ethnicities and loyalties between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Irredentist claims from Afghanistan that the NWFP territory was theirs due to a common ethnicity and culture with the Pakhtuns of the area fuelled the identity politics that have been playing out in the region. At the time of partition, the avatar of today’s ANP was the Red Shirts — under the leadership of Ghaffar Khan — a largely secular political movement of Pakhtuns who were considered sympathetic to carving out Pashtunistan. The Hazarawals, however, associated themselves with the Muslim League and in the first referendum of its type, opted for the NWFP to accede to Pakistan while the Red Shirts boycotted the referendum, citing manipulation. For many years after, the Red Shirts were castigated by the establishment as traitors. The new name for Frontier, it is argued, represents a segment (albeit a majority) of the population of the province and does not reflect the Hazarawal identity.However, demanding that a province be conveniently and immediately carved out of the province’s territory is a tall order especially since the constitution of Pakistan will, once again, require an amendment — impossible without a two-thirds majority in the National Assembly and Senate. Although, in a democratic system, it is acceptable that concerns be voiced through peaceful agitation without resorting to violence, the aggrieved party could settle for a more workable solution. The Hazarawals feel their identity and representation is diminished under the banner of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and so all sides have to strive for a consensus solution. It is vital now, before amicable protests once more take a violent turn, that the ANP, leading figures from the Hazarawal political community and political parties that can play a mediatory role, sit down and chalk out a plan within constitutional bounds to allay the apprehensions and concerns of the Hazarawal people. The Hazarawals need assurances and arrangements that ensure that their representation, identity, culture and ethnicity will be protected, perhaps by granting them regional autonomy within Khyber Pakhtunkhwa so as to address their fears of being disadvantaged by the province’s renaming.

Daily Times

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