Zarteef Afridi Khan

Just a few kilometers from the municipal limits of Peshawar, Jamrud lies in the Khyber Agency tribal territory where the law of Pakistan does not hold. Here the Pashtoon code of conduct holds sway. Display of weapons is a matter of pride in a land where education has taken a back seat for most. On 8 December 2011, human rights defender Mr Zarteef Afridi Khan was shot dead by unknown gunmen in Ghundai area near Jamrud Bazaar while he was on his way to work at a local government-run school where he served as headmaster.

Prior to his murder, Zarteef Afridi had been active as the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan's core group coordinator in the area. Apart from his role in HRCP, Zarteef Afridi had been active with a number of peace groups in campaigning for the release of dozens of prisoners under the Frontiers Crimes Regulation.

He was known for his pacifism and his commitment to the cause of education he began his teaching career in 1983 when he was prevented by his mother from from going to Soviet Russia for a degree in engineering. His commitment to the cause of human rights meant that he became a vocal advocate of equal rights for minorities, women and children and his campaign for the release of people jailed under the Frontier Crimes Regulations won him the respect of the people of Jamrud. In the mid 90s Zarteef Afridi coupled his teaching with activism through the platform of Democratic Commission for Human Development.

It is reported that Zarteef Afridi had been receiving death threats from local militants for his work in organising a congregation of tribal elders.

Teacher, Human Rights Activist, Social Worker.
Killed December 2011

Who and Why?

The Hidden Enemy

Universal Primary Education is one of the Millenium Development Goals. I could write much more on this, but consider the picture here, taken from the BBC. It shows an outdoor school in an unidentified Pashtoon area. This, unfortunately is the plight of many Pashtoon children. These are the children who will, of course, shape the future.

In an earlier posting, I said I would return to this topic, so here goes. A report on BBC Pashto some weeks back began with:

په پېښور کې د اپريل په ١٩ مه نېټه د يوۀ ښوونځي د باندې چاودنه وشوه ، دا لومړى ځل نه و چې په خيبر پښتونخوا ، قبايلو يا د افغانستان په جنوبي ولايتونو کې ښوونځي په نښه کېږي

On April 19th in Peshawar, there was an attack on a school. This is the not the first time this has happened to schools in Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa, the Tribal Areas or the southern provinces of Afghanistan.

The question that was asked was:

پښتني سيمو کې ښوونځي څوک خرابوي او ولې ؟

Who* is attacking schools in Pashtoon areas, and why?

The responses to the question spoke of an "enemy" working to prevent Pashtoon educational progress. Who this enemy is - was not really identified, so the question about who* is behind the attacks remains. Fingers continue to point, but without knowing who the enemy is, can it be possible to begin to work out a solution?

For me, as an educationlist, and a Pashtoon, this is particularly troubling.

خادم الافغان- کابل
څرګنده ده چې د پښتنو د ښوونځیو سوځول د پښتنو د دښمنانو کار دی. دوی نه پرېږدي چې پښتانه له تعلیم برخمن شي

Khadim Al Afghan - Kabul

Apparently, the buring of Pashtoon schools is the work of the enemies* of the Pashtoons. They do not want Pashtoons to be educated.

حکيم الله ـ هندوستان
دوی د پښتنو په سيمو کې ښوونځي سوځوي، ځکه چې پښتانه يووالی نه لري، دوی نالوستي او د افغانستان دښمنان دي، دوی په دې کارونو سره امتياز اخلي

Hakimullah - India
They* can burn schools in Pashtoon areas because the Pashtoons are disunited and they* are the enemies of [ending] illiteracy and Afghanistan. It is to their* advantage to do this.

*whom exactly?

Tor_Khan تور خان

The Flowers of Bajaur (2)

Larsha Pekhawar ta kameez tor mala rawra
Taza taza guloona dre saloor mala rawra - da Bajaur guloona

Part 2 of Samar Minallah's Da Bajaur Guloona.

Tor_Khan تور خان

The Flowers of Bajaur (1)

Larsha Pekhawar ta kameez tor mala rawra
Taza taza guloona dre saloor mala rawra - da Bajaur guloona

Travel to Peshawar to bring me back a black shirt
Fetch me some flowers - flowers from Bajaur

Samar Minallah, an independent young film-maker beckons to a call of distress from her ancestral Pukhtunkhwa. To identify the horrors of war, she made a documentary on the wretched state of refugees, rendering them 'homeless in their homeland'. Da Bajaur Guloona is a 25 minute film, that opens with kaleidoscopic landscapes of the fabled land and a heartbreaking commentary by the people of Bajaur.

Tor_Khan تور خان

History and Folklore

Sir Olaf Caroe's 1957 narrative on the Pashtoons digs into the historic and folkloric orgins of the Pashtoon people. It is sometimes held as the compendium of Pashtoon history and origin. The book, known as "The Pathans", reflects the language of its time and whilst other major events have occurred in the Pashtoon lands since the book was written, the contempt/admiration of the Pashtoons is something that continues till today.

Technology allows us to read these archives online - click on the picture above for the online reading option. Alternatively, download your PDF copy of the book here.

Tor_Khan تور خان

The Beast Within

What you have here is a BBC report on the spread of Taliban influence in Pakhtunkhwa suggesting that only 38% of NWFP and FATA areas is under government control.

The immediate reaction to this when it was put out was one of vehement denial by President Asif Ali Zardari who was in London meeting with PM Gordon Brown negotiating an aid package.

The BBC continues, asking:

Is the Pakistan army serious in its objectives?

There have been a lot of questions raised about the commitment of the Pakistan's security establishment. In particular, the role of the country's powerful but shadowy Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency has been the subject of much debate.

Most of it is focused on the agency's relationship with the Taleban. The Taleban were very much a creation of the ISI as part of the army's doctrine of 'strategic depth'.

This doctrine saw Afghanistan as a friendly satellite that would give Pakistani forces geographic strategic depth in case of war with its perennial rival India and its much more powerful military.

The army also saw the Taleban as an instrument in Pakistan becoming a player in the new great game for energy resources in Central Asia. While post 9/11, the country ostensibly threw in its lot with the US, many believe the army and the ISI continue to secretly support the Taleban.

While all Pakistani authorities deny this on the record, many senior security personnel have admitted some support to the Taleban. They point to the growing influence of India in Afghanistan, and say Pakistan cannot allow this 'encirclement' as it directly imparts on its national security.

I should add, that it was the President's late wife, Benazir Bhutto who in her tenure as PM gave the initial green light to the Taliban when they came prominence in Afghanistan back in 1994. Denial or irony?