It has taken me few days to write on the topic because I wanted the noise and chatter to settle down a bit. While we have a war like situation in the newly named Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, it was interesting to see how all political parties came together for and against renaming of the province and ended up creating a new war zone within a war zone. The parties for it got it all settled within 2 weeks and those against it are still battling it out on the streets of Hazara Divsion.
Renaming of old NWFP has been at fore and back of ANP politics since atleast 1980s but the speed with which it got passed this time baffled even its supporters. My opinion on this issue is ‘fine!’ If the majority of people want this name for the province then why not? However, what is happening in Hazara for the past two weeks has been more a muted reaction. Just yesterday several people lost their lives.
What I have not completely understood yet and I am sure our readers will have a lot to say about it in comments below is why renaming a province has been such a polarizing issue in Hazara? May be my views are very simplistic but naam mein kia rakha hai yaar? Naming a province to one ethnicity or group doesn’t give or take anybody any extra rights. I however still think that a decision like this should’ve been taken by referendum where majority of people could have voted on the issue rather than few people deciding on it.
Another dimension of last few days’ events, and it appears quite obvious is that PML(Q) seems to be exploiting the situation in the area which has been the vote bank of PML(N) in the past.
Looks like what started with just renaming of the province may actually end up creating a separate province – Which by the way, may not be a bad idea either. At ATP we’ve discussed the idea of creating more provinces in Pakistan few times. See here and here. Yesterday PML(N)’s Javed Hashmi gave a very strong statement in favour of a separate province of Hazara region. Today PML(Q)’s Chaudhry Shujat has also called for a separate Hazara province.
Urdu newspaper Jang reported that in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s assembly two resolutions have been submitted – by two ANP members – to carve out Hazara province. So this appears to be another dimension of the conflict. The news cutting is to the right.
While the streets of Mansehra-Abbotabad simmer with burning tyres the usual blame game is also going on in full swing. So much so that it appears to be a league tournament – where everybody takes on everybody else. I’ve seen on-record news items where PTI has blamed ANP, PML(N) has blamed PML(Q). PML(Q) has blamed PML(N), local PPP guys have blamed ANP and ANP has blamed every body mentioned above for creating the chaos in Hazara.
This is time to rise above petty politics, because I think all parties want good in the end – It is just their inflated egos which they can’t seem to overcome. The name Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa is fine. Congratulations to all those who wanted it. Those who want separate province called Hazara, I hope they lobby and arrange for public referendum on the issue and measure their support by ballot and not by burning public property.
I was especially saddened to see an Edhi ambulance burnt by the mob protesting for Hazara rights two days ago. Photos of this burning Edhi ambulance were published in news media all over – see our title photo above which captured this sad moment. Which cause teaches anybody to burn an ambulance? It is a shame. An excerpt from Dawn news of April 12 goes like this:
The protesters blocked roads, pelted police with stones, torched two police vehicles and an ambulance of Edhi Foundation, smashed billboards and also set a police station on fire.
On the ground – just by renaming the province, nothing changes in terms of rights of people, creating more jobs, better sanitation, more electricity, more schooling etc – Those issues still remian where they were before North West Frontier province was renamed as Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa
There has been an underlying ethnic conflict between the Hindko speaking people and the Pukhtuns. I am from Karachi and stay in my family home in the Galliats in the summer. Some years back when my mother was renovating her house in Nathiagali, she had engaged a local contractor. Amongst the mazdoors that he hired only one was a Pakhtun and according to my mother the other labourers harangued him, while he meekly got on with his work. Similarly in the Bazaar toward the end of the tourist season I bought some fabric from a shop keeper (a Pukhtun). These shops are rented out for the season. I paid the man but as he did not have change I asked him to get it from elsewhere. He peered out nervously from his shop, said something to his chota in Phusto . It turned out he asked the boy to get change from a fellow Pukhtun shopkeeper, but he too had finished for the season and had moved on.The Pukhtun shopkeeper hesitated asking for change from the local Hazara people, and eventually asked me to pay him later.
I have witnessed many such incidences. I may be wrong but being a minority, the Hazara people fear being overwhelmed by the Puktun majority and that makes them to close ranks against the Pakhtuns . What surprises me is the claim of ANP leaders that no one raised an objection while the name change was discussed in the Parliament. In the entire galliats , the photograph of Nawaz Shareef adorn the walls. I think there were enough signal s for any one looking that this change of name would not go down calmly. Looking at this issue dispassionately, since I am neither Pukhtun nor from Hazara, clearly if ANP chooses to continue with the name Pukhtunkhwa it will have sown the seeds for the Hazara region to break away from the province.
Personally it hurt to hear Mr Bilour saying that it took them 60 years to make Pukhtunkhwa and so the Hazara people should also put in a struggle of 50 years to form their province. Since my father was a Sindhi and President Sindh NAP, we were part of the struggle to remove ‘one unit’. NAP was sensitive to the unjust subjugation of the Bengalis. The struggle of NAP included the acknowledgement of the importance of ethnic identity. NAP members suffered greatly for this cause during Ayub Khan & Bhutto era. So the ANP members should reflect. They are beginning to sound like the establishment which they once justly stood up to and should realize nobody gives up their identity . They should understand that the Hazara people live in their own land and would resist Pukthunkhwa provine. This is their ‘one unit’.
I hope the ANP will with political vision review the situation.
Its has become their ego issue, let them die!
Eight billion rupees!! just for a name change! are you insane? we’re not a first class country. We have far bigger issues harrowing us. The entire idea should be a unanimous NO.
Some writer have commented, “What’s in a name?” If that is so then why name NWFP as Pakhtoon Khah? Why not simply Sarhad which will be accepted by everyone, I hope.
Please note that the three other provinces’ names are also based on the language that majority speaks. But in NWFP majority of people do not speak Pashto. The population census should calrify it. Hazara by itself has approximately half a crorh people.
A general refrendum is needed to sort out the genuine grievances of people of Hazara. However we must care for the tyrany of the majority. The views of majority cannot, and must not, be forced over a sizeable minority.
With Regards
Yusuf
I think that all this is happening is due to the foolish step of changing the name of N.W.F.P and it has provoked violent protests. There is already too much chaos in Pakistan and Pakistan is not in a position yet to face more crises. Now, the people of Hazara should be given the right of a separate province.