Fata and Lahore

Pakistan’s ‘azaad qabail’ (free tribes) are celebrating the end of their freedom. After a century and a half, Fata is on the path to become a ‘normal’ part of the state, rather than a strategic space, by joining Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The decision to mainstream Fata required statesmanship because for Nawaz Sharif there are no tangible political gains attached to it and there are complex institutional and group interests attached to the status quo in the region. Luckily, a broader consensus has emerged among the people of Fata and KP that the two regions must be integrated.

In fact, there is hardly any other viable administrative option. Fata is a long and narrow strip of land. Its different areas are not interconnected and, in fact, people in different parts of Fata have better connectivity with the contiguous areas of KP. People in the different agencies of Fata are also culturally closer to their neighbouring districts in KP rather than other tribal agencies. What unites them in a region is a myth of tribalism and an outdated system of governance.

Fata was crafted as a ‘frontier’ of the empire with czarist Russia – an additional buffer behind the buffer state of Afghanistan. For strategic considerations, these areas were insulated from political movements in British India and later in Pakistan. In fact, political parties were allowed to work in Fata only in 2011 when the PPP government introduced a set of reforms and extended the Political Parties Act to the region.

While political parties and the civil society were locked out, the religious groups, the uncivil society and criminal gangs flocked to the region and thrived in this poorly governed space. It became a hub of smuggling, narcotics and violent religio-political movements. Thanks to Fata, Pakistan became a major exporter of narcotics to the world. Whenever an individual was abducted or a car was stolen in any part of the country, there was always a good chance that they could be found in Fata. More recently, it became a sanctuary for terrorists from all over the world.

The history of Fata can be easily be related to Pakhtun stereotypes. Not all of these stereotypes are external; in fact, most of these stereotypes have been fully internalised or they even started as internal stereotypes. Pakhtuns saw themselves as warlike while outsiders either respected them for this stereotype or turned this stereotype upon them by branding them as headstrong and violent. Bacha Khan spent much of his energy fighting this stereotype and whatever substance existed behind it.

For outsiders, this supposed propensity to violence was also an opportunity. Great things could be achieved if this genie could be harnessed for religious or political agendas. Thus started the project to turn Pakhtuns into good Muslims that can be traced back to the Wahhabi movement of Syed Ahmad Shaheed that was founded in Bengal and the Gangetic Plains but made its centre in Pakhtun areas, because only here was it possible to launch a movement that was “at the same time religious, military and political.”

In the 19th century, Deoband successfully converted a good part of KP and Fata to its school of thought. Those who came under its influence included nationalist followers of Bacha Khan. Later, the Jamaat-e-Islami entered the fray from its headquarters in Lahore became a powerful presence during the days of the Afghan jihad. Both the Deobandi JUI and JI are presently headed by Pakhtun leaders and their major pockets of popularity are also located in the Pakhtun areas of KP and Balochistan.

Perhaps, the most decisive external influence came when the Pakistani Deoband movement came under the influence of Saudi Islam and decided to serve the national interests at the cost of its spiritual objectives. Pakhtun religious extremism – if anything like that exists – is a gift from the East of the Indus. It became so deadly in the region because of the ungoverned spaces, state patronage and availability of small arms.

Linking any ethnic or geographic group with extremism is not only wrong, it is also extremely dangerous. This is exactly what the Punjab government is doing. There is hardly any doubt left that Pakhtuns, particularly those who have moved recently to Punjab and Sindh, are being harassed by the police. It is worse in Punjab where they are herded to police stations and released after identification and paying ransom in the time-honoured tradition of that great institution – the Punjab Police.

This has aggrieved the Pakhtuns in KP and given a godsend opportunity to the Pakhtun nationalists whose stars have been eclipsed by Punjabi politicians boasting Kashmiri and Pakhtun lineages. At a meeting in Wali Bagh, Asfandyar Wali warned of ‘forcible eviction of Punjab people’ from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa if the unjust treatment of Pakhtuns in Punjab was not immediately stopped.

This is the worst anti-Pakhtun statement I have ever heard from a member of the Wali family. Does Asfandyar Wali have any idea of the demographic changes that have taken place in Punjab in the last two decades? While Pakhtun nationalists had their eyes on Afghanistan, Pakhtun entrepreneurs conquered Punjab through their hard work, honesty and social skills. Pakhtuns now dominate markets all over Punjab and they have done it without any support from their ANP guardians.

It is hard to demarcate a line between Punjab and KP. There are Pakhtun areas in Punjab and Punjabi and Seraiki-speaking areas in KP. Punjab has received and integrated Pakhtuns for centuries. Pakhtuns have never faced racism in Punjab. This is not because Punjab is not racist; Punjab is racist to the boot, but its racism is based on caste and targeted at its own low-caste population or those outsiders who resemble its own low-caste people. In Punjab, Pakhtuns automatically become Pathans, which is a Punjabi upper caste.

The ANP is unhappy because, as Parvaiz Khattak stated some time ago, “PTI is Pathan and Pathan is PTI.” The ANP is ill prepared to face this Punjabi caste cum Pakhtun ethnic alliance. The Punjab police has provided the ANP with an opportunity to kill two birds – PML-N and PTI – with one stone, and it is in mood to waste this opportunity.

The ethnic problem does not exist in Punjab but that does not mean that it cannot be created. Rana Sanaullah and Asfandyar Wali can join hands to create one big disaster. If created, it can easily surpass any other ethnic problem we have faced so far because Pakhtuns and Punjabis are dominant ethnic groups in the country, enjoying a lion’s share in the civil and military establishment.

Though the evolutionary purpose of fear is to save life, it can make us do things that put us in harm’s way. The Punjab government is in panic mode and doing bizarre things. Alongside mainstreaming Fata, the Sharif government needs to pay attention to reforming the Punjab police and ensure that action against terrorists is not seen as action against any ethnic group.

The writer is an anthropologist and development professional.

Email: zaighamkhan@yahoo.com

Twitter: @zaighamkhan