Protest staged against tribal districts merger with KP

BARA: Fata Qaumi Jirga on Tuesday staged a protest at Bab-e-Khyber in the Jamrud tehsil of the Khyber tribal district against the merger of the tribal region into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The protesters raised banners and placards inscribed with slogans against erstwhile federally administered tribal areas' integration into KP. Chairman, Fata Qaumi Jirga, Malik Bismillah Khan Afridi, Salahuddin Kukikhel, Malik Israrullah, Malik Abdul Raziq Zakhakhel, Malik Wilayat Khan, Malik Tamash Shalmani, Malik Wazir Sherkhankhel and others believed that the tribal districts were merged into KP by force.

The speakers said the merger was made without consulting the tribal people, adding the tribal customs such as jirgas should be restored by revoking the 25th Amendment. "The tribal areas should be declared tax free zones for 10 years," suggested Malik Bismillah Afridi, adding the collection of taxes in the tribal districts should be stopped forthwith.

He said the government had made commitments about the development of the tribal areas at the time of the merger but the pledges were not honoured. "Neither the government gave 3 per cent share in the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award to the merged districts, nor 25,000 tribal youths were recruited in Levies force," he explained.

The tribal elder believed that the tribal areas' integration into KP had not brought any relief to the tribal people who had suffered during militancy. The speakers maintained the tribal people had rejected the merger from day one. They alleged that all the departments in the tribal districts were busy with corruption. They announced that the tribal people would mark May 31 every year as Black Day to express indignation at the tribal areas' integration into KP.

The speakers said the Supreme Court was hearing the case of the tribal areas' merger into KP and they hoped justice would be done to them. The jirga leaders vowed to continue the struggle till the restoration of the old status of the tribal districts.