The 3-day Pashtun National Jirga, organized by the banned Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM) in Jamrud with conditional government support, concluded on Sunday with calls for an end to the militarization of the ex-FATA areas and passport and visa-free travel between Pakistan and Afghanistan for tribal populations.
While the Jirga has yet to issue a formal declaration of its decisions, speeches at the event forwarded a list of demands, describing them as the desires of the country’s Pashtun population. Among these demands is an end to militarization, with both the Pakistan Army and militant groups such as the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan directed to leave the ex-FATA areas within 60 days. “If this does no happen, then Pashtun National Jirga will take actions to make the forces of war and insecurity leave,” it warned.
The Jirga also called for cheaper electricity, declaring it a “resource” of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. As such it demanded “free” electricity for the ex-FATA areas, and the price of power for the rest of the province at Rs. 5/unit compared to the prevailing national rate of Rs. 60/unit. The list of decisions also seeks visa- and passport-free travel across the Durand Line for both persons and goods, and has called for the formation of a delegation to resolve all sectarian and tribal conflicts. It also warns anyone attempting to “extort” Pashtuns of severe consequences.
Delegates of various political parties and professional organizations attended the Jirga. It comprised a series of separate discussions in 60 enclosures that culminated in a comprehensive list of final decisions.
As part of security measures, the provincial government blocked the mobile phone network in the region throughout the event. A heavy deployment of security forces was also designated to ensure security at the venue.
During the event, the organizers shared data on human and financial losses, as well as the natural resources of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. According to the PTM, military operations in the past two decades have displaced 5.7 million people, of which it claimed 2.3 million remain internally displaced. It claimed 76,584 people, including 1,375 tribal elders and 3,000 religious figures, were martyred in bomb blasts and targeted killings during this time period, adding at least 6,700 people had gone “missing.” It also claimed 370,000 houses and mosques were either completely or partially destroyed due to either terrorism or anti-terror operations.