Khyber tribesmen say ‘no to terrorism’

F.P. Report

BARA: Pakhtuns are no more able to bear loss of militancy and they demand permanent peace in the area. It is obligatory on the state to motivate our children to prefer education rather than guns.

These views were expressed by the speakers including Senator Mushtaq Ahmad of Jamat-e-Islami (JI), provincial leader of Awami National party(ANP) Sardar Hussain Babak, Manzoor Ahmad Pashteen of Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement , Sayasi Ittehad (Political Alliance), Bara Chief Shah Faisal Afridi, ex-parliamentarian of Pakistan Muslim League, Nawaz(PMLN-N) Shahabuddin, Khan Wali Afridi,Farhad Advocate and others while addressing to mammoth public gathering held here at Khyber Square, Bara on Saturday.

They said that in the last two decades, Pakistan had spent 1.5 billion dollars on war against terrorism while more than eighty thousands people had lost their lives besides 3.3 million citizens, mostly Pakhtuns had been displaced and were taken refuge in camps.

“Militancy not only destroyed our houses, mosques and hujras (male guest houses) but also deprived our one generation of education”, they remarked. It was the responsibility of the state to provide protection to the people, they said, adding people wanted peace, not militancy or lawlessness.

They went on that peace was inevitable for economic progress and education therefore time had arrived to re-establish peace in the area and let the citizens of the merged tribal district and KP to serve their lives with calm and prosperity. Launching military operations and setting up of checkpoints could not resolve the issue of militancy but to bother the locals, they added and said the Pakhtuns were fed up with target killing and suicide attacks and would not anybody to spill the blood of innocent people.

The speakers further added that they convoyed their misery to the Parliament and the Chief Justice but to in avail and therefore public awakening was necessary to say “No” to “Militancy” in the area. The Sayasi Ittehad, Bara had organized the protest, which was attended by hundreds of thousands of people from all walks of life including members of the civil society organizations, students, lawyers, workers of political parties and ordinary people from across the district Khyber and KP. Holding white flags, the participants of the protest chanted slogans, demanding peace in Khyber and KP.