United front: Kohistan elders bar villagers from blocking KKH

Say they need to be taken on board regarding any action against authorities.

KOHISTAN: Elders of Kohistan on Monday barred villagers across the district from blocking Karakoram Highway (KKH) without taking local elders on board or without any solid reason.

This was decided at a grand jirga of tribal elders from different tribes of Kohistan in Dasu. Participants of the jirga discussed in detail complaints of the people related to power supply, payment of compensation against land acquired for the Dasu Hydro Power Project, employment quota and the Diamer Bhasha Dam issue.

After a long debate, local elders announced that they would reserve all powers to take decisions on these matters, as per the customs of the people of Kohistan.



“No villager or group will be allowed to block the KKH without first consulting elders,” said Malik Saeed Ameer, one of the jirga’s participants. He added all members agreed that the powers to take decisions need to rest with the jirga while any aggrieved individual or group having a complaint against a government department would directly approach senior district officials of the department concerned.

In case of failure to get relief, Ameer said the deputy commissioner and district police officer would be contacted to address the problem. In the event that this too fails, the aggrieved group would approach the jirga to chalk out a plan for further action.

“Any individual or group blocking KKH without the consent of the jirga will get no support from elders,” stressed Malik Qadam Khan, another elder. He said all matters would be resolved in accordance with local customs as elders did in the past.

The jirga’s members also demanded the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) and the management of Dasu Hydro Power Project to cancel all appointments made from outside the district and to adjust the local youth who were qualified and met the criteria. Shukrat Khan, Munawar Shah, Manan Shah and Mir Hazar Khan were among the prominent attendees.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 23^rd, 2014.