The police are used by these tribes to get the necessary arms they need for war
LARKANA: In the 21st century, the still ongoing tribal wars in rural Sindh has disrupted the whole system. Children were given AK47 Kalashnikovs instead of pens. They were told to kill enemies instead of killing poverty and social issues, and taught about the damage from bullets instead of their rights. These wars have miserably destroyed generations. In January 2019, a Jirga was held in Shikarpur to settle a deadly clash that had claimed 36 lives of villagers and left around 260 injured. The Jirga was attended by a number of tribal chieftains, influential landlords, sardars, notables and some of the feudal politicians of interior Sindh. The tribal court heard both sides and found out that 19 people of Teghani and 17 people of Bijarani were killed in the dispute. The Jirga fixed Rs1 million compensation for each murder and ordered both tribes to pay fines to each other. The matter of fixing and paying blood money for the injured people was left undecided, which resulted in the resurfacing of the dispute.
Similarly, two years ago two of the Jatoi tribes killed 13 people and left many injured. Such tribal wars have been going on for generations as the next generation inherit these feuds. These battles have made many places no-go areas. The Sindh police has taken no initiative in bringing the tribes on a table to find common ground as the police themselves are afraid. In fact, the police are used by these tribes to get the necessary arms they need for war.
As a Pakistani citizen, I urge law enforcers that this is the time to act. Blood feud and warfare will drown us all. The future of innocent children is at stake. Let’s campaign together to stop this bloodshed and call upon tribes to clear any dispute they have.
Shoaib Lashari
Published in The Express Tribune, April 6th, 2020.
Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.
