Threatening protests: Jirga demands referendum on Hazara province by April 12

Say they have been sidelined by ruling elite because of their ethnicity.

ABBOTABAD: An Awami Jirga comprising representatives of several political parties threatened widespread protests if the promise of Hazara province was not fulfilled before April 12, or at least a referendum announced in this regard.

Organised by Hazara Hurriyat Conference, the jirga was held on Wednesday night and attended by officials from Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ), Hazara Awami Ittehad, Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT), Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Hazara Qaumi Mahaz, All Pakistan Employees Coordination Council (APECC), and All Traders Association Abbottabad.



Speakers directed their demands to PTI as well as the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), who gave assurances to the people of Hazara during last year’s general elections. They said if the leadership did not deliver, they would stage widespread protests across Hazara division, including road blockades, rallies, and laying siege outside the residences of Hazara MPAs.

Referring to the movement’s longstanding struggle since the 1980s, one participant pointed to the immense sacrifice he felt the community made for a separate province, especially the lives lost during protests in Abbottabad in April 2010.

“We have faced discrimination based on our ethnic identity from the ruling class sitting in Peshawar with regards to basic rights,” said Naseer Khan Jadoon, Chairman of Hazara Hurriyat Conference. He accused the members of the government of using funds meant for the development of Hazara to serve their own interests, adding that this was evident from the lack of facilities in Hazara.

Amanullah Khan of Pakistan Awami Tehreek said mainstream political parties have also ignored the demands for a separate province in Hazara division, and instead created obstacles. Ahmed Nawaz Khan of Awami Ittehad accused PTI of betraying the Hazara people with their recent resolution, adding it did not fulfil constitutional requirements.”

Nawaz Khan Jadoon of ASWJ said the resolution was designed to mislead the community before the fourth anniversary of the killing of Hazara protesters in April 2010. PTI activist Javed Khan also criticised his party’s actions in this regard.

At the end of the jirga, a declaration was adopted demanding that all political parties in the country, especially PTI and PML-N, fulfil the promise that was made during the May 11 elections last year. They demanded a resolution be adopted for a separate province, with the required majority, from all the three houses before April 12 – or at least announce a referendum for Hazara province.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 4^th, 2014.