Battle of the trenches: Armed occupation reignites land dispute between two tribes

Nusratkhel tribesmen occupy Akazai land, take position on hilltops.

TORGHAR:

The rekindling of an age-old dispute between two rival tribes has gripped the district, with residents fearing imminent conflict after armed men from one group occupied the other’s land last week.

Heavy contingents of police have been deployed in the area to quell any possible violence, said police officials. A jirga of tribal elders is also trying to resolve the situation.

According to Shamzad Khan, an elder of the Akazai tribe from Bimbal village, dozens of armed men of the Nusratkhel tribe forcibly occupied two houses of Darbani village on Sunday morning and deployed men on farms and hilltops, fortifying their positions.

The Akazai elder said they did not want bloodshed and had thus informed the police about the armed occupation of their ‘rightful’ lands. However, according to villagers, the Akazais have also taken up positions against their rivals, threatening them to vacate the land that has been in the Akazai’s possession for hundreds of years.

Locals report the situation remains tense and the atmosphere highly charged, with the likelihood of an all-out war being triggered.

A Basikhel tribal elder, who is among the tribesmen trying to settle the dispute, confirmed the Akazai had been living on the several hundred kanals, comprising forests, hills and farms since over a hundred years and the Nusratkhels have unjustly occupied it.

A history of violence

The Basikhel elder shared the two sides had clashed twice in the past – in 1921 and 1939. They would attack each other from trenches and the clashes resultantly killed over 100 people from both tribes, he added.

Several villages were also set on fire in those clashes and forces of the Wali of Swat and Nawab of Amb – both independent states at the time – chose opposing sides in the fight.

The dispute persisted and the land remained under the possession of the Akazai, with both sides easing into the status quo.

Torghar was made into a district in 2011 from its previous status of a provincially administered tribal area known as Kala Dhaka. At which point, the government approved a major road project through the disputed territory, and both sides began claiming ownership of the land for the purpose of compensation.

A few months ago, the matter was under discussion at a jirga at Darban village representing all five tribes of the district – Akazai, Basikhel, Hasanzai, Madakhel and Nusratkhel. The provincial lawmaker of the district from Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl, Zarin Gul, was in the chair and all parties agreed to resolve the dispute through dialogue.

Armed intervention

According to the Basikhel trial elder, the Nusratkhels violated the jirga’s decision and forcibly occupied the disputed land.

“When three tribes are negotiating between two rivals and are close to settling the issue, using armed men to occupy the disputed territory is against local traditions” he said.

While talking to The Express Tribune, District Police Officer Iftikharuddin Khattak confirmed the dispute but rejected the notion that the two sides were armed and on the verge of clashing.

According to Khattak, some people from the Nusratkhel tribe were reported to have entered the disputed land after which he sent contingents of police to Darbani village which sent the intruders back.

The DPO said since the area was a frontier region till 2011, land records are not available which is the main problem in establishing ownership of disputed territory. The situation is under control, said Khattak, and tribal elders have been taken on board for negotiations to help reach a peaceful settlement.

Human Rights Commission Pakistan district coordinator Zahid Khan confirmed the occupation of the Akazai land and expressed concern about potential bloodshed in case the dispute is not settled.

The government needs to act immediately to defuse the situation as earlier clashes between the two groups reportedly lasted for weeks and cost dozens of lives, said Zahid.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 13^th, 2014.