–Manzoor Pashteen warns of similar protest in Wana, Barwand of South Waziristan
PESHAWAR: The Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), while announcing its support to sit in protest against frequent target killing in Miranshah and Mirali of North Waziristan, warned of arranging a similar sit-in Wana and Barwand of South Waziristan from Monday.
Manzoor Pashteen, chief of PTM, on Saturday night announced support for sit-in started by tribesmen from different parts of North Waziristan against frequent acts of target killing in the area. In the latest violent act, political administration official Hamid Ullah Kabalkhel was killed and three personnel of Khasadar forces were injured when unknown militants attacked a vehicle in Kaam Saroobi area on Razmak Road.
Soon after the funeral of Hamid Ullah Kabal Khel on Saturday, tribesmen from all over Miranshah and Mirali decided to resume the six-day sit-in which was last called off on May 18. Within hours hundreds of tribesmen came out of homes and rushed to main Chawk in Mirali and Miranshah whereas they went on a sit. The PTM chief Manzoor Pashteen has directed supporters and workers to participate in the protest.
PTM leader Ali Khan Wazir has said they deputed a team of workers to go and extend every sort of support to protesters in North Waziristan. He said, “Beside frequent target killing, through one or other ways, the PTM workers are also teased and harassed in South Waziristan.”
Wazir informed this scribe, “Yesterday, the government-loyal Taliban snatched caps from PTM workers in Wana, headquarter of South Waziristan, and terrorised them also. Target killing incidents are also taking place in Sarwaiki sub-divisions.” On such grounds, he said they decided of going on a sit-in in both Wana and Barwand, headquarter of Sarwaiki sub-division from Monday.
He said that arrangements regarding sit-in protest in two different places of South Waziristan are in progress. He said that the purpose of the sit-in is to convince the government for realising its responsibilities of protecting lives and properties of people.
The protesting tribesmen in Miranshah and Mirali have demanded an end to target killing, calling for the permission for tribesmen to keep arms for their self-defence.
Meanwhile, personnel of traditional Khasadar forces from North Waziristan also decided to go on protest just to ensure their safety in the new system after the merger of Federally Administrative Tribal Areas (FATA) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The Khasadar system was introduced along with the establishment of FATA and enforcement of Frontier Crimes Regulations (FCR) by previous colonial rulers in 1901. High ups in government departments both in centre and province already announced of adjusting personnel of Khasadar forces, who qualify in the police department.
