The Penetrated Pakhtuns

It was April 2002, when I entered the holy land of Hospitality known world wide for the miraculous love and care shown by the steel nerved Pakhtuns. The Capital city Peshawar unexpectedly was a fully developed and facilitated city with life as good as in other cities. The only considerable difference was that there were least women in public areas and men appeared more traditional. The large Ad banners having pictures of few female models were covered with black paint by the fundamentalist of Jamat-e-Islami, a local so called Islamic Political Party. The confronting scenes developed a picture of horror usually rise among the new arrivals from other parts of the country. As it is famous outside that Peshawar is dangerous only because of its conservativeness towards female issue.

Contrary to this image, Peshawar University almost at the centre of city, a marvelous building, was found facilitating men and women equally. Women weren’t tied to the chains and forcefully married in early ages. In fact they, as per their desire and affordability, were getting educated in a safe and sound healthy educational environment.  Apart from that, there were many schools with large lot of children without any gender discrimination. The atmosphere in the schools and colleges was as friendly and humanly as could be expected anywhere else. The journey to the beholding eye of the hawk started from the same ground.

A conservative land of Pakhtuns was not only beautiful in its nature but exhaustively passionate in its feeling towards life. Peace and tranquility was the essence of the society. The dangerous land faced deadly incidents and indulged into darkness exactly at 8 o’clock in the evening. People use to avoid moving out without emergencies especially in newly established areas. Everyone was enjoying life round the clock but it was as satisfying as desired. It was the Peshawar, the hub for all the Pakhtuns from other comprising areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. There were people from all tribes, working, educating, developing and prospering without any directions, rule, security and system. A land of Warriors who, since centuries have accomplished their existence by themselves. They were complete souls indifferent to the inspirations of the world.

But the world doesn’t like impartiality therefore either you have to subdue, give consent to merge or fall. Unfortunately, the Pakhtuns doesn’t understand any of such as history has proved. And it was the time when they had to pay for this resistance. The Afghan war motivated the proximal hearts to the unending devastation changing the entire growth of Pakhtuns throughout the Pak-Afghan territories. It was a turn over that evolved a new generation quite alien to the essence of Pakhtun society. The emergence and sheltering of Afghan refugees containing perplexed social patterns introduced new shades of communal attributes. Fancy and modern clothing, business orientation, food tastes and streaks of varied and blunt congregations developed new Pakhtuns. One’s with new face and minds.

The land of hospitality sunk into blood and smelled death everywhere.  The immense depression and frustration detained the moral values and satisfaction turned into rare commodity. Men fell like pestilent stricken leaves and women impelled to survive through every possible mean. The importance of education undermined due to insecure market environment and the hope to life doomed. Radicalization over shadowed the love and care and fires lightened the sights all around. The wounded hearts repelled the concept of nationhood and brought a rebel to the integrity.

The Pakhtuns, associated to religion at extremes; ends at fete of women, corruption, crime, unethical conflicts, and a modified Islam that accepted drinking, adultery, vulgarity and insanity. To strive to live change to, live however until made unlived. Hope died and evil dominated. The pride of the Pakhtunwali submerged into cultural hegemony to prove normality to the world. The consent to be part of the world was to be presented through the indecent and inhuman following of the infidel world ruled by the satins. A traditional land of humanity lovers found escapes no where even after loosing its originality, stirring the spirits to avenge demise.

Undoubtedly, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, is still the land of hospitality only with a soul

intolerant to the gesture of compromise. It has an increased educated population with deeper sense of realization towards the games played on them. The passionate souls are accompanied by the strengths of knowledge and advancement. An impregnable inception has been produced to take charge and the confrontation is more violent than ever, for the face and mind has been changed but the blood is same. The world has seen the rise of Pakhtuns from death and shall never witness a converse. It’s the militancy that has emerged from the self esteemed militates to extract the warrior’s nub of the bloodline.