Afghan lawmaker facing backlash over his comment regarding the Durand Line
PESHAWAR: Abdul Latif Pedram, a prominent Afghan lawmaker and the head of the National Congress Party, is facing backlash after he called for the recognition of the Durand Line as an official border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
On Sunday, Pedram told reporters in Kabul, “I once again announce that the Line is an international border and Afghanistan and Pakistan should respect each other and respect the border of each other and refrain from interfering in internal affairs of each other,” he was quoted as saying by the Voice of America’s Afghan service.
Pedram is also the leader of Afghanistan’s Tajik ethnic group.
Shortly after his statement, the Afghan senate witnessed a heated debated. “This is not acceptable to the people of Afghanistan. That side of the Line is our land and it belongs to us,” said senate speaker Fazel Hadi Muslimyar, as quoted by Tolo News, “if anyone has any kind of imagination in this respect, it is unacceptable.”
“There is not a single Pashtoon in Pedram’s party - this coward man,” said another senator.
The Durand Line, which runs over 2,000 km between Pakistan and Afghanistan, was first drawn up in 1893 under British colonial rule. Afghanistan disputes the legitimacy of much of the border.
Last month, Pakistan announced that it would be fencing off this northwestern border to prevent the infiltration of terrorists and smugglers from crossing over. Work on the barrier has already begun in the Bajaur and Mohmand districts of Pakistan’s federally administered tribal areas.
“Pedram is under immense pressure,” said Meelad, a Kabul-based freelance journalist, “Everyone in Afghanistan is demanding for him to take his statement back. It is a matter of serious discomfort here.”
Calls for a recognised border are in stark contrast to the popular opinion amongst lawmakers in Afghanistan. Hamid Karzai, the country’s former president, echoed the sentiment last month when he said Afghanistan would never accept the Durand Line as an international border. His statement was in response to Pakistan unilaterally closing the two main border crossings for 32 days, after a blitz of bombings in the country, which were traced back to militants in Afghanistan. Pakistan’s Prime Minister later reopened the Pak-Afghan border as a gesture of goodwill.