Pakhtunistan was the only logical name for what will soon be erstwhile NWFP. The rest is all political gimmickry. The name that has emerged is a combination of two names “Khyber Pakhtunkhwa”. Those who resisted the name “Pakhtunkhwa” do not belong to the Khyber Agency or the Khyber Pass either. So how does it help the non pakhtuns living in what was the NWFP by having the prefix ‘Khyber’ added to the provincial name? The Khyberite Pakhtuns (Afridis and Shinwaris) have already voiced disagreement to the use of the word ‘Khyber’ with the provincial name. Pakhtunistan, therefore, was the only real name for the province that was so far known as NWFP so that the Pakhtuns could have finally achieved a territorial identity. All the adverse buzz built around that word i.e. Pakhtunistan in the 70s was no longer relevant and should have been ignored.
In my opinion the Pakhtuns have been deprived once again from obtaining their true identity which is the reason for the absence of vigorous celebrations across the province. Whatever celebrations that one witnesses on the media is basically from the political party workers of mainly the ANP. The fear that the name Pakhtunistan would lay the grounds for dissent at some stage and the Pakhtuns living on both sides of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border might work their way round to one entity at some later stage is totally unfounded. If that has to happen it will still happen and can happen even around the name Pakhtunkhwa or even without any name at all. But it is not likely to happen as the Pakhtuns have proved themselves, time and again, to be extraordinarily patriotic Pakistanis.
However, it must also be kept in mind by the present and future rulers of Pakistan that it is now time for the Pakhtuns to be given their rightful resources to develop and move forward and be brought out of the backwardness that they have been kept in, endlessly, by the British when they ruled these parts and even after partition i.e. after the creation of Pakistan.
In all fairness I will add here, as a true Pakistani, a similar word for all the backward areas of Pakistan in all the provinces. Believe me, there are places in a city like Karachi where people still get drinking water on donkeys..a shame indeed!! So if the country’s integrity has to be kept intact it cannot be done by keeping this or that name but by ensuring that Pakistan now develops into a modern country on a uniform basis with every part of the country having its share of development and autonomy.
Returning to the land of the Pakhtuns let it be said that it should have been given the name ‘Pakhtunistan’ without any hesitation.
Sir i totally agree with you Khyber doesn’t come in NWFP its a federal administered area how come it be the part of NWFP .Changing the name is good thing but what was the logic behind adding khyber to name Pakhtunkhwa.if they wants to include other cast other than Pakhtuns than they should give it some other name.Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is not fit logically,historically,gramatically…
I think you have written in a very good, brief and logical way and it is difficult for me to say something more about it. May be I add some thing minor but important in continuation of what you have stated.
Giving name to NWFP as ‘Pukhtunistan’ is/was very straightforward, logical and natural. ‘Khayber Pukhtoonkhwa’ rather made it difficult to write, pronounciate and represent our province in a true sense. For me even only ‘Pukhtoonkhwa’ is not a proper name as the suffix ‘Khwa’ is very unfamiliar and local term, and I think that most of the Pukhtoons or at least Khattaks like me are not used use it for ‘land’. On the other hand the suffix ‘istan’ is widely used and known term being used for ‘land’.
Why Pukhtoonistan is not put as a name for our province is another topic which could be discussed at some other time to disclose one of the black dots on the face of our political leaders.
First of all its good to see healthy discussions on your forum/blog.
The recent protests in hazara division and a fresh demand for separate province of hazara has apparently demonstrated that people are not happy (or being told to overreact so) . This has happened even though their leadership took due before agreeing to a name change with ANP.
I am not a conspiracy theologist , but having lived in all parts of NWFP i can sense that move by PML-N and hazara ultranationalists is a calculated one.ANP is in a win-win situation on this issue but so is PPP, PML and ultra hazara nationalists if a separate province of Hazara is created.So agreement to name change makes sense for them.
For me ‘khyber-pukhtunkhwa’ name change does not reflect nationalist sentiments of hazarawals, people from khyber agency or pashtun areas. However it will further divide people of NWFP by movements towards creating a chequered picture of three provinces in what is called until now NWFP/Fata.
On the backdoor ,an end objective for punjabi or sindhi dominant political parties for forming a federal government led by their nominees shall always be a desirable solution.Furthermore keeping in view that the two big political parties are run like family businesses rather than democratic entities , our country will remain personal fiefdom to a few selected who seem to prepare to take turns as part of their furture strategy.
In other words, this will not be good for pashtuns or hazarawals and even other small units of the federation what we know as Pakistan .Also its not good for democracy if people start looking to non political or external forces for filling in the vaccum hence created.
The federation is going to suffer again with this name change.So i shall suggest our parlimentarians should review it.
In pakistan everybody looks at the government to provide this and provide that – and than deprivity gets accented with ethno-centrism…..we are being denied this and that because of our ethnicity etc.
Look at the tax go gdp ratio and it becomes obvious…10% …. Its just not enuff to do anything collectively. Raise the tax to gdp ratio to 40% and wonders will happen. Again this can be local taxation as people sitting in Islamabad can never understand what’s happening in villages outside Rawalpindi – let alone Khyber or balochistan
To name NWFP as Pakhtunkhwa is same when a newly born infant is named who gets his identity. Though some political figures may have their ulterior motives behind this name either in changing of new name or retaing the old one but the problem or point of concern which has to be addressed here is that this saga should not further bifurcate our province. so that our people and province in particular and nation in general should not pay heavily.for this legitimate act of changing the name.
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