Islamabad, Oct 7 (EFE).- Pakistan has imposed a ban on a prominent Pashtun rights group for its alleged involvement in activities considered prejudicial to the country’s peace and security, an official said Monday.
Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) claims that the Pashtuns have been facing rights abuses in the name of the country’s war against militants, mainly in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
The now banned outfit blames Pakistan’s powerful military for rights abuses in the province and elsewhere, a charge the military denies.
“The government banned PTM yesterday after it was found involved in activities which are detrimental to peace and security of the country,” Interior Ministry spokesperson Qadir Tiwana told EFE on Monday.
In a notification released on Sunday, the ministry said it has “reasons to believe” the PTM is engaged in “certain activities which are prejudicial to the peace and security of the country,” but did not clarify the nature of the activities it referred to.
The move comes days before the PTM holds a Pashtoon Qaumi Jirga or Pashtun National Dialogue on Oct. 11, which is expected to bring a large gathering of the ethnic Pashtun community.
The organizers of the dialogue will present their demands to the government. The government sees the jirga as a step against the state and federation of Pakistan.
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), in a statement, condemned the government’s decision to ban the PTM.
“This extreme decision was neither transparent nor warranted,” HRCP said on Sunday adding “the notification should be withdrawn and the PTM allowed to continue its peaceful advocacy.”
PTM was formed in 2014 by veterinary sciences student Manzoor Pashteen to demand an end to alleged extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances of Pashtuns and other ethnic minorities by the security forces.
The rights group gained national prominence when it started protests against the killing of Naqeebullah Mehsud, a young garment trader and aspiring Pashtun model, who was shot dead by the police in Karachi in 2018.
PTM has been severely criticized by the Pakistani authorities for allegedly fomenting unrest and working at the behest of foreign agencies from neighboring Afghanistan and India.
In the 2018 election, PTM leaders Mohsin Dawar and Ali Wazir were elected to parliament from Pakistan’s restive North and South Waziristan districts, respectively. EFE
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