Two tribes in Herat and Badghis peacefully settled a raging dispute that threatened pistachio forests.*
The Shighi are concentrated in Keshk Kohna in Herat province, and the Ehsanboka in Ab Kamari district, Badghis. Pistachio forests,
Two tribes in Herat and Badghis peacefully settled a raging dispute that threatened pistachio forests.*
The Shighi are concentrated in Keshk Kohna in Herat province, and the Ehsanboka in Ab Kamari district, Badghis. Pistachio forests, which are considered extremely valuable land, separate the two neigbouring districts, 45 km north of Herat City.
The district of Keshk Kohna is one of the most insecure in Herat province because of the presence of Taleban. This reporter made several attempts to travel to the district but failed.
However, on a hot day at the bus station in Herat, Killid met a tribal leader from the district, Haji Mohammad Ibrahim Koshki, 55, who was a former jihadi commander and ex-governor of Keshk Kohna. He said he was speaking on behalf of his tribesmen, most of whom including the more than 2,500 families living in the Zenda Hashtom area worked as local police. His people were also living next to Kokchail in Ab Kamari district.
Verbal clashes between the Shighi and Ehsanboka over ownership of land and power were common. Eventually the Shighi of Kokchail who supported the Taleban attacked the Zenda Hashtom area. Two Shighis were killed, and four were wounded. The conflict worsened, and the Shighi blocked the way, preventing the Ehsanboka from going to Herat City.
Haji Mohammad told Killid the blockade led one day to the residents of Zenda Hashtom (Keshk Kohna area) attacking people related to Ehsanboka (Ab Kamari) in which one of the latter was killed and two others wounded.
While people related to Keshk Kohna blocked the road of residents of Badghis toward Herat, the residents of Ab Kamari launched the revenge attack, exacerbating the situation that representatives of the High Peace Council were urged to intervene.
Killid spoke to Arbab Habibullah, related to the Ehsanboka in Ab Kamari. He said the clashes were serious; women and children could not come out of their homes. People from Ab Kamari who wanted to travel to Herat City, a 20-minute journey, had to travel seven hours through the mountains to get to their destination.
Willing change
Killid interviewed members of the High Peace Council. Mawlawi Ghulam Sarwar, the head of council in Herat said they were invited to intervene by a tribal leader who he did not identify. The council instructed him to come back along with other tribal elders in two days time so a draft plan for conflict resolution could be drafted.
Sarwar expressed great appreciation for Killid’s initiative to publicise the many non-violent resolution of conflicts throughout the country.
According to him, High Peace Council members made many journeys to Keshk Kohna in spite of the risky security situation before calling a jirga of representatives of both tribes and village elders. The meeting was held in the grand mosque of Zenda Hashtom.
An hour into the meeting, the two sides agreed to sue for peace and obey the terms of the settlement hammered out by the High Peace Council.
Haji Ibrahim who represented Keshk Kohna’s residents participated in the jirga. The residents of Keshk Kohna promised to lift the blockade and allow residents of Ab Kamari to use the road to Herat City and conduct their business without any fear of harassment.
In return, the residents of Ab Kamari promised that they would never attack the Keshk Kohna area, and would live in harmony with its residents like “brothers and friends”.
New chapter
The two sides have kept their word.
Sarwar, the provincial head of the High Peace Council, says the peaceful resolution of the conflict saved the valuable forests of pistachio from being destroyed in the fighting. Pistachios are the main source of livelihood in the area, and help many families including widows and children eke a living.
Members of the provincial council of Herat have praised the High Peace Council for mediating the truce between the Shighi and Ehsanboka.
Sayed Azim Akbarzai, a member, says he has requested mullahs in mosques to preach on the subject of non-violent conflict resolution in their Friday prayers in order to raise awareness among people.
Killid also spoke to Mawlawi Abdul Qayum who is considered an authority on Islam in Herat. According to him, a feud that leads to the killing or even wounding of a Muslim brother is deemed a sin under Islam. The religion calls on the faithful to steer clear of any kind of violence, he wants Killid to remind readers.
Humayun Nazarai, current affairs analyst, wishes for all round peace in the country, and the creation of a peaceful climate that would be conducive to investment in development. Tens of thousands of Afghans have died in the last more than three decades of conflict, he says. The goal of long-lasting peace must be pursued through talks, he adds.
Sayed Abdul Qader Rahimi, Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) head in the west believes peace negotiated by jirgas is more endurable than agreements struck by local government or judicial institutions.
(*) Killid took the initiative of covering cases that show peace and nonviolence are possible in our country. Hundreds of cases confirm it. The stories are also disseminated by all Killid radios and community radios.
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