August 01, 2007	Wednesday	Rajab 16, 1428

SWABI, July 31: President of the Awami National Party, Asfandyar Wali Khan, said on Tuesday that the role of Pukhtun women was extremely important if the serious challenges facing the nation were to be faced off successfully.

The ANP leader was addressing a women’s convention at the residence of Dr Yasmeen Jasim.He said the Pukhtun community was threatened today by internal and external traitors, adding that women should struggle side by side with men to confront the dangers with unity and cohesion.

“Pukhtun women and men have inherited the philosophy of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan and we should try to stick to it in order to achieve success and progress in future,” he said.

Mr Asfandyar said the struggle of the ANP was aimed at safeguarding rights, honour and dignity of women. He asked the women to always cover their heads with red scarves in order to promote the ideology of the party.

The ANP president said that women enjoyed a unique status in the Pukhtun community because they were considered to be the symbol of honour.

He bitterly criticised policies of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal government, claiming that the alliance did not live up to its promises and was doomed to face defeat in the upcoming general elections.

“The self-proclaimed advocates of Islam force Pukhtun women to wear burqa, but I say to them that Pukhtuns have their own culture and traditions and they will never allow alien customs and traditions to prevail over them,” the ANP leader said.

He said that some people had termed the ongoing war on Pukhtuns’ soil a jihad against infidels, but it was not a jihad but a plot to annihilate all Pukhtuns because only Pukhtun areas were under the shadows of guns and bombs.

“If it were a jihad then why is it being waged only on the Pukhtun soil. Why not in the Punjab province?” he asked.

Dr Yasmeen Jasim, District President of Women Wing of the ANP, said that the MMA government claimed that revolutionary steps had been taken to ensure rights of women in the province, but it was Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan who had actually initiated the struggle for the emancipation of women in the pre-independence period.

“Look at these red flags and red dupattas. We still stick to the philosophy of the Khan because it had enabled us to stand side by side with our brave and courageous men,” she said.

On this occasion, Janas Khan, the Divisional General Secretary of the PPP(S), announced that he had resigned from his party and joined the ANP.

It was also announced that 300 people of Ali Khan Banda had joined the ANP when Mr Asfandyar visited the area.

The convention was also attended by Bushra Gohar, Central Vice President of the Women Wing, Jamila Gilani, Joint Secretary, Sitara Ayaz, Provincial Vice President and Noreen Naveed, District Vice President, Mardan. ANP’s Provincial President Afrasyab Khattak, Secretary-General Mian Iftikhar Hussain, Joint Secretary Haidar Hoti and district president Haji Rehmanullah Jan also attended the convention.