PESHAWAR: Afghan Consul General in Peshawar, Abdul Waheed Poyan, has expressed the hope that the prevailing tension between Afghanistan and Pakistan will be defused and suggested joint efforts to overcome the challenges and to restore durable peace in the entire region.

He said this on Saturday while talking to mediapersons after attending a seminar held in connection with Afghanistan International Culture Day at the Peshawar Press Club. The seminar was organised by Regional Forum for Peace and Development.

The envoy said that both the neighbouring states had been facing common threats which should be tackled through joint efforts. He said that his government gave much importance to boosting relations with Pakistan compared to other countries in the region.

Waheed Poyan says Pakhtuns suffered a lot during fight against terrorism

Prominent among the speakers at the seminar included Rahmat Shah Sayal, Abaseen Yousafzai, Abdul Majeed Chandio from Seraiki belt, Ms Fatima Atif from Hazara community and Alamzeb Khan, chairman of the forum. The gathering was also attended by poets, writers, members of civil society organisations and lawyers.

About the increasing influence of India in Afghanistan, Mr Poyan said that every country had its own policy to strengthen relationship with the neighbouring countries, so Afghanistan had an utmost desire to enhance mutual ties with all regional countries. However, he stressed the need that Afghanistan and Pakistan should jointly address the common problems.

The Afghan envoy said that the actual sufferers on both sides of the border were Pakhtuns who had suffered a lot during the prolonged war against terrorism in this region. He said that health and education infrastructure had been badly shattered during the war which had forced a large number of Afghans to leave their country.

Earlier, speaking at the seminar Mr Poyan said that Afghanistan and Pakistan were bound to have cordial relations due to their common language, traditions, culture and religion.

“Both the brotherly states are capable of resolving their issues through traditional jirga system. Women are given great respect in the Pakhtun culture which has no precedent in rest of the world,” said the Afghan envoy. However, he alleged that the political leadership in Pakistan had not shown enough seriousness to settle the issues with Afghanistan.

“Afghanistan and Pakistan are in flames, so let’s come together to fight against the menace of terrorism and to bring everlasting stability for peaceful co-existence in the region,” he said. He said that Pakhtuns were much resilient, which remained steadfast against terrorism and rendered matchless sacrifices for the restoration of durable peace in the region.

Mr Poyan stressed the need for establishment of people-to-people contacts and exchange of delegations to boost mutual cultural, business and trade relations between the two countries.

Fatima Atif, a peace and culture activist from Hazara community, in her address highlighted the cultural values and said that the role of women was vital in promotion of culture and other traditions. She said that culture gave a message of peace, tolerance, brotherhood and unity. She said that culture was meant to bridge gap and enhance cordial relations with any nation in the world.

Alamzeb Khan briefed the participants about the event and said that they had also invited an Afghan delegation having Pashto poets, writers and literary figures, but they were not allowed to attend the event due to security reasons.

Usman Olasyar, Abdul Majeed Chandio, former MPA Saleem Khan and Rahmat Shah also spoke on the occasion. They emphasised that both Pakistan and Afghanistan should promote mutual cultural relations and settle all issues in a peaceful manner to overcome the unrest in the region.

Published in Dawn, September 24th, 2017