PESHAWAR, Dec 29: The Sarhad Awami Forest Assembly (Safa) on Sunday unanimously rejected the NWFP Forest Ordinance 2002 and demanded that it be tabled in the provincial assembly so that it could be amended.

The participants at a Safa session demanded that the provincial government lift the ban on commercial cutting of trees.

About 200 representatives from Hazara, Kohistan, Dir, Swat, Chitral and other districts, members of the NWFP Forestry Roundtable, conservators, Nazimeen and NGOs workers attended the meeting.

The assembly and the Sungi Development Foundation organized the session at the Peshawar Press Club. Provincial assembly member from Swat, Amir Zada, presided over the proceedings.

The participants wore black arm-bands in protest against the ordinance, which was promulgated in the province three months back.

A declaration adopted at the forum criticized the ordinance and said the “fixation of people’s rights” under the law could not protect the rights of local communities.

The declaration said the structure, powers and responsibilities of the Forest Settlement Board was repugnant to the basic rights of the people and would indulge local communities in disputes. It proposed adoption of a transparent methodology for the formation of the board.

The assembly underlined the need for scraping of powers of the forest officials under the ordinance.

It endorsed the Joint Forest Management Committees and said senior officials of the department should have powers to dissolve the committees whereas the communities should enjoy the right to challenge  the dissolution in the court.

Sungi Foundation’s Mushtaq Gadhi proposed introduction of joint forest management in Malakand. The government has implemented the system in Hazara.

He said the population should have proper representation in forest management that would help in the conservation of resources.

Forest Guards Association President Haji Mohammad Zaib said the ordinance was protecting the rights of the communities and owners but the timber mafia was spreading propaganda against it to protect their interests.

He said Article 100 of the ordinance protected the rights of the community, including commercial harvesting.