PESHAWAR, Nov 10: Tribesmen from Khyber Agency have threatened to use force if a project of erecting a boundary wall around Hayatabad Township is not stopped forthwith, said Fata Senator Hameedullah Afridi.

The township shares a common boundary with the tribal area on three sides whereas its eastern side is linked to Peshawar. The contact of the township with the tribal belt has already been barred through fencing of a boundary line.

“We cannot guarantee peaceful state of affairs in the area if tribesmen are not allowed exit gates in the wall to the tribal territory,” said the Senator who was accompanied by a number of tribal elders, including former MNA Abdul Lateef Afridi.

Citing articles of the 1973 Constitution, he said people living in Fata were equal citizens of Pakistan and had every right to move freely in the country.

“The government intends to deprive tribesmen of their basic human rights,” he said, adding that he would not become party to any decision.

The senator also came hard upon the local police who blamed the tribal people for the worsening law and order situation in the township.

“If this is how you maintain the law and order, let the whole tribal territory be encircled in a wall,” he said.

He said the residents of Fata were already under the clutches of what he termed as black law of the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) and if any crimes was proved against any tribesman, his entire clan could be held responsible for it.

Speaking on the occasion, Lateef Afridi said the area where Hayatabad was situated belonged to the Afridi tribe and they agreed to give it to the government thinking it would bring progress to their under-developed hometowns, but lamented that since the formation of the township, a number of barriers were erected to stop entry of the tribesman to the area.

He said that a tribal jirga had been convened in Ramazan, which decided not to allow construction of the wall at any price. It was detrimental to the interests of the tribesmen, the jirga observed.

OFFICIAL SUSPENDED: Meanwhile, APP reported that District Coordination Officer Shangla, Akbar Khan on Thursday suspended Hazrat Bilal, a sub-engineer of water supply and sanitation for dereliction of his duty.—APP