PESHAWAR, March 31: The chief of Pakhtoonkhwa Qaumi Party (PQP), Mohammad Afzal Khan on Sunday called upon President Gen Pervez Musharraf and the head of the Afghan interim government, Hamid Karzai, to disband the Durand Line and allow free movement and trade between the two countries.
Speaking at a conference at the Nishter Hall, Afzal Khan said the Durand Line was the main reason for instability in the region.
“Unless Pakhtoons living on both sides of the Duran Line are united, peace and stability in this part of the world cannot reign supreme,” said the PQP chief arguing in support of doing away with the century old line diving the countries.
He said reunification of the Pakhtoon nation, forced to live divided on both sides of the line, could guarantee lasting peace and tranquillity in the region.
The conference was organised in memory of Afghan Jihadi commander Abdul Haq, who was killed by Taliban when he entered Afghanistan in an attempt to dislodge them after the Sept 11 attacks.
Representatives of various Afghan factions and Pakhtoon nationalist figures from the NWFP, Balochistan and the tribal areas attended the event. American, Iranian and Afghan diplomats were also present.
Afzal Khan said the British rulers drew the Durand Line and divided the Pakhtoons into four parts to achieve their nefarious designs.
He was optimistic that “this unnatural geographical division of Pakhtoon nation will end soon.”
He said that the Durand Line was not acceptable for the Pakhtoons and argued that their unification was in the larger national interest of Pakistan.
He stressed upon America to support the unification of the Pakhtoon nation. Until the Pakhtoons remain divided, America could not safeguard its interests in the region, he added.
Afghan leaders asked the Afghan interim government to level ground for the return of former king Zahir Shah and ensure the holding of grand Loya Jirga in Kabul.
They condemned the interference of foreign elements and asked other countries to stop meddling in the internal affairs of Afghanistan.