Tirah displaced families’ sit-in enters 150th day in Bara

PESHAWAR: A protest camp set up by people displaced from Tirah Valley completed 150 days on Sunday, with demonstrators continuing their sit-in outside the Bara Press Club while demanding immediate government action for their dignified return and rehabilitation.

Leaders of the Tirah Affectees Movement, including chairman Rahmat Shah Afridi, spokesman Sohbat Khan Afridi and Minhaj Afridi, said displaced families were facing serious difficulties in Peshawar and other areas, particularly in obtaining registration, shelter and relief support. They said the families of people killed or injured during the displacement had also yet to receive full compensation.

The movement’s leaders called on the government to ensure what they described as honourable registration of all affectees, disclose the details of agreements made during the evacuation, release previously announced aid packages without delay, establish lasting peace in the affected areas and include local communities in development projects. They also demanded special relief packages for traders, private educational institutions, teachers and students, compensation for losses, interest-free loans, protection for markets and shops, reconstruction of private schools and free education for affected students.

The protesters warned that if the government does not announce a clear plan for dignified return and rehabilitation within two months, they will widen the protest campaign.

Committee in contact with authorities

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) leader Izzatullah Humayun Afridi, who is also a member of the 24-member Tirah Valley committee, said the body remained in regular contact with government and military leadership through jirgas in an effort to resolve the matter. He said an important announcement on the return of affectees could come at an expected jirga on July 10.

According to Afridi, the two central demands — dignified return and payment of announced financial assistance — are under active consideration. He said a special verification centre would soon be set up in Bara for people left out of the registration process, and those verified there would be issued SIM cards to help them receive financial support.

He said the 24-member committee had presented 37 demands to the government, including information on development projects, compensation for surveyed damage to homes and restoration of basic infrastructure, while acknowledging that progress on implementation had been slower than expected.

Warning affectees against people allegedly seeking money in the name of aid or approvals, Afridi said that "the relief funds belong to the affectees as their right. No one should pay any individual or group."

Education disruption in Tirah

The displacement has also affected education in the valley. According to the Khyber Education Department, 22 government schools were operational in Tirah, with 3,240 enrolled students. The department also said around 5,500 children were out of school, including 3,000 girls and 2,500 boys.

In addition, 19 private educational institutions — 10 high schools, seven middle schools and two primary schools — had been functioning in the area, serving about 9,500 students. A large number of those students have not yet resumed their studies after being displaced.

Sub-Divisional Education Officer (Female) Bara Shakeela Afridi said 270 affected girl students from Tirah had been admitted to different government schools in the Bara circle, including Government Girls Primary School Karigar Garhi, Akhtar Shah Bara and Sher Badshah Kali. She said the department was taking further measures to make up for their academic losses.

Provincial Assembly member and District Development Advisory Committee chairman for Khyber district Abdul Ghani Afridi said the affectees were their own people and that he was fully aware of their problems.