Getting the ball rolling

There are some things that have become associated with Balochistan of late; most of them unpleasant. Quetta, the capital of Balochistan, even with its wide open spaces and tough terrain was once regarded as a melting pot of different ethnicities, cultures, and religions. Other images that the name ‘Quetta’ conjured up were a laid back lifestyle, hospitable people, apple orchards, and bustling market places famed for their selection of nuts and dried fruit. In the summers Quetta also served as a base for families vacationing in the not-too-far hill-top resort, Ziarat.

Sadly, a few of the things that come to mind nowadays when one hears ‘Quetta’ are ethnic and religious divisions, organised violence, acts of terror, and mysterious abductions. Not too surprisingly the general consensus for visiting Quetta is: avoid if possible. But closing one’s eyes does not make a problem go away. Some people are relocating from Quetta but most people will stay – regardless to the extent the situation deteriorates to. These persons of different ethnicities and subscribing to different faiths have lived in the same city for generations and will hopefully find a way to live together in harmony for many, many years to come.

Empathy is the essential ingredient for – not merely existing in the same place peacefully – but more importantly to help members of different communities understand one another better and to form relationships with one another. It is hard to empathize in dangerous and unstable times, but this is when it is needed the most. This point was brought home by a group of young people from the city who celebrated diversity and harmony through sports.

Shanti Nagar is an area of Quetta which has been historically inhabited by the Hindu population of the city. A stream and a watering station divide Shanti Nagar from the nearest Muslim settlement. Both communities have had an arrangement for years by which they share the watering station to replenish their water supplies. Tension existed though because of the waste disposed off into the stream. Since the Muslim area is located downstream, most of the trash found its way there.

With time as the levels of pollution in the stream rose tensions turned into a debate, followed by accusations and finger pointing when no mutually acceptable solution could be agreed upon. The standoff reached the tipping point when the elders of the Muslim jirga – a traditional tribal council whose decision is considered unquestionable – hinted at blocking off access to the stream and the watering area.

The solution to the looming crisis came from a group of young people in the most unexpected form. It is not uncommon for young people from both communities – young and old to form friendships. A group of friends comprising both Muslims and Hindus had also attended an Active Citizens training together. They grasped this as the ideal situation to put their training to the test. They put their heads together to come up with a way to encourage constructive dialogue in a friendly atmosphere. They reached the conclusion that to encourage members of both communities to start talking again some sort of positive interaction was needed. One such positive form of interaction they decided was sports.

Quickly two teams from both communities were put together to participate in a friendly football match. All arrangements were taken care of by the funds pooled together by the group of young Active Citizens. Community members were invited to attend the match free of cost and the total turnout on the day of the match was approximately 150 people. At the conclusion of the match elders from both communities were honoured, and young people from both teams spoke about the important role that dialogue plays in resolving conflict.

As a direct consequence of the efforts of these young people influencers from both communities resolved to clean up the stream and to help finance the building of a proper drainage facility. Within two weeks the stream was much cleaner and proper drains were built. Proper waste disposal has not been a topic of argument between these two communities since. Several football matches have been played though.

Reflections on peace in Quetta

Quetta is a city of Pakistan that makes the news from time to time. Unfortunately, most of the news is bad. Kidnappings, targeted killings, suicide bombings, and a simmering separatist movement are not anything new to the people of Quetta; they have seen it all.

The largest province by area, Balochistan just by its geographic placement is a very sensitive and critical area of Pakistan: it shares its south-west border with Iran and its western border with Afghanistan. Adding further instability to the region is the different and diverse mix of ethnic groups inhabiting the province.

Last week I found myself in Quetta after a long time on an official trip. The purpose of the trip was to oversee a film shoot for an upcoming Active Citizens documentary. I visited a number of places where our film crew shot footage of ongoing Social Action Projects, but what I would like to write about today are my observations of a few activities organised for the promotion of peace in the city.

Our local partner organization, the College of Youth Activism and Development (CYAAD) helped organise these activities in Mariabad, an area of the city populated by members of the Hazara community. The Hazara people form a minority in Quetta, and of late targeted killings of Hazaras have shook their entire community to the core. Some people term these killings the work of extremist elements; others term it as systematic ethnic cleansing. When I asked people from different areas of Quetta why they thought the Hazara people were being murdered, and by whom, they could not offer a motive either. The fact remains thought that people are being killed in Quetta – Hazara, and members of other ethnic groups as well.

The first part of the day’s activities was a peace walk to the local graveyard from the city centre. A group of young people from all over the city, comprising of various ethnic groups participated in the walk. It was very encouraging to see young adults and children holding up placards and banners with messages of peaceful coexistence printed on them.

It was a brisk winter day with clear, sunny skies – perfect weather to be outside. Reaching the graveyard, the participants of the walk offered prayers for the dead and hung messages of peace written on coloured paper from a tree in the graveyard. We then made our way back to the city where a workshop on conflict resolution was arranged in a vocational and technical institute.
The workshop was headed by Ms. Najeeba Saeed of CYAAD. Najeeba is a well respected resident of the city because of her long association with the development sector. Her main expertise lies in study of conflict and the resolution of conflict.

Najeeba talked about two major groups in any conflict: one which has something to gain from the conflict, and the other group which wants to resolve the conflict.

She went on to say that people who live in one area of Quetta feel that visiting another area of the city is not advisable; this is the wrong way to think. This city belongs to all the residents of Quetta; staying in one particular area and not venturing out of it only divides the community.

Listening to Najeeba talk about divisions within a community, I could not help but think that this concept could easily be extended from a community’s perspective to a larger one: which encapsulates an entire country. In a way we have adopted a similar mind-set of creating our particular safe zones, and in the process we have isolated other areas of the country and the people living in them. Quetta is one such place.

Balochistan’s provincial minister for quality education, Mr. Jan Ali Changezi was also in attendance. When asked to offer a few words on the occasion, he quoted the following excerpt from the speech that legendary Pakistani poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz delivered in Moscow when he took the stage to receive the Lenin Peace Prize: “I believe that humanity which has never been defeated by its enemies will after all be successful; at long last, instead of wars, hatred, and cruelty”.

It is true that conflict exists in Quetta, but it won’t be resolved by looking away from it. Nor will it be resolved by rushing into dialogue without a well thought out plan. We have to focus instead on understanding the underlying issues that are causing tension, we have to try and understand the sensibilities of the different ethnic groups that make up the population of Balohistan. We have to work towards a peaceful, and safer Quetta, and consequently a more stable Balochistan. We have to do this by well thought out and sustained engagement; not by adopting a policy of avoidance or escalation.

Football for peace

September 21 is marked internationally as ‘The International Day for Peace’. 'It is a day when communities are urged to consider ways in which they can promote and strengthen the ideals of peace within themselves and with other communities.

Swat is a district of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, not too far from the Pakistan-Afghan border. Swat was once renowned, and still is, for its natural beauty; but Swat also has a troubled past.

Extremist elements had been gaining strength in the region ever since the Taliban established their government in neighbouring Afghanistan.

Skirmishes between extremist elements escalated in 2007 to an occupation of the region by militants. It took two years of on-and-off armed conflict between the Pakistani army and militant forces for stability to return to the region.

Like all communities that have experienced an extended period of conflict, the two years of violence have left a lasting impact on the people of Swat; skirmishes and armed operations may be over, but the memories linger on.

To mark The International Day for Peace, a group of Active Citizens from Swat organized a soccer match on September 23 2011 with the collaboration of CYAAD, a partner organization of the British Council. The chairman of the Swat Aman Committee (The Swat Committee for Peace) and other members of the peace committee also participated in the event.

The match was played in the Kabal Ground, in an area that used to be a stronghold of militants during the ‘occupation’ of Swat. In a way this was a statement by the Active Citizens group that the era of violence in Swat is over.

The football match was a welcome change for the people of Swat. More than 1,000 people were in attendance to cheer on the two teams. Besides entertaining the crowd, the match served as a way to highlight the fact that the young people of the region desired peace, and that they want to play their part to avoid and to resolve conflict.