In Pakistan, Shahbaz Sharif's government has banned the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM). PTM fights for the rights of Pashtuns in Pakistan. This is a political party in Pakistan that has been challenging the Pakistani government and army for a long time. The government has called it a threat to the security of the country.
Pashtuns are a separate ethnic group in Pakistan that has its own Pashto language, most of their population is found in Pakistan and Afghanistan. It is alleged that the Pakistani army commits atrocities against the people of the Pashtun community under the pretext of fighting the Taliban, to stop this oppression, the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement was established.
Established in 2014, this organization advocates the rights of Pashtuns affected by the ongoing action in Pakistan against the Taliban and its local ally TTP. It has considerable influence in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
This organization was founded by Manzoor Pashteen at the age of 20. Although his party does not believe in electoral politics, it has been strongly opposing the arbitrariness of the Pakistani government and the army. This is the reason why the support for this organization is constantly increasing in Pakistan.
The Pashtun Tahafuz Movement has been continuously raising its voice against the atrocities of the Pakistani army and the arbitrary decisions of the government. In July this year, PTM workers took out a rally about 25 kilometers away from Peshawar, this rally was against the action of the Pakistani army in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the imposition of new taxes by the government.
According to the information, on October 11, the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement was going to hold a big demonstration against the government. It is believed that the Shahbaz government has systematically taken this action against the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement to crush this peaceful demonstration and organization.
Meanwhile, Baloch activist Mahrang Baloch has expressed concern over this decision of the Pakistan government and called it an attempt to crush democratic rights. He has said that this step of the Shahbaz government shows that it wants to suppress peaceful political movements and the voice of the people.
Amnesty International, which raises its voice for human rights, has expressed concern over this decision of the Pakistan government. Amnesty International has said that banning PTM targeting activists and using anti-terrorism law against peaceful protests of minorities is an insult to the rights of freedom. Amnesty has demanded the Pakistan government to immediately reverse this decision and stop criminalizing peaceful protests.
The popularity and support of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement can be gauged from the fact that recently on July 7, senior PTM member Gilman Wazir was murdered, after which protests took place in many countries of the world including Pakistan and Germany. Born in North Waziristan, Gilman Wazir was a poet, it is said that his childhood was spent under the shadow of terrorism but his poems gave the message of peace.
