Understanding the Psyche of the Pathan Mujahedeen

In 1947, a group of tribals from the North West Pakistan invaded the Kashmere valley. They had tremendous success and almost occupied Srinagar. The forces of the Raja of Kashmir were routed and paved the way for the Raja to sign the instrument of accession to India. History seems to be repeating itself, as at the present juncture the same people in the guise of the Mujahedeen are operating in fairly large numbers in the valley again and in Pakistan itself. It is worth studying who these tribesmen are, their psyche and life to form an assessment of their strength and weakness if any. The tribesmen from the North West Frontier are and will continue to be an important factor in the strength of Pakistan and by corollary its weakness as well. To appreciate how important this factor is, we need only to take a passing glance at a few of the events in the torrid history of the NW Frontier and the ethos of its people.

Lying between the Indian and Durand line is a small territory containing no particular wealth. It is the North West frontier province forming a natural barrier across the historic route from Central Asia to the Indian sub continent. This frontier belt has probably seen more invasions than any other part of India. Today its people follow the Islamic faith, having been converted by Mahmud of Ghazni nearly a thousand years back.

The people of the NW Frontier are predominantly Pathans also referred to as Pakhtuns or Pushtuns. The Pathans form one of the largest tribal societies (about seventeen million) and are divided into numerous sub tribes and clans.Pathans living in the plains have to an extent accepted the sovereignty of whosoever has ruled them viz the Sikhs, Mughals and British, but those residing in the distant hills that start about eighty kilometers to the west of the Indus river have never been completely subdued. These tribals are fiercely independent and guard their homeland and honor against all invaders. They are also fearless fighters adept at guerrilla warfare.

In 1000 AD, Mahmud invaded this area and the people embraced Islam, with this started the Pathan infiltration in to all parts of India, by Muslim arms. By about 1450 during the Lodhi period Pathans began to settle in significant numbers in India. Though the Frontier was to remain part of the Indian empire, yet the imperial control was at its best tenuous.

In 1586-87 Akbar conducted two campaigns, both of which failed. In 1620 the Mughal commander Ghairat Khan advanced on Tirah where he was killed and his forces routed. Again in 1627 the Mughal Governor Muzaffar Khan had to flee and among other things the ladies of his harem and court fell into the hands of the Pathans. In 1672 Emperor Aurengzeb's governor at Peshawar Mohd Amin led an expedition into the Khyber. In the ensuing battle the entire Mughal force was wiped out. Amin and a handful of soldiers were the sole survivors. Everything else including Amins own wife, sister and daughters was lost to the Pathans.

For some time in the first half of the nineteenth century the Sikh Raja Ranjit Singh established some form of control after he won the battle of Naushere near Attock. But they i.e. the Sikhs could not establish any permanent foothold and in 1837 Hari Singh the Sikh governor of Peshawar was killed in action. In 1846 the British reached Peshawar. Though they ruled for nearly a hundred years yet it was not a period of peace.

The British immediately encountered the Pathan tribesmen who seemed to blend with the surroundings as they wore "Khaki" meaning dusty. This compelled the British Army to change their conspicuous red uniforms for the Khaki colour. From 1857 to 1881 the British lad 23 military expeditions against the tribesmen without any resounding success as at Plassey or Buxer. Tales of the dangers of Khyber and the Frontier and the ferocity of the Pathans are legandry. The numerous memoirs of soldiers who served on the Frontier give the impression of a savage war where the British burned whole villages and the Pathans retaliated with ambushes and slaughter even to the extant of mutilating wounded soldiers who happened to fall into their hands. No quarter was given and none expected. In fact so fierce was the resistance of the Pathans that it won the admiration for the British. Rudyard Kippling in his 'Barrack Room Ballads' pays a tribute to the ferocity of the Pathan so aptly summed up in this verse:-

"When you are wounded and left alone on Afghanistan's plains

An the women come out to cut up what remains

Jests roll to your rifle and blow out your brains

And go to your Gawd like a soldier"

The way of life of the Pathans is an inflexible code of conduct which all tribesmen traditionally abide. It requires that every insult be revenged and every guest protected. This is called Pukhtunwali or the way of life of the Pukhtuns. To safeguard his honor or the respect of his family or clan, a Pathan will go to any extreme including his life. A small insult will be remembered and paid back with interest. In fact the Pathans are notorious for their family feuds, which last for many generations. The feuds generally centre around Zar (Gold), Zan (Women), and Zamin (Land).

In his book "Lord of the Khyber" Andre Singer gives many an exciting account of the spirit that fires the Pathan, He recounts the incident of a Pathan who killed seven male members of a opposing family for having insulted his wife. Such tales are a legion.

Such are the people who today constitute one factor in the strength as well as weakness of Pakistan. It was from them that some were sent to Kashmir. In 1947 they quickly put the Kashmir troops to the sword and perhaps would have taken Srinagar if they had not tarried at Baramulla to rape and burn the settlement. Even when the Indian Army intervened they acquitted themselves creditably. Against regular troops equipped with tanks and artillery in a strange territory many hundred of miles from home with no weapons other than their rifles and daggers these Pathans fought as no other men could have fought. The situation has now turned full turtle and Pakistan is itself beset with this malice in the form of Al Qaida and Taliban. The Pakistan Army has mounted an offensive in Waziristan. The results are however not heartening. The United States as the dominant power must involve India in its fight in Afghanistan. Lest we forget, the battle of Kashmir as well as the attacks on the Pakistan state itself can only be won by understanding the psyche of the Pathan Mujahedeen.