‘Afghanistan Final Ethnicity List’ sparks concerns

KABUL (SW): A list titled ‘Afghanistan Final Ethnicity List’ has caused concerns in some quarters regarding their identity and rights.

The list circulating on the social media is said to be used for the forthcoming biometric identification card (e-Tazkiras). The social media users were quick to comment on the list. The “Afghanistan Final Ethnicity List” has a list of some 42 ethnic groups residing in the country.

Fazle Karim Aimaq, former member of the parliament, has said the Aimaq ethnic group has been further divided into Lar Khwabi, Sajani, Feroz Kohi, Jamshidi and Taimani sub-groups. “In the current regime, rights are based on the population of ethnic group. The sub-division of an ethnic group can prove dangerous for that ethnic group”, added Aimaq.

The former parliamentarian, and leader of the Aimaq ethnic group, urged the Ministry of Tribal and Border Affairs (MoTBRA) and the Central Statistic Organization (CSO) of the country to cautiously deal with the ethnic issues.

Meanwhile, Khiyaluddin Sidddiqi, head of research and studies at the Ministry of Tribal and Border Affairs (MoTBRA), has said a mistake has been committed in the title of the list which has put branches of an ethnic group as a separate ethnicity. He claimed the list is not finalized, and the complete list will be provided for the e-Tazkiras.

Homayun Muhtat, director of Central Statistic Organization (CSO) and the e-Tazkiras, visiting Sarwar Danish, the 2^nd Vice President (VP) of the country last evening, rejected the list, and said the CSO has nothing to do with preparation of the list.

This comes as the President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani endorsed the proposed amendment to the Article 6 of Population Census Law. The amendment allows the government to put ethnicity on the face of the new e-Tazkiras.

ENDS