ASSADABAD (SW) – The previously prohibited logging and smuggling of timber in the forests of Kunar province have gained momentum causing concerns among the residence.
Despite multiple recent media reports about deforestation and smuggling in Kunar, some Kunar residents said there was a grim need for the Taliban to put an end to this. They said they have in the past shared their concerns about deforestation with the authorities, but no action has been taken to prevent it.
Residents of Kunar now urge the Taliban officials to take concrete steps to stop deforestation and smuggling of timber.
In conversation with Salam Watandar, the Kunar residents said they have already handed over documented proofs related to the smuggling of wood to the relevant authorities and have staged mass protests, but according to them, no one has listened to them and to protect this national treasure of Afghanistan.
They also called on the people of Kunar to join hands for this national treasure and stand up against deforestation and smuggling.
Meanwhile, concerns in this connection have also been expressed in the social media with locals claiming the timber continued to be smuggled to neighboring Pakistan.
Officials in Kunar, however, claimed they have managed to control the smuggling and timber logging effectively.
Kunar Governor Qari Mohammad Osman Turabi said that since the Taliban came to power, they have arbitrarily banned deforestation and smuggling, and no one has been able to move Kunar’s timber to other areas.
He added: “We have a lot of people asking for the release of firewood and moving it from one place to another and people are asking for it. But, we do not allow it”.
He went on to claim a number of smugglers have been arrested.
Despite the government’s efforts, the people’s role in protecting the forests is also seen to be important, and it is believed that if the locals ban deforestation and smuggling under a tribal agreement, these national treasures can be preserved.
According to the data, there are 200,000 hectares of forests in the mountainous areas of Kunar, but in the past, some of them have been cut down and their timber has been smuggled to different places.
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