Pashtunistan

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پښتونستان
Pashtunistan
Pakhtunistan, Pathanistan
Basic data
Country Afghanistan and Pakistan
surface approx. 800,000 km²Template: Infobox location / maintenance / number
Residents 42 to 50 millionTemplate: Infobox location / maintenance / number
density -Template: Infobox location / maintenance / density

Pashtunistan ( Pashtu : پښتونستان, Pax̌tūnistān , in German country of the Pashtuns ), also Pakhtunistan or Pathanistan , is a region in South Asia , which is inhabited by ethnic Pashtuns in the current borders of the two Islamic republics Afghanistan and Pakistan . Alternatively and historically, this region is also known as Afghânestân (Land of Afghans) or Pakhtunkhwa . The borders of the Pashtunistan region are not clearly defined as it has no official status. It borders Punjab to the east , Turkish and Persian-speaking areas to the west and north, and Balochistan to the south.

In 1893 a declaration was made between the then emirate of Afghanistan and British India , according to which the borders between the two states were redefined. Accordingly, King Abdur Rahman Khan had to surrender eastern territories to British India under pressure from the British colonial power. This new border, known as the Durand Line , ran along the Pashtun-speaking region of Afghanistan, dividing the Pashtun people. It represents today's border between Pakistan and Afghanistan .

Pashtun nationalists deny any legitimacy to this border and strive for the establishment of a Pashtun national state. On the other hand, there is the government of the state of Pakistan, which regards the border as legitimized under international law . The formation of a state of Pashtunistan has been a frequent point of contention between Afghanistan and Pakistan in the past and often drove the countries to the brink of war.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Encyclopædia Britannica (ed.), 2000: Students' Britannica India : "Ghaffar Khan, who opposed the partition, chose to live in Pakistan, where he continued to fight for the rights of the Pashtun minority and for an autonomous Pakhtunistan ( or Pathanistan) within Pakistan. "
  2. ^ FC Westley (ed.), 1950: The Spectator, Vol. 184 : "Instead it adopted the program of an independent" Pathanistan "- a program calculated to strike at the very roots of the new Dominion. More recently the Pathanistan idea has been taken up by Afghanistan. "
  3. ^ Smith, Cynthia: A Selection of Historical Maps of Afghanistan - The Durand Line Library of Congress . August 2004