Durand Line

The Durand Line is the term for the poorly marked 2,640 kilometer (1,610 mile) border between the governments of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

After being defeated in two wars against the Afghans (see Afghans vs British), the British succeeded in 1893 in imposing the Durand Line dividing the Pashtun territory of southeast Afghanistan (now North-West Frontier Province (N.W.F.P.), Federally Administered Tribal Areas (F.A.T.A.) and Balochistan provinces of Pakistan). Named after Sir Mortimer Durand, the foreign secretary of the British Indian government, it was agreed upon by the Emir of Afghanistan (Abdur Rahman Khan) and the representatives of British Empire, but deeply resented by the Afghan Emir. One of the two representatives of the Afghan government was the Ahmadi Sahibzada Abdul Latif of Khost. The dividing line was drawn intentionally to cut through the Afghan tribes whom the British feared and may have tried to disunite, and today about 28 million Pashtuns are found on the Pakistani side of the line, and perhaps half that amount on the Afghan side.

Afghanistan's loya jirga of 1949 declared the Durand Line invalid as they saw it as ex parte on their side (since British India ceased to exist in 1947 with the independence of Pakistan). This had no tangible effect as there has never been a move to enforce such a declaration due to long periods of constant wars with other neighbors in the region. Additionally, world courts have universally upheld uti possidetis juris, i.e, binding bilateral agreements with or between colonial powers are "passed down" to successor independent states, as with most of Africa. A unilateral declaration by one party has no effect; boundary changes must be made bilaterally. Thus, the Durand Line boundary remains in effect today as the international boundary between the governments of Afghanistan and Pakistan, and is recognized as such by most nations. Despite pervasive internet rumors to the contrary, US Department of State and the British Foreign Commonwealth Office documents and spokespersons have confirmed that the Durand Line, like virtually all international boundaries, has no expiration date, nor is there any mention of such in any Durand Line documents. The 1921 treaty expiration refers only to the 1921 agreements.

The Durand Line is sometimes referred to as the "Zero Line." Excluding the desert portion southwest of 66 degrees 15 minutes east longitude, 84% of the line follows clear physical features (rivers or watershed divides). The precise route of the remaining 16% straight line segments is also quite clearly demarcated from the 1894-95 demarcation reports and subsequent mapping, so the legal location of the line is not in doubt and is quite accurate on readily available mapping such as the detailed (1:50,000 scale) Russian maps of the 1980s.

Because the Durand Line artificially divides the Pashtun people, it continues to be a source of tension between the governments of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Frequent press statements from 2005 to 2007 by Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf calling for the building of a fence delineating the Afghanistan/Pakistan border have been met with resistance from numerous political parties within both countries. Most Pashtuns on both sides of the border do not recognize the Durand Line and are determined not to allow anyone to divide them. The Pashtun tribal leaders accused Pakistan's government of playing dirty tricks, by trying to impose and give official stamp to the Durand line.

See also

• Afghanistan
• History of Afghanistan
• Third Anglo-Afghan war

External links

• Afghanistan Imaginary Durand Line
• Khyber.Org - Durand Line Agreement, 1893
• Tolafghan - Durand Line
• Afghanistans - Durand Line
• Pashtunistan - Durand Line
• e-Ariana - Dangerous line in the sand
• Large Map of the Durand Line
• Text of the Treaty Creating the Durand Line
• Links collection for images of the border
• Sahibzada Abdul Latif of Khost
• An argument against the legitimacy of the Durand Line By Dr. G. Rauf Roashan