FOREIGN TOURISTS VISITED KUMRAT VALLEY THIS YEAR

Foreign tourists visited Kumrat Valley Dir Upper this year

There was a time when not only foreign citizens but even the neighboring Pashtuns would not come to our area without prior acquaintance. This was a time when our elders kept Kohistan Dir isolated from the outside world. Only those who knew someone local would come from outside. Those who came without prior acquaintance were immediately sent back, no matter who they were. I am talking about the villages of Kohistan Dir; at that time, Kumrat was an extremely sensitive and sacred place where the question of outsiders entering did not even arise.

Around 1895, when Umra Khan, also known as the Afghan Napoleon, attacked Kohistan Dir and annexed it into Dir, even then, the local people, despite losing everything, did not allow him access to Kumrat. Local traditions confirm that the Gawri lineage people of Upper Panjkora and Swat fiercely resisted Umra Khan. However, with axes and arrows, they could not withstand the modern British rifles. After suffering heavy casualties, they surrendered. Although they were defeated, they managed to keep Umra Khan's forces away from Kumrat through various means. In 1912, Colonel S. H. GODFREY, who visited Kohistan Dir or Upper Panjkora, wrote about this. Lieut.-

No European or Pathan had ever looked on this quiet scene. Even the great Umra Khan of Jandul, who was the cause of the war of 1895, and the siege of Chitral, and whom it took the might of the Indian Empire to drive out, an exile to Kabul, only penetrated as far as Thal, which he captured and burnt, sparing the mosque. Intensely superstitious, he was afraid of the great marshes said to exist in the Kumrat, where he feared to lose his beloved horses. through the hostile agency of the " fairies" which dwell in the secluded valleys of this mountain land.

Our elders knew very well how to keep the outside world away from Kumrat. Even the Nawabs of Dir never dared to come to Upper Panjkora themselves. Whenever necessary, they sent their womenfolk instead, and in return, our elders gave them various pastures and areas as per local customs. Later, the Nawabs of Dir settled Pashtuns and Gujjars in these places, who gradually became the owners after the dissolution of the state.

 In the 1990s, Nawaz Sharif came to Kumrat twice. I don’t know about his first visit, but during his second visit, the locals fired shots over his camp at night. The next morning, when questioned, the elders made an excuse that it was a mountainous area, people come hunting, and perhaps they encountered an animal. It sounds strange, but it is a hundred percent true. Regardless of who was in front of them, our elders never compromised on Kumrat.

Kumrat was not only a sensitive place for the people of Thal but also extremely important and sensitive for the Dardic people of the entire Upper Panjkora. They made sacrifices to keep outsiders away from it. That is why, later on, no tree was cut from Kumrat for the timber given as tax to the Nawab; instead, the wood was sourced from the forests of other villages. Most trees were cut from Gwaldai and then from Byar, especially the forests of Ramgal.

In 2011, my elder brother Munir Kohistani created a page named "Kumrat Valley" to show the world the beauty of Kumrat. Although very few locals knew about social media at that time, there was an extremely strong reaction. The abusive comments on the page testify that Kumrat was just as sensitive then as it was in the past. Later, when we started writing about this area, due to social pressure, we had to write under the pseudonym "Gumnaam Kohistani" (Anonymous Kohistani). For years, no one knew whose account it was. Many times, people have openly cursed Gumnaam Kohistani in front of me. I am certain that if they had known it was me, they would have dealt with it right there and then.

After 2013, outsiders slowly started coming, and the locals gradually realized that they could also benefit from the visitors. However, there were still many challenges. If someone found out on the way or in a vehicle that this was Gumnaam Kohistani, they would not physically assault me, but they would certainly curse a lot. Everyone had the same fear: that outsiders would come and destroy our culture. They were particularly worried that seeing urban women might influence their own women to start wearing pants and shirts. It is a long story; with great difficulty, I held meetings with the elders and continued writing with great difficulty.

Anyway, that is all in the past, but today the situation is such that tourists from all over the world come to Kumrat Valley without any fear. Pakistani tourists are our own people, but it is very pleasing to see foreign tourists. Local youth and the local police have played an important role in ensuring the safety and security of guests in this beautiful area; otherwise, even now, the elders do not want anyone to come here. It was the local youth who introduced the world to these unknown valleys of the Hindu Kush. It was the local police whose efforts built confidence among tourists, allowing them to roam freely without fear. The tourist seen in the accompanying photo is Alice Julles from France. The young men with her are from the Thal police station. The Thal police station provides security to all foreign tourists coming to Kumrat. In addition to providing security, these young men often become free guides and sometimes even host guests out of their own pockets. I do not recall any foreign guest ever leaving without being hosted; if nothing else, they would at least have a cup of tea together. A future historian cannot complete his work on the promotion of tourism and the establishment of peace in this part of the Hindu Kush without mentioning the sacrifices of the local police. It is the local police who have shed blood to maintain peace in these areas. It is the local police who have instilled so much confidence in foreign tourists that they can come to Kumrat Valley today without any fear.