a house divided, 1933–73Pushtunistan flag, declaring they intended to plant it on the banks of the
Indus. 31 Meanwhile, in Northern Waziristan, the Fakir of Ipi set up his
own Pukhtunistan National Assembly.
Pakistan responded by sending in the army and bombing the Afridis’
base, inflicting heavy casualties and dispersing the tribesmen. The Pakistan
Air Force then attacked the Fakir of Ipi, only for one plane mistakenly to
bomb a village on the Afghan side of the frontier and exacerbate an already
tense situation. Pakistan also gave permission to Sardar Muhammad
‘Amin, a half-brother of ex-Amir ’Aman Allah Khan, to set up Radio Free
Afghanistan in Quetta, while in Peshawar Afghan dissidents published
anti-government newspapers in the name of the Afghanistan Republican
Party. Pakistan also placed severe restrictions on transit goods, which hit
Afghanistan’s struggling economy hard.
The Afghan government responded by breaking off diplomatic rela-
tions, though a few months later a Pakistan envoy was allowed to return
to Kabul. The Afghan government, however, refused to reciprocate until
Pakistan agreed in principle to discuss the issue of self-determination for
Pushtunistan. In January 1950 Afghanistan established diplomatic relations
with India, Pakistan’s mortal enemy in the wake of the Kashmir crisis
and the war of 1947–8. New Delhi reciprocated by issuing a public state-
ment in support of Pushtunistan. 32 After Da’ud became prime minister,
self -determination for Pushtunistan was a keystone of his government’s
regional policy, and Pushtunistan became as emotive to Da’ud’s vision of
Afghan national identity as Kashmir was to Pakistan. In pursuit of this
chimera, however, Da’ud and his supporters were blind to the wider polit-
ical implications as well as the adverse economic consequences and seemed
unable to grasp that Pakistan would fight to the last to avoid the loss of
something like a third of West Pakistan. The Pakistan government’s posi-
tion became even more implacable after the civil war with East Pakistan in
1971, which led to the creation of the independent nation of Bangladesh.
As one American resident in Kabul commented, ‘what Kabul is asking for
is Pakistan’s suicide’. 33
The confrontation flared up once more in November 1954 when
Pakistan’s prime minster, Muhammad ‘Ali, announced his One Unit Plan,
which abolished West Pakistan’s five provincial administrations, includ-
ing the Northwestern Frontier Province, and replaced them with a single
unitary state. Since this policy stripped the tribes of much of their trad-
itional autonomy Prime Minister Da’ud threatened Muhammad ‘Ali with
‘grave consequences’ if he went ahead with this reorganization. Another
cause of anger in Kabul was Pakistan’s decision to join the South East Asia