Monitoring Desk
DARRA ADAMKHEL, PAKISTAN: When the unpleasant loud voice from Pakistan’s most notorious weapons market becomes overwhelming, Mohammed Jahanzeb, an arms dealer slinks away from his shop, past colleagues test-firing machine guns, to read in the hush of the town’s library.
“It’s my hobby, favorite hobby, so sometimes I sneak off,” said 28 years old Mohammed Jahanzeb as he talked to AFP after showing off his inventory of forged assault weapons, vintage rifles, and a menacing array of burnished flick-knives. “I’ve always wished that we would have a library here, and my wish has come true.”
The town of Darra Adamkhel, part of the deeply conservative tribal belt in Pakistan, earned a reputation as a “wild west” waypoint between the neighbouring countries, Pakistan and Afghanistan in view of decades of drug-running and militancy in the surrounding mountains. The town has long been known for its black market bazaars stocked with weapons including replica revolvers, forged American rifles, and rip-off AK-47s.
But a short walk away, a town library is thriving by offering titles as Virginia Woolf’s classic “Mrs Dalloway,” “Twilight,” and “Life, Speeches and Letters” by Abraham Lincoln. “Initially we were discouraged. People asked, ‘What is the use of books in a place like Darra Adamkhel? Who would ever read here?’” recalled 36-year-old founder Raj Mohammed.
Literacy rates in the tribal area, which were semi-autonomous until 2018, are among the lowest in Pakistan as a result of patriarchal values, poverty, inter-clan conflicts and a lack of schools. The area was later merged with the neighboring province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
However, attitudes are changing, believes softspoken 33 years old volunteer librarian, Shafiullah Afridi as he said attitudes are changing especially among the younger generation who are now more interested in education instead of weaponry. “When people see young people in their neighborhood becoming doctors and engineers, others also start sending their children to school,” said Afridi. Afridi has curated a ledger of 4,000 titles in three languages — Pashto, English, and Urdu.
Despite the background noise of gunsmiths hammering bullets into dusty patches of earth nearby while testing weapons, the atmosphere is genteel as readers sip endless rounds of green tea and muse over texts.
Library began as a solitary reading room in 2018
Libraries are rare in Pakistan’s rural areas, and the few that exist in urban centers are often poorly stocked. In Darra Adamkhel, it began as a solitary reading room in 2018 stocked with Mohammed’s personal collection, above one of the hundreds of gun shops in the central bazaar.
Alongside Stephen King, tattered Tom Clancy and Michael Crichton paperbacks, there are more weighty tomes detailing the history of Pakistan and India and guides for civil service entrance exams. A wide selection of Islamic teachings is also available in the library.
