Logar residents take to the streets against land grab

PUL-I-ALAM (Pajhwok): Hundreds of residents on Wednesday protested against land grabbers and blocked the Kabul-Gardez highway in central Logar province for traffic.

The protest was attended by hundreds local tribal elders and residents of Mohammad Agha district. Chanting “death to grabbers” and calling for their arrest, the demonstrators asked the government to take action on the issue.

Sher Ali, a protestor and a tribal elder, told Pajhwok Afghan News 1,500 acres of government land had been grabbed in Mohammad Agha district.

“The government should retake that land and build a township for homeless people there,” he said.

Another protestor and tribal elder, Essa Khan, said most residents of the district had no shelter while large areas of land had been usurped by some powerful individuals.

“Many people have built houses on farmlands, while others don’t have farmlands and houses,” he added.

The protestors asked the government to retake the land from grabbers as soon as possible. The road would not be reopened until the protestors was assured of positive action, they warned.

Ajmal, a driver, said protest was the right of people but they should not create problems for others. He added hundreds of cars, some transporting patients to hospital, were stranded on both sides of the road.

Salim Saleh, the governor’s spokesman, called a campaign against land-grabbers a priority. “The land that people are protesting about in Mohammad Agha belongs to the government. It would be retaken soon.”

According to local officials, around 20,000 acres of land has been grabbed by 1,800 people in Loga province. They say 3,500 acres of the land has been wrested back so far..

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