The demise of “Pashtunwali”…

Has the much-vaunted Pashtun tradition fallen by the wayside in the face of Taliban (pl. see last sentence of the extract below)?

From a report in The Hindu (dt Apr 30 ’09): 

…Islamabad (PTI): Taliban militants have demolished 11 homes of members of the minority Sikh community in Pakistan’s troubled Aurakzai tribal region after they failed to pay ‘jiziya’ or a tax levied on non-Muslims.

… Though the Sikhs have been living in Aurakzai Agency for centuries, the Taliban asked them earlier this month to pay Rs 50 million a year as jiziya. The militants claimed this was being done as Shariah or Islamic law had been enforced in the area and all non-Muslims had to pay “protection money”.

There are about 35 Sikh families living in Ferozkhel near Merozai in Aurakzai Agency. The Taliban occupied two shops and three homes of Sikhs in Ferozkhel on Tuesday to pressure the community into paying jiziya.

…Though the Sikhs were initially provided protection in keeping with Pashtun traditions by the Manikhel tribe, the tribesmen are fearful of taking on the Taliban.

From a 2004 article in the National Geographic a brief explanation of “Pashtunwali“:   

The Pashtun culture is guided by a code of honor called Pashtunwali. Among the system’s tenets are the jirga (council of elders), a punishment system based on revenge, hospitality, and sanctuary, which says Pashtun should provide protection to someone who has taken refuge with them.

The Pashtun tradition of offering sanctuary partly explains why many Pashtun are reluctant to give up Osama bin Laden—assuming he is in fact among them.

“If they have given sanctuary to people who came to them during the Afghan war, they must abide by that,” said Saeed Shafqat, a Pakistani expert on Pashtun military and cultural issues. “It becomes an issue of honor.”

For more, pl. see these entries (disputed) on Wikipedia and Indopedia.

Pl. also read BarbarIndian at: India: How about Sikhs in SWAT? Pakistan: Shove it