Dareemat: a mechanism of arbitration and dispute resolution among Pashtuns in Zhob, Pakistan

This paper brings to light the customary court of dareemat and explores its structure and practice among Pashtuns in the Zhob District of Balochistan. Existing literature on Pashtun society has mainly focused on the jirgah as the sole traditional institution of settling conflicts and disputes. The institution/court of dareemat primarily deals with resolution of disputes and conflicts pertaining to claims over property, land, accusations, and allegations. It consists of dareeman (arbitrators), disputants, eyewitnesses, and observers. Dareemat can be initiated through mutual consent of the disputants or arbitrators, depending on the intensity of the conflict or dispute. Individual males, having reputation for integrity, eloquence, expertise, and experience of arbitration (dareemat), are trusted with the task of being jury in the court of dareemat. It exists parallel to statutory courts of civil disputes in Zhob. The post-colonial state of Pakistan somehow has recognized the role of customary laws and courts in the sphere of civil disputes in predominantly Pashtun areas in tribal regions of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. By applying a legal pluralism lens to study the practice and settlement of civil disputes by using the customary dareemat court, Pashtuns in Zhob District prefer to settle their disputes outside formal courts, in the dareemat as a first recourse to justice. The findings of the article are based on 10 months anthropological fieldwork substantiated by dareemat archives in the form of affidavits.