The Afghanistan Quagmire

November 25, 1999

Dear Mr. Khalid Roashan:

I read your article titled “Is it Fair…” from your webpage about the unending nightmare in Afghanistan. I couldn’t agree with you more about most of the issues. You analyzed the current political situation unbiasedly, however you only described the frame not the entire picture.

I strongly agree with your factual description of the political involvement and exploitation of our nation by neighboring countries. This includes Tajikistan and most importantly our sworn enemy Russia. In addition I wholeheartedly agree with your stand on modern education for women and men in Afghanistan.

The other point that I agree with is the dialogue between the nation and the importance of our traditional way of Loya Jarga. I think another very important step prior to a national dialogue is reaching a common ground between Afghans abroad. It is inevitable not to have the difference of opinions. It is the first rule of democracy and the foundation for positive changes.

In your article you spoke about Taliban and their shortcomings of disregard to the values of education and the crushing of women emancipation. You mentioned the Afghan women doctors, university professors, and other professionals who are banned from their jobs. To westerners, this may seem like there is a big pool of these women professionals. However, while they are by far from insignificant, they were mainly in Kabul and they do not alone make up a true representation of the Afghan population. We do not want westerners and the United Nations to make this into a political exploitation. Also, this should not be the topic of humorous conversation in Jay Leno’s comedies and the controversy-hungry media, or the American families’ dinner table.

Our nation’s wounds are much more deeper than the patches of chaderi on Hollywood models’ and actors’ designer clothes, merely used as a fashion statement. The Afghans are too proud to become a mercy mission in the hands of the Christian missionaries. We have real national problems, not the ones that are exploited by Hollywood, the National Organization of Women (NOW), and the Christian crusaders.

As Afghans, we know that chaderi is no new concept. They’ve been worn by our mothers, sisters, aunts, grandmothers, daughters, and wives forever. It hasn’t been designed by the Taliban. Why are church parishioners in America praying for these “helpless” women? Chaderi is something that women wear to follow their tradition, the Taliban did not create this covering up for modesty concept. We shouldn’t let westerners think that. It shouldn’t be blown up by the media because it makes everyone elude the real issues.

The real issues facing Afghanistan is the daily survival; the basic human needs of food, clothing, and shelter. Also, peace, the economy, and proper education are the important matters. These problems have been an ongoing saga during the past twenty-one years, not just created by the Taliban.

During the past twenty-one years, us Afghans have lost our dignity, women’s dignity, human values, and family values. We suffered through humiliation and endured torture from various regimes until the Taliban arrived. When Afghan Muslim women and young boys were raped and forcefully married to and by the Russians and other puppets, where were the crusaders? Now Westerners are concerned about lack of employment in Afghanistan. Where were these so-called “caring-people” when the Afghan professionals were dropped alive from hovering helicopters down to the mountains by Russians, their puppets, and their stooges? How about the innocent infants whose tiny bodies were literally pulled apart by the limbs? Where was Leno’s wife, Christina Amanpour, NOW, and the Christian crusaders? More importantly, where was the media to voice this? Does the United Nations, the United States government, and the so-called “human-rights” organizations have any data on that?

Now that we have established some of the facts, let’s discuss our role as Afghans living in the western world. Our first important role is not to be brainwashed by the biased media and the people with their own political interests. Most of the general public in the US and other western countries who may genuinely care about human suffering from anybody to anybody does not know our history, culture, tradition and religion. They get their feedback from the media. For us Afghans this should not be the case. We should not play in their hands, unless we want to exploit the situation for our own dishonest purposes. We ought to look at the facts.

The other important thing is that the Taliban is the best ruling that Afghanistan has had so far. They have their problems, but with communication, they can be corrected. They are at least a dim light that we haven’t had as yet. They are the best alternative that we’ve had so far and we do not see any other light on the horizon. We can improve on this starting point that they’ve established for the Afghans.

I am highly pro-education for both women and men in any society. I knew and experienced the value of education and especially higher education firsthand in Afghanistan and here in the US. I have no doubt in my mind that an individual and for that matter a nation is absolutely blind with no direction in their lives with a proper education. Let’s make an educated decision for the future of Afghanistan with the very limited socio-political resources that we’ve got in our hands after twenty-one long and torturous years. Let’s unite and open a channel of communication with the Taliban government and bring our concerns to their attention and help them to overcome the obstacles the country has faced for over two decades.

No one should deny that Taliban certainly deserve the credit for succeeding to return the most valuable assets the people had lost for over two decades-which are security and human dignity. It is absolutely true that there are a lot of flaws in these two elements. On the other hand, realistically and under the circumstances they score very high. Taliban are the recipients of a war-torn country from all fronts, including few internal leashed Russian puppets whom had their chances to rule the country and fatally failed. All social ills, including political and economical pressures from all sides fell on their laps. Taliban may not be the most qualified group to eliminate these problems but under the circumstances they are the only logical choice. Our judgment is from the other side of the world living in democracy with all the basic resources of life and much more. Let’s take a moment and remember where we came from and why we came. Let’s not rip apart the country further.

Afghanistan does not need a patriot or a nationalist. You don’t have to be born and living in Afghanistan. You just need to be a human being with feelings to feel sorry for sufferings of other humans. There is no shortage of good humans in any society. I am sure if the general public in any country knows the whole truths about the culture, traditions and religion requirements in Afghanistan, they will come to the conclusion that chaderi is not the result of Taliban government and neither it can be resolved with further humiliation and exploitation. These cultural matters are the last issues that the citizens of Afghanistan as an entire nation should decide for him/herself.

Let’s open the channel of communication with Taliban. We should help them overcome all the ills. The primary priority is poverty at the moment. We should search for ways and means to bring jobs to people and help Taliban establish themselves as a legitimate government of Afghan people to be recognized by the world community. I am sure Taliban is no worse, if not better than all the previous torturous and brutal governments which were recognized by the UN and the world governments. Also, it is much better than many current governments in the world.

writer's response:

I only wish Mr. Yosafi had elucidated on how to help educate the Taleban? How to establish a foundation of exchange of views and opinions with Taleban? Ever since they have established themselves in Kabul, the Taleban's only positive act was to bring peace in the southern and western parts of Afghanistan. They seem to have successfully disarmed the bands of bandits and highway robbers which made life miserable for the poor war-trodden people of Afghanistan. Their social shortcoming, unfortunately, remains as the main stumbling block in the way of real peace.

Mr. Yosafi correctly recognizes the need for education for the hundreds of thousands of Afghan children --boys and girls, young men and young women. I feel that the youth of the country has lost more than twenty years in their education. The nation has fallen behind a whole generation. If peace comes tomorrow, where are the young men and women that we might look up to carry on the role of men and women to clean up the mess that the Russian communists and their stooges, and afterwards the so-called Mujahedeen left behind? The warring that the Taleban and the opposition forces are conducting is also the result of foolhardiness of some of the leaders of Mujahedeen who were mostly after self-aggrandizement rather than reconstructing their war-torn country. Now that Taleban have about 90 % of the country under their rule, should they not pay some attention to education? Should they not review their policy toward women who may now be out numbering men in Afghanistan because of the slaughter of men and youth throughout all these years?

I do not think that Chadury should be blamed by anyone. But does our friend Yosafi think a woman doctor could operate on a patient wearing her chadury? This sort of thing is what bothers me about the policy of Taleban toward women. Millions of women elsewhere in the land of the Afghans do not wear chadury and have done so for hundreds of years. Even the Afghan women of the Taleban themselves suffice by using large head - dresses. I do not hear any punishment being meted out to some Pukhtoon woman for not wearing chadury. I feel concerned about the hundreds of thousands of women in Kabul and other main cities of the country who have no husbands or close male relatives to earn a livelihood for them and their infants and who cannot work for themselves and cannot bring a piece of bread home for their little ones.

I think the world knows about the economic hardships of the Afghan nation. I also know that the United Nations had promised Afghanistan financial aid to the tune of 600 million dollars very soon after the Russian defeat and evacuation of our land. But none of it materialized because there could not be found a single authoritative government in the country which could utilize such aid for the people and for the country. Such a unified authority is still non-existent. I wish Taleban would revise their programs of action and thereby neutralize their opposition's criticisms and open the way for financial help to reach the country from the world abroad. Neither Taleban, nor anyone else would ever be able to do any constructive work without help from outside. The world is right now just sitting and watching when we may come to our senses and sit down among ourselves and reach a solution of our many problems.

The Afghans have not changed. The nation is the same nation of a thousand years ago and more. Can't we see that we were able to live side by side with one another all these years, mostly in peace and comfort and not any more? I firmly believe that we can and we should and we must get together and, in unity, rebuild our country. If not, we will continue to self-destruct and become the laughing stock of the world.

I would like to take objection to Ezat Yosafi's statement in his article where he alludes that some of those Afghans who express their opinions about Afghanistan or the Afghans, may be doing so for their "dishonest purposes." I have a strong belief that most people who express their views, do so because they, like Yosafi, are genuinely hurt by the continued unfortunate situation in Afghanistan. All of them have the hope of a return to some form of normalcy in that poor country and aspire that the Afghans of all strata of society may one day feel safe again to go about the business of legitimately seeking a livelihood, not bothering anyone and not being bothered by anyone.

The press in the West does its own thing without Afghan writers having to play into its hands. It hardly ever quotes an Afghan's views in its columns, leave alone enticing the Afghans to serve the purposes of the West. Allusion of dishonesty may negatively affect the cause for which Yosafi seems to be striving: Communication with a view to free Afghanistan from the present quagmire.