Rules

"Divide and rule" was one of the basic principles of the colonial era especially of the 19^th century. It worked. It allowed small nations of the West to dominate huge nations in Asia and Africa. It proved the worth of tactic and strategy. It showed how intrigue succeeds over ignorance. It showed how anything succeeds over ignorance.

When Sayed Jamaluddin Afghani was stirring feelings of freedom from colonial rule in the 19^th century, he was well aware of the weaknesses of the third world countries and especially of the Islamic world. He saw this weakness in the educational establishment of the time and exposed its uselessness in the face of the great challenges that confronted the colonized nations.

Old colonialism flourished over feeding fuel to the fires of ethnic, linguistic, and religious differences within nations. It managed to use these differences to separate brothers from brothers, neighbors from neighbors and citizens of the same country. It weakened the physique of the so-called target nations so much so that their subjugation became a matter of fact for the colonial powers.

Neo-colonialism on the other hand, added new techniques involving production methods and policies trying to monopolize fine technology, while helping with the production of the raw material by the third world countries. Even for this, they needed these nations to continue to live in ignorance. On the other hand two methods were used to rule over the minds of the third world youth. Brain drain was one. Colonization of the minds of the youth of the third world countries followed immediately after the advent and the expansionist policies of the Soviet Union. This policy wanted to colonize not only the country, but also the way of thinking of its citizens. It flourished, it believed, when religious values of nations were defeated by materialistic lures of communism. Thus further invasion of long established national values of the third world countries took place. The fall of the Soviet Empire, originated from the very conflict of material lures versus strong religious beliefs of a small nation namely Afghanistan.

Afghans, then as now and as before, constituted a multi-ethnic nation proud of its cultural and moral values and determined to fight for Islam, the faith of the majority in the nation. Armed with the strong belief in their faith, the Afghans were able to defeat the almost invincible superpower of the non-believers.

The sound of this victory reverberated all over the world. It shook the bases of old and neo-colonialism. It proved that the power of belief is almost as strong as the most advanced weapons.

Afghans with their brilliant record of love for their freedom, some of her neighbors thought, could pose a problem for them and or for the region. They are scared of this nation for different reasons. Let us consider the following reasons: There are secular neighbors of Afghanistan who fear an exportation of Islamic extremism from Afghanistan into their newly independent nations. And then there is Iran that is scared of the Afghans because of Iranian claim to regional religious leadership and its prejudicial attitude toward Islamic religions other than the Shiite. Other reasons to be afraid of the Afghans include political, economic and historical issues that are important in the context of the Afghan-Pakistani relationship.

A new question of an old situation therefore has popped up. How can this new Afghanistan, that stood valiantly against a superpower be defeated? "Easy" was the answer. A classic method that had worked and continues to work is to let the nation fight itself from within. This is exactly what the Afghan nation was led to do and this is exactly what it fell pray to.

Now the lines of division have been drawn by foreign powers. These include ethnic, linguistic and religious. And it is time the Afghan nation was awakened by its intelligentsia. The Afghans should realize that in order to survive it is important for them to acknowledge their differences not as issues leading towards their division, but as factors that further strengthen their social and cultural values.

Afghans do understand, and history stands witness to this fact, that they are entitled to their cultural differences including religion, language and tribal affiliations. These differences have enriched the overall Afghan culture and have contributed to the beauties of the cultural values of a nation called Afghans. It is that nation that fought, side by side, without any consideration to their differences for the common objective of freedom for Afghanistan. It showed the world that the Afghan nation is united. The problem arose when foreign interests started to tell the nation other wise; to tell them that they are divided and that should remain divided. This will only strengthen the position of the enemies of Afghanistan. Sooner or later, the Afghans will awaken to the fact that their enemies are deceiving them. Only then they would realize the value of unity, but by then they would have lost precious time.

Let this article serve as a forum for the exchange of thoughts on the issue of superficiality of the differences among Afghans. Let us begin this discussion on the issue of faith and religion. Let us also make a distinction between the principle and means. Faith is being the principle and its fulfillment requires the means of religion. Let us also concentrate on the two Islamic religions with which we are concerned regarding the Afghan issue. Let us invite scholars of both religions to a debate of whether the differences between them are so great that they cannot coexist at the same time? Let us pose to them the question of whether performing prayers with the hands at your sides as opposed to tying them in front at the level of the abdomen make any difference in your religious beliefs? And let us ask them and everyone knowledgeable as to the other differences and ask them whether we can or cannot be good Moslems if we let the followers of the two faiths perform their religious obligations as per their own religions? And whether the Afghan Sunni and Shiite Moslems had not lived in harmony for hundreds of years before the self-interested powers intervened?

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Your participation in this important debate and finding of solutions to the present Afghan problem will be highly valued and appreciated.