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Taliban radio back on the air
By Amin Tarzi
In
April, residents of the southern Afghan city of
Kandahar were again able to hear Sharia Zhagh
(Voice of the Sharia) - the name used for Kabul's
Radio Afghanistan during the Taliban rule between
1996 and 2001.
The opening statement of
the broadcast in Pashtu told listeners that
"Sharia Zhagh radio raises the voice of the
Islamic brotherhood against the superpower, United
States of America, and its associates who have
been insulting the honor of the Muslim world and
its religion and who [have] harmed Islamic rule."
Challenging foreign broadcasts
On
April 18, Taliban spokesman Mufti Latifullah
Hakimi told Peshawar-based Afghan Islamic Press
(AIP) that because foreign radio stations
broadcasting to Afghanistan, while claming to be
independent and free, are "not actually free", the
Taliban has established its own radio station.
Hakimi said the purpose of the station
would be to "report on the realities and facts"
throughout Afghanistan and to introduce "the goals
and objectives of the Islamic Movement of Taliban"
to Afghans.
Hakimi said that the radio
station resumed broadcasting after only "a
six-month break". However, there is no credible
information to suggest that the Taliban operated a
radio station in the past. There could have been
experimental broadcasts, but neither the Taliban
nor others are on record discussing the issue.
According to Hakimi, the radio
station began broadcasting on April 18 for one hour
from 0600 to 0700 in Dari and Pashtu and would
resume for another hour in the evening between 1800
and 1900. Sharia Zhagh was heard in Kandahar on
April 18 and 20, but since then no other confirmation
of the radio's broadcast has been available.
The radio station broadcasting
to Kandahar is one of three owned by the Taliban,
Hakimi said. The other two stations will
"start functioning soon", he added. In a separate interview
with AIP on April 21, the spokesman said
that the additional stations would broadcast in
other local languages, Uzbek and Turkmen. The Afghan
constitution recognizes Pashtu and Dari as the
country's official languages, while several other
languages have official third-language status in
areas where the majority of residents speak that
language.
Hakimi told AIP on April 18 that
the equipment for the radio stations was imported
from abroad and set up by Afghan engineers inside
the country.
Conspiracies
abound
While the message of the broadcast
has not been the center of much debate, the fact
that the Taliban has managed to establish a radio
station has. This has led to conspiracy theories
among Afghans and the Afghan media.
The
pro-government Kabul Times daily on April 26 wrote
that while the Afghan government has taken a
nonchalant attitude toward the Sharia Zhagh based
on the calculation that most Afghans have suffered
horribly under Taliban rule and therefore would
not heed any message propagating a return to such
a system, the US-led coalition has vowed to find
and destroy the radio station. There is "no doubt
that the coalition will locate ... [the
transmitter] with the help of advanced
eavesdropping devices", the daily said.
The Kabul Times, however, also speculated
that a foreign hand might be involved in the
establishment of the neo-Taliban radio. Calling
the militants a "bunch of mullahs" who are
"completely ignorant about engineering", the daily
questioned who is supporting the radio venture
technically and financially.
Without
directly accusing Pakistan, the Kabul Times wrote
that the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) "has
been dealing with the Taliban since its
inception". The daily added that "surely the ISI"
can "find answers" to the location, type of
equipment, and funding for Sharia Zhagh. The "ISI
is expected to fall into line and find out" the
necessary information about the Taliban broadcast
venture, the commentary recommended.
The mere existence of Sharia Zhagh has further
fueled questions about the motives not only of Pakistan,
but also of the United States.
Voice of the
Islamic Republic of Iran on April 21 interviewed
Kabul University professor Nasir Ahmad, asking why
the US, which "utilizes modern technological
equipment and could easily find the Taliban radio
station", has not done so.
Ahmad responded
that, since the US has long-term strategic plans
in Afghanistan, it needs the Taliban to justify
its presence in that country. Thus, he argued, the
US is not challenging the radio station.
Hakimi told AIP on April 21 that he
believes that US-led coalition forces are looking
for the transmission station of Sharia Zhagh. He
believes, however, they will fail in their efforts
because the broadcasts are transmitted from a
"mobile station". Furthermore, the programs are
aired at dawn and dusk when "no-one can detect the
station's frequencies", Hakimi contended. He also
said that "expert Afghan engineers" have designed
the station in such a manner to safeguard it
"against all possible risks".
Worrying
echoes
For many Afghans, accepting anything
associated with the Taliban regime is a dilemma at
best, and loathsome at worst. Some may genuinely
support the reconciliation efforts of the Afghan
government aimed at bringing most of the former
Taliban rank and file back into society, but very
few seem to lend support to the return of a
Taliban-style system of governance.
If the
Taliban radio station manages to broadcast
regularly and expand its coverage area, it would
be a morale boost for the few people who still may
be supporting the Taliban for ethnic, personal, or
political reasons. Many people are nostalgic for
what they see as the Taliban's ability to
safeguard public security.
Copyright
(c) 2005, RFE/RL Inc. Reprinted with the
permission of Radio Free
Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut
Ave NW, Washington DC
20036 |
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