The opposition face of
Afghanistan By Syed Saleem
Shahzad
KABUL - The national resistance to
the decade-long occupation of Afghanistan by the
former Soviet Union in the 1980s is a source of
national pride for the country.
In the
chaotic years after the Soviet withdrawal in 1989,
the victorious mujahideen (holy warriors) fought a
bloody civil war as they vied with one another to
fill the political vacuum. This contributed
directly to the rise of the Taliban and their
seizure of Kabul in 1996.
When the Taliban
fled in the face of the US-led invasion in late
2001, mujahideen leaders once again rose to
prominence as
interim (now elected)
President Hamid Karzai struggled to establish his
writ beyond the capital.
One of these is
Yunus Qanooni, Karzai's chief rival in last year's
presidential elections and a candidate in the
weekend's parliamentary elections. Qanooni, a
former education and interior minister under
Karzai, has substantial support within the
Panjsher Valley in the north of the country. Like
slain Northern Alliance leader Ahmad Shah Masoud,
Qanooni is an ethnic Tajik Panjshiri. He fought
beside Masoud against both the Soviets and the
Taliban. He also served as Masoud's personal
spokesman, as well as one of his senior military
and political advisers.
When Masoud was
assassinated by al-Qaeda operatives days before
September 11 in 2001, Qanooni effectively took
control of the militias Masoud had commanded.
In the past four years he has smartly
turned the former armed bands into effective
political activists, and their presence was highly
visible across Kabul in the elections.
Qanooni is not particularly popular with
the US-led forces in Afghanistan as he now opposes
Karzai, but he has positioned himself as an
indispensable feature of Afghan politics, whether
he holds office or not.
In a rare
interview with the foreign media, Qanooni spoke to
Asia Times Online.
Asia Times
Online: What is the future of the
mujahideen in the new parliamentary politics of
Afghanistan?
Yunus Qanooni:
The
mujahideen's importance cannot be down-played.
They were important and they will remain
important.
Nobody can reject them. That's
why they are contesting the polls and they will
form a dominant presence in the upcoming
parliament. [The results of Afghanistan's first
parliamentary elections in more than three decades
will not be known until early October.]
ATol: The West is skeptical
of the mujahideen, will it tolerate their heavy
mandate in parliament, and their role in
decision-making?
YQ: The
West does not have a choice. They have to respect
public opinion. The West is only concerned about
peace and stability in Afghanistan. Only the
mujahideen can ensure that.
ATol:
Is the future of Afghanistan secular or
Islamic?
YQ: Afghanistan is
a Muslim country, with a 99% Muslim population.
There is no place for secularism in Afghanistan.
Our official religion is Islam and no system will
be acceptable other than Islam. However, let me
make clear here that the Taliban's concepts of
Islam are not acceptable. Islam is a progressive
and tolerant religion. Moderate and tolerant Islam
is the future of Afghanistan and the international
community should not be concerned on that because
an Islamic welfare state of Afghanistan would not
pose any threat to anybody, nor have any agenda
against anybody.
ATol:
People in Kabul seem to be concerned about
the dearth of human resources in Afghanistan. Who
will run the system?
YQ: I
do not agree with this notion. We have qualified
Afghans all over the world who can serve their
nation and country. The same people also came to
Afghanistan after the collapse of the Taliban, but
due to the wrong handling of the incumbent Afghan
government, they went back. At the same time, I
would also like to mention that the government
wrongly projects the literacy rate in the country.
It is more than it projects. If the future
government keeps upright policies, qualified
people will return and definitely serve
Afghanistan.
ATol: The
Karzai government has announced a general amnesty
for all Taliban. Is there any chance for people
like Gulbuddin Hekmatyar? [ Hekmatyar heads the
Hizb-i-Islami Afghanistan (HIA) . Hekmatyar is a
legendary mujahideen figure who fought against the
occupying Soviets in the 1980s and became premier
in 1993. He remains active in the Taliban-led
insurgency.]
YQ: I disagree
with the Karzai government's dialogue policy with
the Taliban. As a result of this wrong policy,
violence and terrorism is encouraged in
Afghanistan. I do not see any chance that the
government will achieve any success with this
policy. The Taliban have only exploited this
chance and the number of their attacks has
intensified. I tell you, the Taliban have a rigid
ideology and they will not compromise on that
until their ideology gets recognition in the
government, and they will not give up their fight
against the government.
As far as ordinary
Taliban are concerned, we have no problem with
them, but there should not be any compromise with
their leadership. As far as Gulbuddin Hekmatyar is
concerned, I do not see any chance of an amnesty
for him as his policies are in contrast with the
present government and the coalition forces.
ATol: But Hekmatyar's HIA is
likely to call the shots in the parliament as 25%
of the candidates came from this party, even
though some leading figures claim that they have
left it.
YQ: I disagree that
the HIA will get any significant representation in
parliament. Nonetheless, the real authority is
public opinion. It's up to them whom they elect
and whom they do not.
ATol:
Warlordism is a problem in Afghanistan.
Why it is not controllable?
YQ: This problem has not
really been identified - who is a warlord and who
is not? There is no absolute definition when one
talks about warlordism in Afghanistan. When it
suits, they are given government offices and they
are not blamed as warlords, but when political
differences emerge, they are blamed for
warlordism. The same with terrorism in southern
and southeastern Afghanistan. This does not mean
that the Taliban are strong in those areas, it
means that the government strategy is weak. There
is a strong presence of the national army, police
and coalition forces, and despite that, if
violence is not controlled, it means that the
government's strategy is flawed.
ATol: What share does
Pakistan have in the insurgency in Afghanistan?
YQ: Pakistan supports the
Taliban. However, it is neither in the national
interest of Pakistan nor of Afghanistan. Both
countries should take care of each other's
interests and should have a policy of friendship.
ATol: Do you have any
specific idea of how and where Pakistan supports
the Taliban?
YQ: To me this
is not important. The important thing is that the
Taliban are working against the interests of
Afghanistan and they are getting support from
Pakistan.
YQ: The narco trade is an
international problem. A full syndicate is
involved in this trade. Therefore, a coherent
joint international strategy is required. There
should be a security belt all around Afghanistan
on all borders of Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Iran and
Tajikistan. Zones should be earmarked where
Interpol's role should be ensured. The Afghan
government is responsible for not taking this
problem seriously. It has not devised any
effective policy to combat this crime. When I was
minister of interior for six months, I devised a
policy for a security belt all around the borders
so that narco trafficking could be stopped.
Ironically, later on that policy was not
implemented.
Syed Saleem
Shahzad, Bureau Chief, Pakistan Asia Times
Online. He can be reached at
saleem_shahzad2002@yahoo.com
(Copyright 2005 Asia Times Online Ltd. All
rights reserved. Please contact us for information
on sales, syndication and republishing
.)
Nobody can reject them. That's
why they are contesting the polls and they will
form a dominant presence in the upcoming
parliament. [The results of Afghanistan's first
parliamentary elections in more than three decades
will not be known until early October.]
