Afghanistan has not been seeing the best of days for a long time. The governement that came after the Taliban has not done what is necessary for the welfare of the people, especially those that live in the country. Money is scarce, food is scarce - these people are forced to resort to whatever means they can find to survive. Many have begun to (once again) grow opium, even if their Muslim faith is against it and it is illegal, because it is a good source of income, which they desperately need.
Unhappy people will look towards whoever does most for their welfare. The Taleban are on the rise. There is weakness in the central goverment and the Taleban are there to aid those in the country that are not getting any attention.
Once again, they are getting an advantage over much of the population. They are administering justice - people are now going to them to resolve issues instead of going to government courts.
And the Taleban are arming themselves. They are even testing their weapons out during the day. Some are already very near the capital, Kabul.
"I think it is a major threat. What moves people is not ideology, but an unstable environment among the existing networks of clans, tribes, aggrieved people, drug traffickers, opportunists, and unemployed youth. It is the kind of problem that can be solved only with the establishment of good governance.", says the former Afghan Interior Minister Ali Ahmad Jalali.
It seems like we've forgotten Afghanistan.
1 comment:
As sad as it is, I don't think we in the 'west' ever cared enough about Afghanistan.
As soon as we topled the Taliban, we 'politcally' abandoned Afghans to fend for themselves. I don't think most americans realize how little influence we have in Afghanistan and it would be next to impossible for us to regain control of it. Opium is the bigest problem and it may be the only one we are simply not equiped to deal with. I also use the term Afghanistan as a loose term, the national govt there has little control outside of the capital.
Afghanistan is a headache, whose only possiblity of being abated is UN action. But until the US pushes the UN to take such a role, it is best we keep a watchful eye on Afganistan and limit our military involvment.
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