The Taliban and the Americans 'Play' in a War for Power
Published in Il Fatto Quotidiano
(Italy) on 21 June 2013
by Paolo Tessadri (link to original)
“The Taliban could be beaten in just a month, if the Americans wanted it,” states 25-year-old Wahab, a journalist for the TV news channel The Time in Herat, Afghanistan. “It’s like a game: If the Americans stay, there will always be the Taliban. As such, the Americans are justified in staying and the victim of this game is Afghanistan. The U.S. will never leave our country.”
Wahab is one of four Afghan journalists in Italy for a training project for young reporters. The others are three young women a little older than 20, two from Herat and one from Kabul. They are united by the fact that all four were born during the war. The war has been going on for 30 years, but nobody has ever succeeded in conquering Afghanistan. You can see the pride this brings them in their faces. Not all of them wear veils; some wear their hair long and there is a simple ring on their fingers.
Days ago, Italian woman Barbara De Anna was the victim of an attack on the streets of Kabul. “When I leave the house, I don’t know whether I’ll come back,” explains 23-year-old Shahin, who lives right in the capital, “but the women accept the risk in going out. They are the first victims, together with children.” Shahin is the most adamant in condemning the Americans and their allies: “They are occupying our country, they are not honest, they don’t want peace. They arrived promising to bring democracy, human rights and security, but until today, this is not so. They have given a lot of money to the puppet government, money that has stayed in their pockets. We are the second country in the world in our levels of corruption. I cannot, however, compare the current situation with the past Taliban regime. I am the example, if I’m here.”
They repeat and explain that there are two types of Taliban, those who are Afghani and those who are Pakistani. The latter perform suicide attacks. “It is not like the past, with the Taliban it was terrible, but the situation is worsening fast. And what will happen after 2014?” when it is predicted that the majority of the troops will retreat, wonders 21-year-old Shamahz, a radio journalist from Herat. However, something is changing, albeit slowly, in the Afghan community. “My family supported me, especially my father, in choosing to be a journalist and coming to Italy. They want things to improve. Many families would not have allowed their children to travel,” Shamahz reveals; she went to school for the first time at 10 years old, starting from the fourth grade, after the period of the Taliban.
“Once, women could not leave the house, study or work, and the Italians have done a lot for the safety of the city,” admits 22-year-old Sosan from Herat. “Herat is like Germany in Europe. We are better in security, in our economy and in reconstruction, compared to culture and relations between people,” reports Wahab. “I’m not saying that it’s the ideal city and that everything works, but if I have to make a comparison with other cities, then I say that we’re better off.
“But numerous villages around Herat have become less safe and the situation is deteriorating. All of us are asking ourselves the same question: What will happen after 2014? The media are overexaggerating; they are speaking of a disaster. In my opinion, instead there will be a situation of stalemate because the Americans will not leave. In Afghanistan, there will never be peace. Then, Iran and Pakistan will support the Taliban. In Pakistan, there are 13,000 Madrasa — the Quranic schools — and if just one extremist leaves every school, every year we will have 13,000 more Taliban members.”
Shanahz is less pessimistic: “For the future of Afghanistan, I am hopeful, I believe in the young and amongst them, there are not Taliban members. We are able to build our own future.” Now, Obama raises negotiation with the Taliban for the pacification of the country. Will it be possible? Will it be the solution?
Wahab is one of four Afghan journalists in Italy for a training project for young reporters. The others are three young women a little older than 20, two from Herat and one from Kabul. They are united by the fact that all four were born during the war. The war has been going on for 30 years, but nobody has ever succeeded in conquering Afghanistan. You can see the pride this brings them in their faces. Not all of them wear veils; some wear their hair long and there is a simple ring on their fingers.
Days ago, Italian woman Barbara De Anna was the victim of an attack on the streets of Kabul. “When I leave the house, I don’t know whether I’ll come back,” explains 23-year-old Shahin, who lives right in the capital, “but the women accept the risk in going out. They are the first victims, together with children.” Shahin is the most adamant in condemning the Americans and their allies: “They are occupying our country, they are not honest, they don’t want peace. They arrived promising to bring democracy, human rights and security, but until today, this is not so. They have given a lot of money to the puppet government, money that has stayed in their pockets. We are the second country in the world in our levels of corruption. I cannot, however, compare the current situation with the past Taliban regime. I am the example, if I’m here.”
They repeat and explain that there are two types of Taliban, those who are Afghani and those who are Pakistani. The latter perform suicide attacks. “It is not like the past, with the Taliban it was terrible, but the situation is worsening fast. And what will happen after 2014?” when it is predicted that the majority of the troops will retreat, wonders 21-year-old Shamahz, a radio journalist from Herat. However, something is changing, albeit slowly, in the Afghan community. “My family supported me, especially my father, in choosing to be a journalist and coming to Italy. They want things to improve. Many families would not have allowed their children to travel,” Shamahz reveals; she went to school for the first time at 10 years old, starting from the fourth grade, after the period of the Taliban.
“Once, women could not leave the house, study or work, and the Italians have done a lot for the safety of the city,” admits 22-year-old Sosan from Herat. “Herat is like Germany in Europe. We are better in security, in our economy and in reconstruction, compared to culture and relations between people,” reports Wahab. “I’m not saying that it’s the ideal city and that everything works, but if I have to make a comparison with other cities, then I say that we’re better off.
“But numerous villages around Herat have become less safe and the situation is deteriorating. All of us are asking ourselves the same question: What will happen after 2014? The media are overexaggerating; they are speaking of a disaster. In my opinion, instead there will be a situation of stalemate because the Americans will not leave. In Afghanistan, there will never be peace. Then, Iran and Pakistan will support the Taliban. In Pakistan, there are 13,000 Madrasa — the Quranic schools — and if just one extremist leaves every school, every year we will have 13,000 more Taliban members.”
Shanahz is less pessimistic: “For the future of Afghanistan, I am hopeful, I believe in the young and amongst them, there are not Taliban members. We are able to build our own future.” Now, Obama raises negotiation with the Taliban for the pacification of the country. Will it be possible? Will it be the solution?