Civilian Deaths During Military Action in Afghanistan

Prof Sibghatullah Mujaddidi, chief of Afghanistan's elders' Jirga (assembly of elders) has said that the killers of country's citizens will be made accountable.

It is indeed a convincing discourse but it requires practical measures because only issuing statements and making protest will not help solve this issue. Because for the last several years sometimes marriage ceremonies are bombed in different provinces and areas of Afghanistan and sometimes shrines are bombed and sometimes foreign troops enter houses and get the Afghan children bitten by dogs.

No Positive Outcome
After every such incident, forceful statements are issued, protests are made; members of parliament stage walk outs (from the parliament), but so far no positive outcome has been achieved. Neither bombing on civilians halted nor the life of common man was protected. Sometimes Afghan President Hamid Karzai announces that foreign troops will not carry out operations at night. He issues a decree but soon after its issuance sometimes civilians, threshing wheat crop in Ningarhar, die in bombing and sometimes marriage ceremonies are bombed.

What is actually needed to protect the lives of common people? Practical measures are needed in this regard. This can also be done that religious scholars, prominent elders along with the President and authorities sit down with commanders of foreign troops. Public representatives should discuss in detail with foreign troops and government and evolve a permanent solution. They should listen to people's complaints and in the light of these complaints a policy should be adopted to reach an immediate and practical solution as this issue cannot be solved through a mere statement or by making protest. This issue can neither be solved by making apologies nor by financial compensations for the families of the deceased and injured.

Political and Religious Responsibility
Being head of the state and being public representatives, the President and members of the parliament respectively have the responsibility to protect the lives of the citizens and avoid the situation from getting worse as the protection of lives of the citizens is their moral, political and religious responsibility. Practical steps are needed to be taken to achieve this goal and to give their citizens a feeling that there leaders are attentive to their problems.

Therefore, the authorities must hold serious talks with chiefs of foreign troops and make them understand that mostly civilians are being killed in their operations. They (foreign troops) have also clear proofs of this (civilian casualties). The foreign troops have to be convinced that if this series of civilian casualties continues, its outcome will not be in the interest of present government and foreigners.

Hamid Karzai's Coming US Visit

Afghan President Hamid Karzai, accompanied by a high level delegation, is traveling to the United States next week. Although the Afghan Government has not released any statement about the aims of the visit, political experts are of the view that there may be two subjects which would be points of the agenda of the meetings:

1. Talks with Taliban in the forthcoming Peace Consultative Jirga (assembly of elders).

2. Restoration of relations between Karzai and the United States.

Achievement of Targets
The question that arises here is that to what extent President Karzai's visit to Washington would contribute to the achievement of the targets. Although there is no Afghan, including me, who would oppose talks, because they have been very much put in trouble by war, yet there are some authorities, both inland and abroad, who do not think the talks with Taliban at this time as beneficial for Afghanistan. They argue so because their benefits might be at stake. This opposition of talks with Taliban at this moment has brought the Afghan President face to face with a number of obstacles in the way of his talks with Taliban.

However, the mafia members close to President Karzai also do not want the talks of the government with Taliban and Hizb-e-Islami, as the peace talks with Taliban would affect them negatively.

According to a report published by The Washington Post, both the deputies of the Afghan President, namely Mohammad Qasim Fahim and Karim Khalili, are showing opposition to talks with Taliban. The daily states with reference to both of them that if Taliban are brought to government, Karzai might be killed.

But the question is that whether they are so much worried about Karzai or there is something in their minds. Is not there something that lies in the bottom?

Karim Khalili and Mohammad Qasim Fahim both are war lords and members of mafia on national level. They are notorious on national level for the killing of thousands of people and grabbing land by force. And it is possible that in case of peace talks with the Taliban, they would lose their benefits.

Talks With Taliban
A number of Americans also do not consider this time as a proper time for talks with the Taliban. They say that Taliban are not united and talks with them at this moment might not give noticeable result. Moreover, they think that the Taliban are gaining more and more strength with the passage of every single day. They add that Taliban are sure about their victory, and, therefore, they are not willing for talks at present.

Another important agenda of the discussion of Obama and Karzai is the restoration of the weakened links between them. A month ago, President Karzai charged the international community for rigging in the elections and severely criticized it. On the other hand, Karzai also charged the US forces for the large number of civilian killing and several other issues and added that if this continues, the general public in Afghanistan might develop a hatred for the US forces. Alongside it, President Obama, during his visit to Afghanistan in June, also referred to President Karzai failure in checking corruption in the country. All these led to the creation of an atmosphere of the lack of confidence between them.

There is a wise saying in Pashto: "A person gets fire from his own skirt", and President Karzai has also got fire from his own skirt, as his own deputies are opposing the peace talks with Taliban. Then why should we complain from the government, the opposition and the opponent parties?

Karzai should first get the support of his own circle and then go on to talk with Taliban. I mean that as long as these war lords and mafia members, who are giving preference to their personal interests over the national interests, are there in the government, peace talks are impossible.

Peace Consultative Jirga
Now, Karzai wants to talk to US President Barack Obama on these two points during his Washington visit. And it was for this reason that the peace consultative jirga, planned to be held in May, was delayed. It is possible that Karzai would discuss it with Obama and get the support of United States for holding the jirga and peace talks with Taliban.

Karzai! Complaints are directed against those who are not one's opponents. That is why we are complaining to you and are criticizing you. The eyes of the nation are not closed to facts and you should also not make blank excuses to convince yourself. You are convincing the Afghans on daily basis with your empty remarks and statements. And now you are going to convince the international community as well. First, you should bring changes in your government to get internal support for restoring peace and then go ahead for talks with Taliban. And if you are also just wasting time like Hazrat sahib (Perhaps he means Sibghatullah Mujaddidi), then it is another thing.

Afghan Problem Lies in Jirga

Reconciliation is an established way and tradition in the collective Islamic and Afghan life. In the whole Afghan history, whenever differences appeared between different tribes, the heads of tribes and elders, who were honored by people due to their services, got together; called Jirga and endeavored to find solutions to the problems.

New Communist System

The supporters of the new communist system after the Soviet attack on Afghanistan, and similarly the leaders of Pakistani jihadist organizations dishonored this Islamic and Pashtuns-based sacred tradition of our collective life. Leader having roots in common people were either martyred or forced to migrate.
As a result of this cruelty, the foundation of Jirga was weakened in the country. People lost trust in the laws made by the government. Trust deficit and insecurity engendered among people. Government officials were unable to solve people's problems and maintain peace by enforcing laws.

Basic Human Rights

Our people have been burning in the flames of fire for the last 30 long years. The whole world can see with wide open eyes that the miseries of Afghan people have increased manifold and innocent Afghans have been sacrificed contrary to their basic human rights.
The first hard time for Afghanistan was the Soviet aggression in 1979 which was the culmination of all those communist interventions against the countries around the world. The Russians and their supporters tried to introduce a new communism-based system and structure against the Islamic and Afghan culture of Afghanistan.
They wanted to shape a new human being and a new Afghan who would work for the communists. Not only the plans and conspiracies of the communists failed in Afghanistan due to the sacrifices of Afghan Muslim mujahidin but the whole communist system and its political structure and sovereignty inside Russia was shattered into pieces by the sacred blood of the Afghan Muslim mujahidin.

Changing Afghan and Pashtun Culture

When jihad in Afghanistan got victory, Pakistan brought into the political field of Afghanistan those jihadist organizations which had been organized by Pakistan for achieving its political and strategic goals. The heads of these jihadist organizations, who were trapped and who had been sold out, were incited to be move ahead in order to be stake holders in Afghanistan and establish such government that may entertain the political and strategic interests of Pakistan. Pakistan wanted to change Afghan and Pashtun culture into Punjabi and Pakistani culture and tradition.
In fact, the goal of the Pakistani groups was to make Afghanistan a pet state and find a solution to Kashmir issue with the blood of the Afghans. Pakistan-tailored groups could neither establish peace, reconciliation and security in Afghanistan nor could they present a national leader before the Afghans. Thus differences appeared among these groups on the basis of share in the government.

Supporting Afghan Jihad

Right from the day of its inception, Pakistan has never wanted that a sovereign government having mandate of the oppressed Afghans be established in Afghanistan. Pashtuns living on eastern part of the false, illegal and the so-called Durand Line, do not accept the Pakistani system and they build their lives according to their Pashtun standards and wishes. They solve their problems by Jirga instead of bowing their heads before the Pakistani authorities.
On the one hand, Pakistan wants to beat Pashtuns with the might of the US and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) troops, and wants to break the nation wide resistance, while on the other hand, it sends its troops to its tribal areas, kills the tribal elders, religious clerics, and in return gets money, weapons and sophisticated technology from the US. Pakistani people detest this twofold policy of the rulers which is why they express their anger for the government by supporting the Afghan jihad openly and secretly.

Pashtuns Code of Conduct

The Americans attacked Afghanistan for taking revenge for the 9/11 attacks. It empowered the gunmen and warlords against the will of Afghan people. They tried to finish terrorism, establish democracy, and work for reconstruction with the support of these warlords. Just like the Russians, they appointed those Afghans on key posts in Afghanistan who had grown up in the US, who could not talk in their own national languages, and who were unaware of the Afghan culture and code of conduct.
The Americans expected them to spread in and impose American culture on the Afghan people. They also tried that the new human being and the new Afghan should be in accordance with the American culture and standard. They failed to achieve their targets because they were unable to understand the problems of the Afghan people. They could not make a way into their hearts and minds. Reaching these goals and achieving these targets can only be possible through the Afghan Jirga. Troops surge and sophisticated weapons can only broadens the Afghan problems and it increases the uprising and national resistance. No matter how much the Afghan casualties increase and the blood of innocent Muslims is shed, the extent of enmity and rivalry increases and the sentiments of revenge strengthen to the same extent, just in accordance with the Pashtuns Code of Conduct. If the Americans call for reconciliation with complete sincerity, sit with the Afghan elders whose hands are not stained with blood of anyone and who did not dishonor anyone, and make a way towards the fighters, and get ready to solve problems through Jirga and beg pardon, only then it is possible that the war my be stopped and a way to reconciliation may be found out.