Archive for the ‘Afghanistan’ Category
International Forces in Afghanistan: Two Sides of the Same Coin
Want to know what’s really happening in Afghanistan? Try visiting two websites: Rethink Afghanistan and ISAF. The information on both sites will leave you confused.
Rethink Afghanistan was launched as a ground-breaking online video series for opposing military escalation in Afghanistan. From testimonials of veterans of the Afghanistan Operation to commentaries of experts, the site uses all possible means to dissuade the U.S. Congress from continuing military operations in Afghanistan.
The ISFA site is the official site of Coalition Forces operating in Afghanistan. From proving flood relief to people of the Faryab province to assisting in the installation of WiMax, the international forces are involved in a vast array of humanitarian and social development efforts.
Neither can be fully discredited nor completely accepted. So where lies the truth? Perhaps this is what is called the relativity of truth!
After reviewing the two sites and these videos I let go of the political compulsion to either support or criticize the stationing and operations of international forces in Afghanistan. I guess proximity breeds bias and an accurate perspective will evolve only with time.
Beyond the Media Limelight an Afghan Woman Fights for Justice
At a time when international media attention was focused on the incident of a young girl being flogged by the extremists in Pakistan and protests were underway against a law regulating rights of Afghan Shiite Women, a young Afghan girl was battling for justice. Her battle is not yet over and surprisingly she is pleading her case in South Asia’s most vibrant democracy – India. Will Sabra Ahmadzai get justice?
Women’s Rights in Afghanistan and Pakistan - Genuine Concerns or Political Considerations
The international opposition to a recent law in Afghanistan undermining the women’s rights is a welcome move. The new sharia family law, signed by Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai on March 31, deals with issues of marriage, divorce, inheritance and sexual relations. Most of the provisions have put women in a disadvantage position, even allowing what the Western Human Rights observes refer to as marital rape. Though President Karzai has agreed to review the law, the international community continues to target the Afghan government with reintroducing laws reminiscent of the Taliban regime. The law was also criticized by the leaders attending the NATO Summit in early April. The specifics of the law apart, criticism is being focused on the possible use of the law as a vote gathering strategy by President Karzai. Many observers view President Karzai’s move as the appeasement of the fundamentalist and Shi’ite factions ahead of the Presidential elections in August.
But before this surge of international protest against President Karzai’s government is accepted a few revelations are important. Click to continue…
It’s now called “AFPAK”
There is a recent and overwhelming influx of the term “AFPAK” in jargon of international relations. The term owes it origin to the new policy approach adopted by the Obama Administration. The intragency review of the international strategy in Afghanistan headed by Bruce Riedel concluded that the counter-terrorism efforts need to focus on the border regions between Afghanistan and Pakistan. So now we have the AfPak war. Though President Obama’s intentions can barely be doubted there are some serious concerns that the U.S. will have to contend with in dealing with “AFPAK”.
[Photo Courtesy: Reuters/Jason Reed] Click to continue…
Is The Afghanistan Crisis Helping Global Reconciliation?
Reformulation of the international approach to manage the Afghanistan crisis is currently dominating political dialogue in most Capitals and strategic headquarters. A host of international conferences scheduled for the next fortnight are expected to explore the best possible alternatives for dealing with the multifaceted challenges in Afghanistan. The Obama Administration has undertaken a comprehensive review of the U.S. strategy for Afghanistan. Suggestions and proposals on the issue are pouring from all quarters and it appears that Afghanistan is poised for a grand moment in history. Will the Afghanistan challenge emerge as the Noah’s Ark – a common platform for global cooperation sheltered from the vagaries of divergent ideologies, political ambitions and nationalistic aspirations? In an atmosphere where power politics of the Realist School is dominating international relations, can Afghanistan serve as a common cause for which ideological differences will be shed and new forms of global engagement will emerge? Click to continue…
Afghanistan and The Global Conference Bazaar
The situation in Afghanistan seems to have become a subject of real global concern. In a matter of less than two months, over five international conferences/summits have been devoted to discussing the Afghanistan crisis. Are such parallel and overlapping conferences justified when the scoio-economic situation in Afghanistan is going from bad to worse?
The agenda of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s Summit meeting for 2009 is Afghanistan. The NATO’s Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer has been invited to attend the Summit scheduled for March 27. On March 31 an International Conference on Afghanistan is scheduled to be held in Hague. Over 70 countries and nine organizations including UN and NATO have been invited for the Conference and are expected to discuss vital issues of administration, security and future development in Afghanistan. The conference has been organized at the initiative of the U.S. but would be presided over by the U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon. Iran’s participation in the conference has already created much news and is viewed by many as an ice-breaker in U.S. –Iran relations. The NATO Summit in Germany and France during April 3-4 is expected to be dominated by discussion on Afghanistan. The NATO Defense Ministers have already met in February and deliberated on the challenges in Afghanistan. Not to forget the special segment on “The Future of Alliance and Mission in Afghanistan” at the Munich Security Conference in February.
Hopefully this marathon of conferences will provide some tangible answers to the real problems facing Afghanistan and not be confined to mere diplomatic exchanges.