Afghanistan's future in many hands
From a war-torn country to half-modernized society
By Dost Khairy
Freelance Reporter,
The VOICE
American involvement with Afghanistan follows the terrorist attack on World Trade Center.
Photo courtesy/ www.friends-rc.org
Writer Dost Khairy talking to landmine victims in ICRC hospital of the handicapped in Mazar-i-Sharif, Balkh province. To donate or find more information on disabled Afghanis, visit friends-rc.com
Actually, September 11 is a horror day for Americans, but in Afghanistan, people see it as a day that changed the life of fear to life of freedom.
In addition to corruption, nepotism, suicide bombing and while the country is being used as the front line of war against terrorism, Afghanistan people were able to use the opportunity in the past seven years to bring in development such as children schools, vocational facilities, universities for male and female, Internet, computer labs inside educational facilities, libraries, newly built highways, hotels, hospitals, wedding halls, private TVs, radios, daily and weekly papers.
People never discussed and nor sought a solution to domestic violence before, even though now there is an independent body called Afghanistan Human Rights Commission that works with citizens.
One of the AHRC laws is to protect under-age girls from arranged marriages to older men.
Afghanistan never had a woman represent the nation or be a high ranking official, although today we have women police officers, lawmakers, ministers, commissioners, military general and university professors.
Following the US presidential election, people in Afghanistan are waiting impatiently to watch President Elect Barack Obama's first step concerning the country. Living between Islamist radicals (Iran and Pakistan) and communists (Moscow and China), people are afraid if Obama brings the troops home what will happen in Afghanistan. There is going to be a war if the US troops leave.
It will be a civil war, the return of Taliban and Al Qaeda or Moscow Red Army invasion?
Afghanistan is a gate that bonds Asia through Middle East to Western countries. That is the reason why neighboring states are always keeping an eye on it. After the defeat of the Moscow Red Army, all Middle Eastern Sunni Islamist marched into Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, to occupy it before Iran as a Shiite country took action.
Similar to Middle Eastern countries in point of fact whom supported Obama during election after hearing him say he pulls the troops out of Iraq, the majority in Afghanistan also sided with Obama but in a different point of view, according to Kabul local TVs. Obama's 'Change' slogan reached every village.
The change, which Afghani people desire is to restore Hamed Karzai's governmental system and bring the youth on power to serve the country.
Afghanistan is now facing two types of people, one is the old politician with backward and radical mentalities, whom President Karzai created his cabinet from.
The second one is the youth that consider themselves a generation influenced by democracy and educated in technology. I think Obama responsibility besides defeating terrorism is also to support Afghani people as a partner and a country that is willing to participate with conquering global terrorism.
