In the Name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate
A monthly Publication
Year Two
Number Five and
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May-June Issue 1999
| A Publication of The Association for Peace and Democracy For Afghanistan (APDA) The Voice Demanding: |
In this issue: Urgent Appeal from Help The
Afghan Children |
A press release from the office of the Former King denounced the "participation of foreign elements" in the recent fighting.
The communique warned all Afghan ethnic groups not to be pawns in the designs of foreigners, and to instead strive for peace and national unity. Based on recent reports, thousands of Pakistani militants and Arab terrorists joined the Taliban in their so-called Summer Offensive.
In our view, it is the task of all conscientious individuals, particularly the Afghan intellectuals, to work hard to find a way out of the present enormously complex predicament, the tragedy that is destroying the Afghan people.
Most concerned individuals are aware that the very embarrassing crimes of the recent past (ethnic cleansing, genocide, forced migration of minorities from their homes, forceful relocation of preferred ethnic groups accompanied with willful destruction of sources of livelihood of indigenous populations, scorched earth policy, religious-sectarian hatred, killing and massacres, brutalities of mind boggling proportions, gender apartheid, rampart drug smuggling and opium cultivation, with a view to destroy world communities and civilized life in general, and making large segments of populations drug-dependent, eroding of agricultural infrastructure, the open and audacious threats and actual carrying out of acts of terror against innocent people, and many more atrocities and barbarism against the female, the child, the sick, the old and the helpless) have gone entirely out of proportions in these last days of the twentieth century. And one place where most of these heinous acts are occurring with impunity is Afghanistan some 80 to 90% of which is now under the iron rule of the so-called Taliban Movement.
The problems have gone so much out of hand that even the United Nations envoy to Afghanistan, Mr. Lakhdar Brahimi, complained and conceded that outside interference has been behind the recent actions of the Taliban in their latest drive to destroy the last bastion of resistance, that of Ahmad Shah Masood in the Shamali region north of Kabul. Mr. Kofi Annan, the United Nations Secretary General, sounded the alarm that Afghanistan's so-called civil war is assuming wider dimensions with the Afghan neighbors getting closer and closer to the point of full scale involvement and that the problem has become harder to contain posing serious problems to peace and security in the region.
The point has been made consistently by most commentators that it is impossible to solve the Afghan problem through armed confrontation, and that the belligerent parties must settle their differences through peaceful means. So what is the problem? Why do they not sit down and discuss peace? Or if they do so and sign documents such as the Taliban and Northern Alliance's recent agreements in Tashkent under the auspices of the representatives of the governments of "six plus two" comprising the six close and immediate Afghan neighbors plus the United States and Russia, if the servants of Pakistan among the Taliban take why is it that sooner than the ink dries on paper the promises break and fight, for preparation of which they have presumably sought to gain time, resumes anew.
The truth of the matter is this: Not only are the proxies or the puppets of the interfering powers armed to the teeth, but the mercenaries of the belligerent parties seem to have been given a clear cut mission to trample on every sacred principle in order to carry out the objectives of their masters under the guise of religion or ethnicity. Pakistan, the single most important and most vicious of these, has resorted to every duplicity, cunning, and audacity to interfere in Afghanistan by supporting the Taliban militarily, politically, economically, and logistically, and yet this country has the audacity to claim neutrality in the Afghan problem and insists that it has good wishes for Afghanistan. The material witness of these good wishes is the Taliban entity itself, the most backward, reactionary so-called Islamic movement that in several years of its nightmarish grip over Afghanistan, has proved not even fit to be recognized by some of its sponsors, even though Pakistan has left no stone unturned to gain political recognition for it. The extremists among the Taliban are so rigid that they will continue to play the cat and mouse game for Pakistan never having any regards for decency, humanity, peace, or civilized behavior, for they know only one thing, how to serve their master, Pakistan. Never mind if they trample on the rights of a sovereign nation hoping to make it a satellite or a province of Pakistan. Every attempt to regain the right to self-determination by the Afghan people (who lost everything first because of the Soviet invasion and now are in the trap of the selfishness and greed of these sellers of Afghan honor) is neutralized and killed at inception.
Of course, Pakistan is an accomplice to this. Pakistan does not realize that the days of colonialism are gone. It does not realize that it cannot dupe the Pashtun ethnic groups into selfdestruction by making them antagonistic against other ethnic groups in Afghanistan, people who have lived side by side with one another having formed an Afghan nation. The best representation of this national unity was the resistance against the Soviet invasion which should have been a lesson to Pakistan. But unfortunately, the responsible parties in Pakistani government and among the ISI or those among Pakistani so-called Islamic groups are slow learners.
We have said it in the past and we say it again that even if the servants of Pakistan among the Taliban take over all of Afghanistan, they will not make it possible for the Pakistani malicious designs against the people and the country of Afghanistan to be successfully carried out.
Didn't the Soviet Union take over all of Afghanistan through its puppets? What difference is there for Pakistan to think that it can survive? If the Pakistani puppets think that they can abuse the sacred name of Islam for a while and dupe some people for a short period of time, they may be right, but they should realize that their duplicity will soon be noticed as it is befog noticed now. It will be observed just as it was observed and seen for what it was when the Taliban masqueraded as the soldiers of the former King Mohammad Zahir Shah, a monarch who whatever his shortcomings, did not compromise the independence of Afghanistan to anyone.
The present war of occupation by Pakistan against Afghanistan is a cowardly act of foolishness for which Pakistan will be sorry. The terrorist acts against nationalist personalities of Afghanistan such as the martyrdom of Professor Majrooh, then of several others, and more recently of Mr. Abdul Ahad Karzai member of a prominent family in Kandahar, are acts that will not be forgotten. They will be remembered, unfortunately, along with many more foolish deeds by Pakistan as reminders to never trust Pakistan, a neighbor that otherwise did the right thing for the Afghans as well as for itself to withstand the Soviet aggression when the situation called for. Afghans are not ungrateful, but Pakistan should not undo everything by taking the Afghans for fools.
These last few days Pakistan has shown that it has become on the one hand very viscous by attacking all those who point to its flagrant violations of international law, allowing its military personnel as well as thousands of fanatic students to rush to the aid of the Taliban, and at the same time presenting a new face by offering to mediate between Taliban and the Opposition Alliance. Masood saw through Pakistani insincerity and refused its mediation. Then, Pakistan went to the Taliban and said it was working to bring the two sides to the peace table.
Somebody should tell Pakistan its shameful conduct is transparent to everyone. Its feigning for peace when it has invaded a country is ludicrous. How can Pakistan in the same breath talk of peace when it promises the Taliban communication facilities only to serve its economic goals in transit routes from Central Asia? Those routes and any communication command will never be safe unless Pakistan comes clean with the Afghan people.
Ahmad Shah Masood, commander of the United National and Islamic Front for the salvation of Afghanistan, in an interview published in the current issue of Payam-e-Mujahid Weekly, spelled out the strategy being used to resist the Pakistani invasion. Masood said the United Front, which represents the UN-recognized government of Afghanistan, "is standing-up against Pakistan, and such resistance calls for careful planning."
Masood, who was the most effective mujahideen commander fighting the Red Army during the Soviet-Afghan war, continued, "We have to fight Pakistan for an unknown period of time-until it is brought down to its knees like the Soviet Union. Therefore, the preservation of our human and material resources takes precedence over the acquisition of territory."
The commander of Afghanistan's national resistance forces said, "Our enemy is trying to force us into direct military confrontations, but we must not repeat the failed experiences of others, and we will not gamble our future away."
Commenting on the recent United Front victory, Masood said, "The I.S.I., which commanded the Shomali offensive, was dealt a severe defeat--they lost 60% of their fighting force, both in terms of personnel and equipment. Moreover, while many of their high ranking officers were killed, only a miniscule number of [United Front] mujahideen were martyred."
Masood, who was the bane of the Soviet Union and whose defeat of the Soviet's eleven most intensive offensives broke the Red Army's back, said, "Although the massive, forced displacement of civilians is both an incredible burden on the mujahideen and a source of great hardship and misery for the refugees, it is also a testament to the people's valiant defense of their own dignity and prestige, and the prestige and sovereignty of Afghanistan--thus, we accept the burden in light of our awesome task." Masood, on whose shoulders rests the fate of Afghanistan's independence, continued, "From another perspective, the refugees provide a wellspring of strength and support for the mujahideen--an invaluable asset."
In the past few days, hundreds of thousands of civilians-- mostly women, children and elderly--have fled to Capital City of Kabul or Panjshir valley. They walked 50 to 6O miles, thousands are suffering from fatigue, hunger and exposure. Many hasd been killed or wounded by land mines, artillery fire and bombardments. They have no food, shelter or medical care.
Help the Afghan Children, Inc., a non-profit organization, has been delivering and distributing humanitarian aid to different cities of Afghanistan for the past seven years. Our members will be traveling as soon as possible to Afghanistan, to deliver the emergency food, blankets, medicine, etc. that will be purchased from local markets, to these tragic innocent victims of war. We desperately need your tax deductible contribution to help us save the lives of thousands of innocent civilians.
For more information please contact Ms. Suraya Sadeed, Director (703) 848 0407 and (703) 524-2525.
{In an Emergency Special Message, the Feminist Majority draws attention to the plight of women in Afghanistan. Excerpts from the message follow: The text's original underlining is kept.}
The nightmare for women in Afghanistan is worsening. The extreme Taliban militia group, which controls much of Afghanistan has issued new draconian decrees that further limit the existence of women and girls.
First women and girls were forced to wear burqas -- a garment covering them from head to toe whenever they leave their homes. This is not a veil but a walking prison.
Next, women were fired en masse from the jobs, except for a few hospital workers. No longer were women or girls allowed to go to schools or universities.
Women were placed under virtual house arrest and only allowed to leave their homes in the company of a close male relative. Households with adult women were ordered to paint their windows opaque so that women cannot be seen from the outside. Now, the Taliban has prohibited even foreign Muslim women humanitarian workers from leaving their homes without a close male relative.
The Taliban has decreed that women's shoes cannot make noise when they walk.
Under this horrifying gender apartheid. women and girls have been beaten, shot at. tortured, and even killed for violating these draconian decrees -- for merely trying to go to work (what work?), leaving their homes alone, or violating the Taliban dress orders. A teen-age girl was whipped with 100 lashes in front of a crowd of 20,000 in a sports amphitheater for walking an unrelated man.
Many Afghan women, unable to bear the psychological and physical torture of their status, are committing suicide.
How can we as a people concerned with women's rights proudly raise the equality banner here in the United States and ignore the unspeakably horrible treatment of women in Afghanistan?
I am told repeatedly that pleas for help through the mail on international women's rights issues simply do not work. But we are proving this old adage wrong. Already, thousands of people are replying. More and more people and organizations are agreeing with the Feminist Majority that a women's rights movement worth its salt must raise a moral outcry. We must put all pressure possible to stop the outrageous treatment of women and girls in Afghanistan.
And your Feminist Majority is doing just that. We are told by high-ranking State Department officials that the high volume of mail we have generated is historic -- the first time in history a women's issue has galvanized so much interest as to affect foreign policy. The United States is now refusing to recognize any government in Afghanistan unless it "respects international norms of behavior in human rights, including the rights of women and girls."
Following our demonstration outside of toe Taliban-occupied Afghanistan embassy in Washington, D.C., the United States ordered the embassy closed. And The Washington Post reported that our efforts stalled California-based Unocal's construction of an oil and gas pipeline across Afghanistan, which would generate hundreds of millions of dollars for the Taliban. Now, Unocal has abandoned plans for the pipeline altogether. The New York Times cites feminist pressure and, specifically, the Feminist Majority's campaign as one of the reasons Unocal quit the pipeline.
But we must do more. This is why I am writing you, a concerned Feminist Majority supporter, for your help in two key ways:
We are briefing women's rights organizations and policy makers on the treatment of women in Afghanistan and on how until 1996 women in the country were doctors, lawyers, teachers, and the majority of students at Kabul's universities. In March 1998, Feminist Majority Board Member Mavis Leno testified before a Capitol Hill forum sponsored by Senator Dianne Feinstein, a member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
More than 120 national and regional women's groups have now signed on to our campaign to stop gender apartheid in Afghanistan, including the American Nurses Association, American Medical Women's Association, the YWCA of the USA, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Women's Alliance for Peace and Human Rights in Afghanistan, National Organization for Women, General Federation of Women's Clubs, National Council of Women's Organizations, and Coalition of Labor Union Women.
We are now dramatically expanding our Campaign. Mavis Leno has stepped forward to chair this national effort. After Mavis and Jay Leno appeared on the Larry King Live Show announcing their support of the campaign to End Gender Apartheid we were flooded with thousands of calls from people across the country who want to help.
But we must recruit even more support and further raise the visibility of these atrocities. We also have joined with women's groups internationally. In 1998 I traveled to Brussels to join European Parliament Humanitarian Affairs Commissioner Emma Bonino and women's rights leaders from throughout Europe in announcing a worldwide campaign to publicize the plight of women and girls in Afghanistan.
We must take a stand, not only for the welfare of the women and girls in Afghanistan, but for women and girls everywhere. How can women be safe anywhere if a government can institute gender apartheid with impunity? And, do not think such fundamentalist terror can only happen in a far off, small country.
A fundamentalist, right-wing Christian movement in this country is bombing and arsoning women's health clinics and murdering --in cold blood-- women's health care workers and volunteer clinic escorts. Our sister organization -- the Feminist Majority Foundation -- is on the frontlines, leading the campaign against anti-abortion terrorism here in the United States....
Ms. Smeal goes on to relate breaches of fundamental human rights by religious fundamentalists in the United States and emphasizes: "We must not be silent when religion and culture -- no matter where it is -- is used to justify the subjugation of women."
The letter goes on to say:
We must thank President Clinton and Secretary of State Albright for condemning the treatment of women in Afghanistan and for deciding not to recognize the Taliban. But we must ask them to do more. The United States is the superpower. Our economic power is immense and our leadership position in the world is unparalleled.
We are asking the U.S. to put pressure on Saudi Arabia and Pakistan to stop funding and arming the Taliban. We also are urging the United States not to support any company in business endeavors that will shore up the Taliban. And we must urge the United Nations to continue to deny the Taliban recognition. (our highlighting)
If this were happening to any other class of people around the world. there would be a tremendous outcry. We must make sure these same standards are applied when it is women and girls who are brutally treated.
Your Feminist Majority is determined to raise the banner for equality for women in the United States and worldwide. We must not be silent. We must not allow this kind of treatment of women to be tolerated anywhere.
A concludiog remark says: "For women who cannot cry out we must." At the end readers are urged to sign petitions to President Clinton, Secretary of State, and Secretary General of the United Nations.
Comment: Our readers can see that a very strong committed opposition is shaping up in the United States and worldwide against the brutality of the Taliban, the political ramifications of which can be enormous. The Feminist Majority is to be commended to have given a boost to the cries of the helpless Yet, with all the clout that these groups have and with the obvious sincerity that they show their outrage, we have yet to see a strong, persistent outcry from the academy, the media, and the public. At present, little relevance is seen between the plight of the Afghan women and the life of the ordinary citizen in this country, and Afghanistan is still treated as a taboo subject in the media.
The Feminist Majority Message raises the issues of culture and religion. It is not quite grasped that the Taliban decrees in Afghanistan are neither cultural nor Islamic. Islam has nothing to do with this kind of barbarism which could only be cooked up in the reactionary politically motivated schools of Pakistan.
A mohtaseb (religious police) was trying to flog someone he considered a sinner.
Abu Afras, a bold man, traveling through the village, saw the mohtaseb preparing to flog the lad. He stopped by and asked the mohtaseb, "Tell me, what is his sin?"
"He is carrying a vase that could be used for refining wine," said the mohtaseb.
"Let the poor lad go. Let him go back to his life," said Abufaras in anger.
"I won't let him go, for he is carrying a refining vase," said the mohtaseb.
Abufaras pulled down his garment, exposing his genitals. "I also carry a thing that could be used for fornication. Can you punish me for this one too?"
Flushing with embarrassment the police let the lad go, for he had never heard so harsh and truthful a word before.
A Christian converted to Islam. A mullah told him, "Now, my new Muslim brother, you're like someone just born of his mother."
Six months later, the devout in the village took the new convert to the mohtaseb, complaining that he was not performing prayers at all.
"Why aren't you performing your prayers, you idle convert?"
"I am only six months old since you told me I was born of my new mother. How can a six-month old child perform prayers?"
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In this storm of blood and fire in the season of harvest
Today again, two caravans are crossing this road
One going north carrying instruments of death
And the other going south and carrying homelessness and sorrow
His load, a piece of dry bread, a container of polluted water
An old patched blanket, and maybe a few coins, price of greens, apples, grapes, and pomegranates
One is the caravan of those who walk with sore palms or those riding a half dead horse or mule
And the other is a caravan of gun toting army, the ghost of colonialism's dead corpse
With death, the commander and caravan leader In this unfinished war of foreign evildoers against the indigenous toilers of land
Yes, a map of another Belgrade to make a Kosovo out of the North
Exactly one year after the Hazara massacre in Mazar
This time it's Tajik killing and destruction of harvest and land
Not anymore, it has no interested buyers, no, not this reactionary Islam and the Shari'a of brutality!
These are not the settlers of past, brother, those with deeds in their pockets or turbans,
Neither are they sons of Khans, or Sayeds, or sardars
This time the land deed is a Fatwa, a blind, prejudiced fatwa enforced by steel and fire
And killing, forced removal, burning (scorched earth policy) in the Afghan Kosovo!
Two caravans are moving on this northern highway:
A caravan of women, old and terrified men, victim and scared children
With hundreds of questions, and no answers, in those innocent and puzzled eyes! ...
If you ask that poor old man running away from the killing
Old man, what do you carry in this sack and this old and patched blanket?
He will say: dried mulberries, and a few bunches of grapes
And the bloodstained shirt of his martyred son, and a Qur'an wrapped in several kerchiefs
If you ask that other Caravan leader who is hastening toward killings O Sheikh, O Talib, O prejudiced!
Where is this caravan of fire going?
He will say: Eh Muslim, this is the army of religion going to kill infidels of the North, with the order of Jihad from the Amir of Kanahar (Of course, with steel, oil, and Arab Dinar from the masters of Panjab) ...
Publisher APDA
Editor Prof. Qasem Ghazanfar
Editorial Board: Dr. Erfan Fetrat Dr. Sharief Fayez
Afghanistan Voice P.O.Box 104 Bloomingdale, NJ 07403
Editor's Tel/Fax (973) 838-6072
E-mail Ghazanfar@nac.net Ghazanfar@essex.edu