the reality of Afghan Life

[EddyBlack]

Life for the Afghan people is worse after the fall of the Taliban. I believe the invasion was justifiable, but this does not excuse America and Britain for the prevailing conditions in Afghanistan today.

Afghanistan is one of the poorest nations in the world. Most of the aid money for reconstruction has been swallowed up by corruption or just filtered back to America. The western backed war lords have power again. Orgainised crime and corruption have flourished. Conflict with the resurgent Taliban is widespread. In many ways peoples' lives are now worse.

Cancer rates and birth defects have greatly increased due to the use of depleted uranium weapons. These weapons are so well suited for their destructive purpose that the army will defend their use as far as possible. However the resultant effect on people’s health, even our own soldiers is terrible.

Western leaders like to say we have liberated women and brought democracy. The reality for women is more complex. Prominent Afghan women such as former Karzai minister Dr. Sima Samar have said that life is more perilous than ever for many Afghan women.

The allies dominate this part of the world because of its strategic importance and immense wealth of natural resources. For ordinary Afghans there is no happy liberation. I think it is a disgrace for Brtitain and America.

 

[EddyBlack]

Please consider looking at this guys video and website:

This John Pilger article is also worth reading.

 

[purves grundy]

Not having been there, I'm a bit uncomfortable commenting on 'the reality' of Afghan life. I've got opinions which have come through things I've read, people I've spoken to, and experiences I can compare all this to. But no direct observations.

You're using a point in time for comparison when the Taliban were pretty much fully in control. That's a mere blip in Afghanistan's turbulant history. How about comparing it to other times? But then, I guess, at other times there wasn't so much aid money being thrown at the place so maybe it is a lot worse.

Thinking optimistically, I'd say that at least they have a government which now has to go towards the principles in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, rather than the opposite direction the Taliban took them in.

 

[bluestreak]

Thinking optimistically, I'd say that at least they have a government which now has to go towards the principles in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, rather than the opposite direction the Taliban took them in.

i think that's the best hope the poor buggers have got.

 

[fela fan]

The allies dominate this part of the world because of its strategic importance and immense wealth of natural resources. For ordinary Afghans there is no happy liberation. I think it is a disgrace for Brtitain and America.

Yes, america and britain are disgraceful in many ways with regard to their disgusting foreign policy which cares not a jot about human lives if they're the wrong sort of humans.

Anglo-american hegemony can only be broken when the peoples of the two countries take an interest in why their leaders create and sanction policies that butcher thousands upon thousands of deaths each year on our planet.

The anglo-american machine is a truly horrifying entity for many millions of people.

 

[EddyBlack]

Thinking optimistically, I'd say that at least they have a government which now has to go towards the principles in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, rather than the opposite direction the Taliban took them in.

Of course I was glad to see the back of the Taliban, and its positive that women have equal rights, that they have democracy and so forth.
The reality, although I take your point about not having been there, is pretty grim.
In Mohammed Daud Miraki's book, he talks about the situation of aid money not being used properly, so the situation is that it has not been anything nearly adequate. This is confirmed by this BBC report 'Aid failings 'hit Afghan progress''

There are number of articles on this BBC page which corroborate this grim view of the situation

As far as the continuing peril of women, it is in fact in some ways is worse. Of course it is good that they have equal rights, but now they face danger of rape, kidnap which was not tolerated under the Taliban. Their rights too are denied them by these warlords. The testimony of Sima Samar, and the article linked to from John Pilger show this.
Women under siege in Afghanistan BBC

General living conditions remain dreadful, with some of the highest infant mortality rates, highest maternal mortality rates and lowest life expetencies in the world. BBC

The continuing fighting with the Taliban is well reported. They have not gone away, and can the western backed warlords be said to be any better anyway?

The tragic effects of the use of depleted uranium weapons are another issue. We are seeing greater numbers and previously unheard of birth defects as documented by Miraki in his book and video. We have also seen this in other areas where they have been used like Basra. Information on its effects is hard to find, with those studies that have been done being inadequate.

 

[purves grundy]

Of course I was glad to see the back of the Taliban, and its positive that women have equal rights, that they have democracy and so forth.
The reality, although I take your point about not having been there, is pretty grim.
In Mohammed Daud Miraki's book, he talks about the situation of aid money not being used properly, so the situation is that it has not been anything nearly adequate. This is confirmed by this BBC report 'Aid failings 'hit Afghan progress''

There are number of articles on this BBC page which corroborate this grim view of the situation

As far as the continuing peril of women, it is in fact in some ways is worse. Of course it is good that they have equal rights, but now they face danger of rape, kidnap which was not tolerated under the Taliban. Their rights too are denied them by these warlords. The testimony of Sima Samar, and the article linked to from John Pilger show this.
Women under siege in Afghanistan BBC

General living conditions remain dreadful, with some of the highest infant mortality rates, highest maternal mortality rates and lowest life expetencies in the world. BBC

The continuing fighting with the Taliban is well reported. They have not gone away, and can the western backed warlords be said to be any better anyway?

The tragic effects of the use of depleted uranium weapons are another issue. We are seeing greater numbers and previously unheard of birth defects as documented by Miraki in his book and video. We have also seen this in other areas where they have been used like Basra. Information on its effects is hard to find, with those studies that have been done being inadequate.

You're right, it's a terrible situation. Your comments and articles contrast with Rumsfeld's comments the other day about how wonderful life is for people in Afghanistan nowadays.

I'll have a look at that video you linked to later on, sounds interesting. I hope it mentions possible solutions to the current problems as there's no turning back the clock and - a la Bob Geldof - there are people dying now, they need practical solutions now.

Looking forward, one can only hope that after Iraq and Afghanistan, like fela says, citizens in the west wake up to what their governments are doing and refuse to bankrol any more of these misadventures.

 

[slaar]

Yes, america and britain are disgraceful in many ways with regard to their disgusting foreign policy which cares not a jot about human lives if they're the wrong sort of humans.

Anglo-american hegemony can only be broken when the peoples of the two countries take an interest in why their leaders create and sanction policies that butcher thousands upon thousands of deaths each year on our planet.

The anglo-american machine is a truly horrifying entity for many millions of people.

Sierra Leone has just carried out free and fair elections, and there are good odds on a peaceful, democratic change of government for the first time in their history. The country has had peace for five years.

Eight years ago rebels were sacking Freetown, killing and amputating at will, and almost a half of the population had run in terror from their homes.

I'm not saying the UK military intervention was solely responsible for this turn of events, but it is widely acknowledged to have made a significant difference.

 

[slaar]

The problems in Afghanistan and Iraq are of a different order of course, tied up much more tightly with strategic concerns of the US and UK. In that kind of situation it's hard to get aid to do anything at all without the aims being compromised. But then aid is a hard thing to get right at all.

 

[Random]

The problems in Afghanistan and Iraq are of a different order of course, tied up much more tightly with strategic concerns of the US and UK. In that kind of situation it's hard to get aid to do anything at all without the aims being compromised. But then aid is a hard thing to get right at all.

And if by 'right' you mean 'delivered in order to benefit the ordinary people', quite often that's not the aim at all, any way.

 

[Detroit City]

The Afghan people need to get back to the poppie fields and producing more drugs. Whats the situation on that industry? Last I heard it was resurging cause the Taliban have less power.

If someone needs to produce smack to feed their kids then by all means please do so.

 

[dylanredefined]

The taliban are being beaten tactically and are now relying on foreign fighters .Unfortunatly unless the afgan government can deliver security and
development outside of kabul they maybe able to come back.

 

[Random]

The taliban are being beaten tactically and are now relying on foreign fighters .Unfortunatly unless the afgan government can deliver security and
development outside of kabul they maybe able to come back.

Did you c+p this from the urbanski47 archive of 1982?

 

[EddyBlack]

I've been E-mailing loads of MPs with this message:

Dear --- --- MP,
Although I am not your constituent, I hope you will consider this message. I am writing to you because I think this is an important issue and one that I want MPs to be aware of. I believe there is a disgrace upon our nation.

Life for the Afghan people is worse in many ways after the fall of the Taliban. I believe the invasion was justifiable, but this does not excuse America and Britain for the prevailing conditions in Afghanistan today.

Afghanistan is one of the poorest nations in the world. Most of the aid money for reconstruction has been swallowed up by corruption or simply filtered back to America. The western backed war lords have power again. Organised crime and corruption have flourished. Conflict with the resurgent Taliban is widespread. In many ways peoples' lives are now worse.

Cancer rates and birth defects have greatly increased due to the use of depleted uranium weapons. These weapons are so well suited for their destructive purpose that the army will defend their use as far as possible. However the resultant effect on people’s health, even our own soldiers is terrible.

Western leaders like to say we have liberated women and brought democracy. The reality for women is more complex. Prominent Afghan women such as former Karzai minister Dr. Sima Samar have said that life is more perilous than ever for many Afghan women.

The allies dominate this part of the world because of its strategic importance and immense wealth of natural resources. For ordinary Afghans there is no happy liberation

Please consider the following further information.
Thankyou.
Yours sincerely,
Adam Turnbull.

video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-848138069432834535
www.afghanistanafterdemocracy.com/
www.guardian.co.uk/afghanistan/story/0,1284,1044925,00.html
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/south_asia/2004/afghanistan/default.stm

I've some positive responses thanking me and promising to look at this subject.

I'll post the most interesting replies.

 

[EddyBlack]

This one is from MP Mark Fisher.

Thank you for your email. I share your grave concern for what is
happening in Afghanistan. I have a number of Afghani constituents, and
a large number of Afghan asylum seekers in Stoke, all of whom are of
like mind with you.

I agree that our policy has been a total failure - we have driven
people into the arms of the Taliban by our determination to drive out
the opium crops without offering any alternative source of income. We
haven't done anything to offer an alternative to government by warlords.
The result is that we've given our troops an impossible task. They
can't achieve it, are inadequately resourced and so have to spend the
vast majority of their time preserving their own lives, which is far
from easy to do. We are, in effect, sending young men to Afghanistan
to fight for their own lives rather than fight to restore democracy and
a viable economy to a country that is, as you say, extremely poor. It's
a disaster.

Best wishes

Mark Fisher

 

[slaar]

This one is from MP Mark Fisher.

Thank you for your email. I share your grave concern for what is
happening in Afghanistan. I have a number of Afghani constituents, and
a large number of Afghan asylum seekers in Stoke, all of whom are of
like mind with you.

I agree that our policy has been a total failure - we have driven
people into the arms of the Taliban by our determination to drive out
the opium crops without offering any alternative source of income. We
haven't done anything to offer an alternative to government by warlords.
The result is that we've given our troops an impossible task. They
can't achieve it, are inadequately resourced and so have to spend the
vast majority of their time preserving their own lives, which is far
from easy to do. We are, in effect, sending young men to Afghanistan
to fight for their own lives rather than fight to restore democracy and
a viable economy to a country that is, as you say, extremely poor. It's
a disaster.

Best wishes

Mark Fisher

Fair enough. Not very constructive though, but then nor is the policy.

Random - Aid delivery has made some strides on this in recent years in the UK. Since the International Development Act back in, I think, 2000 it's illegal to give aid for any reason except reducing poverty. While this is clearly open to interpretation, it's a big advance from the 1980s when Tory development policy was pretty much restricted to export promotion via the FCO.

 

[warren]

Interesting Anecdote about how the Taliban started. The Talib were all students. One day 2 young girls were kidnapped & raped by Warlords. Mullah Omar got together a group of 30 Talib students who had about 15 guns between them and freed the girls.

There is no real point in focusing on women's rights in anywhere pther than Kabul. It would just make a bad situation worse.

 

[EddyBlack]

'Dear Mr Black.
Thank you for your email.
You are correct to highlight the terrible situation in Afghanistan at present. I have read all your points with interest and concern and thank you for the links to the article and video.

The Conservative Party has committed itself to ensuring that aid is effective and has some specific plans to stamp out corruption in the developing world.

Andrew Mitchell MP
Shadow Secretary of State for International Development'

 

[purves grundy]

There is no real point in focusing on women's rights in anywhere pther than Kabul. It would just make a bad situation worse.

I think that's terribly defeatist and also untrue. There are parts of the country in which it would be unwise to push the women's rights agenda too hard or without looking at the situation very carefully. But all agencies and governments involved in human rights do this already, and would probably focus on promotion and (god I hate this phrase) 'raising awareness' rather than securing immediate implementation.

 

[purves grundy]

Andrew Mitchell MP
Shadow Secretary of State for International Development'

I don't like this bloke.

 

[FridgeMagnet]

If that story about the Taliban is at all true, what it would seem to indicate is that women's rights _are_ an issue - at least the right to not be kidnapped and raped is valued. Being a second-class citizen is better than being a disposable subhuman resource. Of course you don't want to settle for the former either but it indicates a step.

All the interviews I've seen seem to show that ordinary Afghans couldn't stand the Taliban, but at least you know where you are with them, rather than some chaotic warlord whose cronies might decide to shoot you any second for no reason - or for that matter some foreign airforce who might bomb your village to shit and say they thought it was rebels. They don't seem to be being offered much of a choice right now.

 

[EddyBlack]

A reply here from MP Paul Flynn. His website is also very interesting and frequently hilarious.

'Dear Mr. Black,

Many thanks for your email. The situation in Afghanistan has been one of constant concern to me. I have raised the issue with Ministers repeatedly over the last few years.

An idea that I have been promoting at home and in the EU has been the licensing of some opium sales from Afghanistan under a regulated system so that it can be used to manufacture morphine in Europe. There has been a shortage of opium in the western world for medical purposes such as this. If such sales could go ahead then Afghan citizens could benefit financially, and crop eradication programmes could cease or be greatly restricted.
The current system of crop eradication is untenable and acts as a perverse incentive for people to grow opium poppies.

Thank you for raising this matter with me. I will continue to press for any measures which can improve the quality of life of Afghani citizens and prevent unnecessary suffering.

Best wishes,
Paul Flynn

Paul Flynn MP House of Commons London SW1A OAA
Dip into now daily blog on paulflynnmp.co.uk. Join the lively comment page or see the 60 videos of local events.'

 

[likesfish]

fuck me thats one mp who won't be going anywhere appears to have an idea that does'nt appear to be bollocks at first glance

the taliaban can keep going for ages the west are fighting this war on the cheap.

the taliban have no answer to improving anybody's life

 

[EddyBlack]

>Dear Mr Black
>
I refer to your letter of 13 September 2007 and could not disagree more
with you having visited Afghanistan on a number of occasions and met
many who suffered at the hands of the Taliban.

I would ask you to consider the fact that the international coalition is
in Afghanistan under the remit of the United Nations. British lives have
been lost in trying to do our best for the people of Afghanistan and for
you to state that this is somehow "a disgrace upon our nation" is a sad
reflection on the values you hold.

Yours sincerely,

The Rt Hon Adam Ingram MP.

/Message :

Ingram's Profile- In 2001 he became Armed Forces Minister at the Ministry of Defence, a position he held until Gordon Brown became Prime Minister in 2007. He was the longest serving Defence Minister in British history. He is a member of the Privy Council.

 

[Shippou-Sensei]

 

[EddyBlack]

Thanks for the dose of amusing weirdness!

 

[Shippou-Sensei]

no prob... i have plenty

 

[EddyBlack]

I like the way she carries that Kalishnikov

 

[purves grundy]

A reply here from MP Paul Flynn. His website is also very interesting and frequently hilarious.

'Dear Mr. Black,

Many thanks for your email. The situation in Afghanistan has been one of constant concern to me. I have raised the issue with Ministers repeatedly over the last few years.

An idea that I have been promoting at home and in the EU has been the licensing of some opium sales from Afghanistan under a regulated system so that it can be used to manufacture morphine in Europe. There has been a shortage of opium in the western world for medical purposes such as this. If such sales could go ahead then Afghan citizens could benefit financially, and crop eradication programmes could cease or be greatly restricted.
The current system of crop eradication is untenable and acts as a perverse incentive for people to grow opium poppies.

Thank you for raising this matter with me. I will continue to press for any measures which can improve the quality of life of Afghani citizens and prevent unnecessary suffering.

Best wishes,
Paul Flynn

Paul Flynn MP House of Commons London SW1A OAA
Dip into now daily blog on paulflynnmp.co.uk. Join the lively comment page or see the 60 videos of local events.'

Good ol Paul Flynn. Shame nobody takes a blind bit of notice of him.

 

[EddyBlack]

Another good reply:

Dear Mr Black

Thank you for your recent email rgarding the deterioration of living
conditions in Afghanistan. Despite not being in my constituency, I feel it
is important to give such an important issue an adequate response.

What we are seeing in Afghanistan is the result of over four years of
neglect by the international community. For two years after the invasion
in 2001 NATO was confined to Kabul, the counter-narcotics campaign was
botched, and reconstruction marginalised. US forces were focused not on
extending the writ of the government but on hunting down terrorists. The
support of Afghan communities was lost and the perception of occupation
became ingrained.

From the beginning there has been confusion about the purpose of the
mission in Afghanistan. We were told that troops were intended to enhance
stability and spread the authority of the Afghan government. But what was
billed as a stabilisation mission has rapidly become a full blown
counter-insurgency operation.

Thank you once again for raising this issue with me and I wish you all the
best in any future campaigning.

Greg Mulholland MP
Member of Parliament for Leeds North West