Six years after the US invasion in Afghanistan, the country is far from being a secured land. Presence of security forces including foreign peacekeepers, across the country, has not yet ensured a peaceful livelihood. Two-thirds of the Afghan population still lives on fewer than $2 US dollars a day. A recent survey, carried out by the US based Asia Foundation revealed that, 46% of the Afghan population believe that the security remains one of the biggest problems in the country.
However, the living standard of Afghan people took an upward turn since 2004 and is much superior than the life under Taliban regime. Communication is one of those sectors those were enhanced and made Afghan peoples’ life easier. For instance, Afghans had to cross the border and travel to Pakistan, just to make a phone call to relatives living abroad; now, over 2 million Afghans have their cellular phones and can contact relatives and friends in every corner of the world. The county has progressed in the health sector as well. Johns Hopkins University reported that Infant mortality rate of the country declined from 165 per 1,000 live births in 2001 to about 135 per 1,000 in 2006. This means that about 40,000 fewer infants are dying each year compared to during Taliban rule. Infrastructure development has recently got momentum as well. In 2006, US based Black & Veatch and the Louis Berger Group, won contracts worth $1.4 billion to rebuild roads, power lines and water supply systems of Afghanistan. Nevertheless, in the meantime, Taliban militants adopted new tactics from Iraqi insurgents and changed the pattern of their suicide attacks. In the first 10 months of 2007, Taliban militants conducted 193 suicides bombings; a 20% increase from last year.
The question is why the livelihood of Afghan people is not secured yet? What are the major roadblocks? The answer should not be restricted to “The Talibans”. Though the newspaper headlines still are scary, foreign forces in 2007, suffered less than one combat death a week. When Russia invaded Afghanistan in the 1980s, they lost 1572 dead a year, about five times higher than the US led foreign soldiers. Taliban are actually only a name in the list that illustrates the major roadblocks for development and a secured land; not even the first one. The major and ‘top of the list’ roadblocks are poppies, corruption and Pushtun tribal politics. Actually, these three factors merge and produce the Taliban.
The opium and heroin produced from the poppy crops in Afghanistan generate three billion dollars a year. The warlords use much of these funds to buy politicians, tribal leaders and thousands of gunmen. And about half of this figure goes to the farmers growing the poppies. This brings instant riches, because poppies yield 30 times more income than traditional food. In addition, Corruption in Afghanistan works as an ancient custom, hand in hand with poverty and violence. Tribal leaders and politicians of the country take for granted that they can be bought, or at least rented, if the price is right.
Taliban’s ‘believe system’ is corrupt itself, making things worst. The ‘Taliban way of life’ actually represents religious conservatism. Taliban way has no tradeoff or relations with the modern thinking. Thus the Taliban denounce education for women, and many other pillar of modern life. The Taliban fighters, nevertheless, like the expensive gadgets, such as SUVs and satellite phones very much but do not allow any other devices inside their households. Even by Afghan standards, Taliban represent extremist militants. Till today, the Taliban fighters believe that they are on a mission from the creator. They carryout this mission by using drug money. One wonders, what they will answer to their creator about their fund, if ever asked. But, for the time being, this source will keep things going for a while.
The solution lays in hitting on the source of fund. To eliminate Taliban militancy from the country, the highly profitable drug business has to be destroyed. In addition, the corruption has to be washed off and a diplomatic approach needs to be taken to deal the Pushtun problems.
It is true that, over the last 20 years, Afghanistan’s infrastructure suffered severe damages; its institutional devastation was equally harsh. Moreover, the country suffers some of the harshest climatic conditions and most difficult terrain on earth, of which, much is laced with millions of unmarked landmines. On the positive note, Afghanistan possesses 36 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, 3.6 billion barrels of petroleum and up to 1,325 million barrels of natural gas liquids along with huge amounts of gold, copper, coal, iron ore. If utilized properly, these natural resources can boost up Afghanistan’s reconstruction efforts and can generate revenue to develop its infrastructure.
Economic opportunities, however, can be utilized, only if the drug problems and Pushtun politics are removed from the path. If the drug money does not reach the Talibans, they will automatically shift their mission to something else. They have to.
