Who rules Afghanistan?

6 April 2005

AFGHANISTAN has been going through dramatic changes ever since the US invasion led to the unseating of the Taleban. The reconstruction of the country that has been ravaged by the long years of conflict and two invasions has been going on with the help of international aid. However, the pace of rebuilding effort is far from desirable.

This is perhaps why President Hamid Karzai at the annual meeting of donor nations and agencies in Kabul on Monday insisted on a leading role for the Afghan government in the aid and rebuilding effort.

A fierce debate is raging over the sluggish pace of reconstruction efforts undertaken by international aid agencies in Afghanistan. In fact, on Sunday — a day before the donors’ meet — Karzai had accused non-government organisations of squandering funds channelled through them.

While the Afghan president is right in arguing that the Afghan government must play its due role in steering the development process in the country, facts on the ground do not really favour his argument. Lawlessness continues to rule the country. In fact, three years after the fall of Taleban and despite having an elected government in Kabul, Afghanistan is still ruled by scores of warlords. In fact, it is widely known in and outside Afghanistan that the Karzai government’s writ is limited to the capital Kabul. No wonder then Karzai is called the President of Kabul, rather than Afghanistan. Except for the Taleban, who are closely monitored and hunted across the country, all other armed and lawless groups are free to do as they please. These groups that had been disbanded and reined in by the Taleban during their rule have regrouped to unleash their terror. No one including the government in Kabul can take on them. Whoever tries to challenge them would do so at their peril and go the Taleban way. On the other hand, opium menace is back in Afghanistan. As latest UN reports have warned, opium production, under this government, has touched record high levels. In 2004, a whopping 4200 MT of poppy was cultivated in Afghanistan against 190 MT in 2001.

The Afghan government does deserve to take control of the international aid effort. But it would be possible only when Karzai proves he is not the governor of Kabul but the President of Afghanistan.