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Karzai’s Best Ever Decision
August 16, 2011
Here comes the best ever decision of President Hamid Karzai in the last ten years. Deeming the role of youth very vital for the future of Afghanistan, the Karzai government is sending youths from all thirty four provinces of Afghanistan for pursuing higher education abroad. This time, the government will bear all the expenses. In this ...
Need to Transition to a New Mode of Being
August 16, 2011
Afghanistan cannot continue to remain in limbo for goods and must transition into modernity and development. Transition to modernity, as a discourse and process, concerns conflict and peace as well. The country has been through failures and stalemates in this process in the last one hundred years. This ethos has never taken foothold for various ...
The Problems of Our City
August 16, 2011
Kabul has been called as the most polluted capital in the world, as it is. Recent studies show that more people die because of pollution than terrorist attacks. It's indeed killing people like a silent-cancer without getting any attention. There have been conferences and reports from Health and other concerned ministries, but the Government ...
High Expectations From Bonn II
August 15, 2011
The Bonn II conference is expected to play a pivotal role in the political reconciliation and future course of action in Afghanistan. Afghanistan will lead the conference and has high expectations from it. There has been prognostication on the part of both Afghan and foreign intellectuals that Taliban will be having their representatives ...
High Time to Rethink Conciliation
August 15, 2011
Does the government not understand the truth or Taliban offensives are not powerful enough to illustrate their willingness to overthrow President Karzai government? The reconciliation game is carried on amidst increasingly sophisticated and harsh attacks. Busy with the special court ruling, Karzai administration is too cold to overhear ...
On Independence Day of India and Pakistan
August 15, 2011
Our two neighbors India and Pakistan celebrate 65th anniversary of their independence on August 14th and 15th respectively. It was midnight stroke of August 14 and 15, 1947 when officially the British Raj (Rule), after 163 years, came to an end. The two countries since their freedom have been passing through challenges and conflicts leading to ...
Bamiyan Buddhas to be Commemorated
August 14, 2011
In the memory of the two Buddha statues destructed by Taliban in Bamiyan province of Afghanistan early March 2001, according to reports, the Queen of Thailand Sirikit, has outlined plans to build a 32-metre Buddha at the Thip Sukhontharam Temple in Kanchanaburi province, about 100 kilometers west of Bangkok. That will be a great way to ...
Startling Figure of Jobless Youths
August 14, 2011
Afghanistan continues to remain plagued by myriads of political, social, cultural and economic problems. Unfortunately since war and fighting have continued over the last ten years along with the presence of international community and influx and flow of international aid money, there has been little done to address those problems and to our ...
The Vicious Circle of Poverty
August 14, 2011
Our leaders are seamlessly busy in finding solutions to various political issues. Before an issue resolved, another one comes about and it goes on and on. The vicious circle of poverty is hampering development of Afghanistan – no significant attention is being paid to the issue and poverty goes on increasing in here. Although since 2001 ...
Marriage Expense is Too Large
August 13, 2011
The very door towards social acceptance in the country is of course marriage. Young singles are looked with suspicion and face various challenges in the society regarding renting house or rooms for settlement. Kabul is a city where annually thousands of high-school graduated as well as school boys and girls come to follow education ...
Mental Abnormality, Something Normal in Afghanistan
August 13, 2011
Based on the figures from organizations working in the health sector – Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) and World Health Organization (WHO) - around 60 percent of Afghans, mostly women, are suffering from severe psychosocial problems or mental disorders. The three decades of war have resulted in high numbers of widows, orphans and disabled people ...
Karzai, not Contesting for the Third Term
August 13, 2011
Constitution of a state is the highest body of rules and procedures regarding the different organs of the state that include legislature, judiciary and executive and the rights of the citizens of the state. In a democratic country constitution is considered as the endeavors of the elected members to guarantee welfare of the citizens. It stands ...
Close to an End to Crisis Around Parliamentary Election
August 11, 2011
President Hamid Karzai has issued a decree to the Independent Election Commission (IEC) to come up with a final decision on the lingering controversies and disputes about the last year parliamentary elections. The parliamentary election was held on September 18, 2010. Many domestic and international ...
Severe Food Shortage Crisis Underway
August 11, 2011
The United Nations Food Program (WFP) has warned that Afghanistan could face severe food shortages this autumn. According to its spokesman, about 2 million people are likely to be hit by food insecurity because of drought in different parts of the country. The wheat crop cultivation has decreased dramatically due to the drought. According to ...
Peace Process: Perplexing & Contradictory
August 11, 2011
In experts' view, Taliban and negotiations are as different as cheese and chalk. The same is being observed practically, as we hear contradictory news aboutnegotiation with the insurgents on daily basis. The Afghan government last year started negotiation with a man who called himself the representative of Taliban's Quetta Shura. But as ...
Replete With Anxiety
August 10, 2011
Over the last few weeks, security transition in Afghanistan has brought about a sense of ambiguity on future of the mission here. For Afghan government and its allies, it is a clear sign of achievement in fight against terrorism. But for terrorists, it is the beginning of the end of a democratic system in the country. With increasing attacks by ...
Yes, a Tough Fighting Warranted
August 10, 2011
Over the last few days, foreign forces operating in Afghanistan to stabilize the country against terrorist forces have suffered heavy losses in helicopter crashes, explosion and roadside bombings. In Saturday's crash, around 31 US soldiers along 7 Afghan army soldiers were killed. In a televised tribute to the dead, president Obama ...
The Turban and Burqa Bombers
August 10, 2011
President Karzai has asked Mullahs to campaign against the increasing use of turbans for hiding bombs by militants carrying out suicide attacks. Seems like Karzai is tired of repeated requests to his "angry brothers", the term he uses for militants, and now asked the religious elders for this, refraining from ...
Private Companies have to be Socially Active
August 09, 2011
With the advancement of the business sector in different parts of the world there have been improvements in the ways the different companies and organizations do their business. Though, the private companies do not have any social duty except for following the rules and regulations of the society, they have been playing roles as active ...
Paralysis of Three Branches of Power
August 09, 2011
The crisis between the three branches of power- executive, legislature and judiciary- is becoming protracted. This has affected service delivery by the executive institutions, legislation and oversight by the legislature and calls the decisions made by Supreme Court into question because Wolesi Jirga is busy in efforts to defend ...
A Call to Care for Earth
August 09, 2011
The developing process and respect for life is an inner principle of all faiths on this Planet. Yet our reactions towards the very livelihood on earth are endangering our lives on earth with hazardous levels of greenhouse gas emissions. The effects of these gasses are really so dangerous that they are destabilizing the global climate ...
Unchecked Price Hike
August 08, 2011
There is information in news that food prices have risen in Kabul, contrary to the promises made by Afghan Chamber of Commerce and Industries (ACCI). There have been rise in the prices of commodities like sugar, rice, flour, ghee, oil, milk, egg and chicken. These are the items of general use and accommodate the daily food usage ...
A Great Loss for US Forces
August 08, 2011
The NATO-led coalition on Sunday confirmed the death of 38 US and Afghan troops in a military helicopter crash in eastern Afghanistan. Thirty International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) service members, one civilian interpreter, and seven Afghan commandos were killed when a coalition CH-47 Chinook went down on Saturday as it was shot down from ...
Laying Out a Red Carpet
August 08, 2011
Self-important, overbearing announcement by High Peace Council (HPC) is, as usual, blown by obdurate Taliban group. Hoping for a big win in the so-called reconciliation process, the council announced they had evidences suggesting that Taliban leadership has a tendency to join peace initiative. Posing with great self-importance, HPC delegates have ...
Fighting Corruption From a New Perspective
August 07, 2011
Rampant corruption has always been a hot issue in the country. It is considered to be a huge obstacle in the way of progress in the country, has disappointed the general Afghan public and the international community alike and continues to erode the very pillars of Afghan state. As one of the first rules of governing people, it is important ...
Drought Hits Central Afghanistan
August 07, 2011
Amidst fear of severe drought in the country, the World Food Program announced more than a month ago that it will be suspending its food assistance plans for more than 3 million in Afghanistan because of a shortage of funds. This came a decade later than international efforts to reduce poverty and ...
With the Int’l Community Withdrawing, Funds Will Also Dry Up
August 07, 2011
As we are moving ahead in Afghanistan, things seem to be getting worse rather than going towards betterment. What will be the fate of security and economy of Afghanistan after the withdrawal of international community is still quite vague. Security – as our past experience shows – will definitely deteriorate. At the same time one ...
The Trilateral Core Group
August 06, 2011
Afghanistan and Pakistan have been the countries that have experienced the worst consequences of terrorism. Terrorism has penetrated in both the societies to a very large extent. The terrorism networks have deep and complex roots in the areas around the Af-Pak border. Though both the countries have clearly announced their will to fight the ...
Outpouring of Superficial Sentiments
August 06, 2011
The display of feelings and manifestation of opinion through peaceful demonstration is one of the key traits of societies with democratic systems and freedom of expression and the right to peaceful protest and assemblies. In Afghanistan, people have regularly exercised this right to wage demonstrations on various issues. But unfortunately ...
North Turning to Resemble South
August 06, 2011
Kunduz province was the center for Taliban's activity in North during Emirate of Afghanistan 1996-2001. In the recent years, no good reports are coming from this province as Taliban have been able to increase its insurgency there. In the first half of current year, Taliban have launched several suicide attacks in north killing ...
Calls for Support to Afghan Peace Initiative
August 04, 2011
The notorious Pakistani tribal region across the borderline was once more marked as the world's most dangerous place. US and EU officials have frequently warned against shifting terrorism and extremism hotbed in the Pakistani side of the country's common border with Afghanistan. This is what president Karzai's administration has been regularly ...
Afghans’ World of Confusion and Violence
August 04, 2011
One of the notorious political traditions in Afghanistan is the involvement of outsiders by the political groups and players in the internal affairs of the country. After ten years of fighting against the Taliban militants, the government is making any effort possible to convince them to return to the fold. To this end, it has established ...
Afghanistan’s Neighbors and Near Neighbors Hold the Key Roles
August 04, 2011
Neighboring countries have always had a role to play in Afghanistan. Since every neighbor and near neighbor country has its own specific bjectives to follow here, Afghanistan has turned into a battle field. An instable Afghanistan is in no country's favor that is why the countries around Afghanistan and beyond ...
Post ISAF Afghanistan; Confusions and Apprehensions
August 03, 2011
The ongoing multifaceted Afghan conflict going to be entered into its important phase as already security transition from ISAF to ANSF (Afghan National Security Forces) has begun. Many have different views about the aftermath of this security transition. Leaving the question about the capability of ANSF to ...
Security at Risk
August 03, 2011
The security concerns have increased largely in the country as the terrorists have turned very much violent in the recent months. There are questions being raised on the capability of Afghan authorities to guarantee peace and tranquility even in the securest of the places. The terrorists with their different tactics have been able to achieve upper ...