Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Thursday, March 28th, 2024

Need for New Techniques in Breaking with Erosion Period

Afghanistan is emerging from decades of war and conflict. This long period has been the period of destruction and erosion and deaths. There appears to be a firm decision and strong will to break with this period and continue to make progress to join the modern world. This will and hope are seen and felt both at elite level and grass-roots level.

But in order to make this transition happen, Afghan people, particularly the youths, desperately need to learn the techniques employed in modern societies to run the state of affairs and live prosperous life. This pressing need for new ways for looking at issues and managing things comes from the society and government institutions alike.

In other word, Afghan people need to know the experiences of other countries that are developed and well-off to run their lives successfully and peacefully and the government agencies need to develop their capacity to deliver services and governance to the people effectively and efficiently as well as democratically. This capacity development could happen by learning from the experiences of democratic countries.

In the new report released by the UN, it is said that prisoners in some Afghan-run detention facilities are beaten and tortured. The report says, "It found the use of interrogation techniques that constitute torture under international law and crimes under Afghan law, as well as other forms of mistreatment." But in the meanwhile it has said that it is not the government's policy to beat and torture the prisoners.

The report says that the authorities "have stated clearly they have an action plan to address these concerns, started investigations, reassigned personnel in the case of the National Directorate of Security, and have further indicated that responsible individuals will be suspended from their positions and in serious cases, prosecuted."

It revives the hope for the institutionalization of and restores trust in democratic institutions in the country but it also means that Afghan government bodies need capacity-building and this must be delivered to understand democratic functions and carry them out effectively.

In the meanwhile, another reason for this type of mistreatment is the overall habit that may have developed over the last three decades of conflict and fighting. There has to be break with this habit but it needs time and it could be a long process.