Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Sunday, June 21st, 2026

Traditional Power-play is on Decline

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Traditional Power-play is on Decline

Both the two front runners of presidential election announced their preparation to go for the second round of the election. It is really so kind of them that they finally accepted the result of the election which has kept the country intact temporarily.

Both analysts and common people were worried about the consequence of rejection of the result of presidential election by any candidate. Many assumed that such an unwise action was possible as well as consequential. Before the election, there were rumors among people that in particular areas weapons were distributed. But for now after successful passing of the first round of the election, people have started to breathe in relief till end of its second round. Meanwhile, it should be noticed that the appreciation does go entirely to presidential candidates. Some of them still do not accept the result of the election and today may commence uprising if were confident that could strengthen their political status through threat and warning. In other words, fundamental changes at ground level works as strong pillars that political stability relies on. People are tired of war and many understand that if there is someone who instigates in disrupting peace and instability is merely for his own personal interests.  It is not clear but it is possible that even a major change happen within the political layer of the society, this time people may easily hold arms and start fighting against one another.  Only few years ago, simple discussion about any leader would have easily misunderstood, sparking tough arguments or even physical clashes because everybody was defining their identity within the framework of ethnic and the ethnic group was represented a particular communal leader.  In other words, political leaders or let’s say political celebrities of any community have had special status far higher than a simple individual. They were considered as the idol of that community and no body indeed dared to criticize them because all the members of that particular ethnic group by cliché that the critic was criticizing the entire community.

Such misunderstanding of the cliché mentality was ripe for provoking people to fight for illusionary honor of their community though the critic or teller did not mean to harm the communal feelings of anyone.

I do not claim that such mentality does not exist anymore but indeed quite dominant.  But certainly not to a level that was previously. The revolutionary growth of Media and its role in delivering messages directly to people has dealt severe blow those communal-political icons. People do not consider as infallible human beings who fight only for the cause of their ethnic interests. Rather people noticed that visible percentage of them pulled into mess without any reason other than pitiable personal interests. People have taken notice that they held arms against one another, fearing an illusionary threat. They found out that while their children were not sleeping all the night due to hunger, the children of their idols (political leaders) were reclining on the couch with numbers of servants caring all days and nights. They have started questioning that while their children were dying due to starvation, the children of their politicians were studying in renowned universities and enjoying time in the peace countries with they received from their fathers in Afghanistan.

Therefore, such questions led to revelation of the reality behind the scene. Many now have started complaining about why they for years pulled the trigger against people who asked nothing just for their rights. Why people were massacred merely due to ethnicity?  Is it the fault of people who are born in particular community with particular ethnic complexity or they are created by Allah almighty as so? If they are created by Allah almighty by whose very name I am holding a gun to kill the person with such complexity, then why I should blame them?

Moreover, by the course of time and raising awareness of the people about the world, fundamental changes have taken place. Common people do not believe in superiority of kings or who are born in king families. Another world, people entirely stand against any theory or mentality which justifies the welfare of any particular individual due to his race, language or the family he is born in. The mentality of equality of all human being irrespective of their race has become a dominant notion.  I do not claim that previously people viewed particular individual superior due to his kingship but what I say by the course of time people deep down accepted the superiority of higher class similar to rest of pre-modern society irrespective of what religion said. In another word, though religion vividly and clearly mentioned that all human beings are equal and no one has superiority than the other than following the true path of Allah almighty. But in reality what people believed and behaved were different. People never value and respect the son of a pious farmer as they do the son of corrupt warlord. Even the very interpreters of Holy Quran will act the same.  Where this discrimination has come from?  It originates from the economic class of the society. The most threat against such concept comes from the side of theory of citizenship. It stands behind equality of human beings and familiarized people that they are true power holder and bestow to rulers.  I think this new mentality has encroached the tradition and thus people may not easily turn against one another on the direction of their leaders.

Masood Korosh is the permanent writer of the Daily Outlook Afghanistan. He can be reached at outlookafghanistan@gmail.com

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