On Monday, December 17, Afghan foreign ministry handed over hundreds of historical Kushan-era coins to Afghan National Museum. The coins were basically brought from London, which were taken there by British numismatist David Midwell 40 years ago. There are a total of 215 coins and they are considered as rare Afghan artifacts.

The studies reveal that the Kushan Empire spread in South Asia in the early 1st century AD under Kujula Kadphises in the territories of ancient Afghanistan around the Amu River, and later based near Kabul. The Kushans spread from the Kabul River Valley to defeat other Central Asian tribes that had previously conquered parts of the northern central Iranian Plateau, and reached their peak under the Buddhist emperor Kanishka.

Considering the age of the coins, it can be said without any doubt that they are really precious and they will add to the beauty and value of Afghan National Museum. Recently, there have been different endeavors to restore historical Afghan artifacts. Information and Culture Minister Syed Makhdoom Rahin said that many precious artifacts had been smuggled abroad and the museum building destroyed during the civil war. So far, he added, $600,000 (31.4 million afs) had been paid by the US embassy and another $1,000,000 by the Afghan government for rebuilding the museum.

These initiatives are really important for the feeling of national splendor in the members of Afghan society, which at the moment are non-existent. The cultural heritage and historical treasure can play a tremendous role in this regard. However, it is also a fact that many years of civil wars and clashes have had severe impacts on Afghanistan's socio-political scenario.

These wars and clashes have influenced the country in so many different ways. There have not been losses only in life and blood but in culture, tradition and values, as well. It is believed that for a civilization to flourish, it is necessary that there should be peace, tranquility and stability. Unfortunately Afghanistan has suffered in this regard.

Though there has been relative peace and stability and there have been efforts to reestablish the Afghan society after the downfall of Taliban, a lot more has to be achieved to make a real difference in Afghan society. It is necessary, at the present scenario, that Afghanistan must have a sense of national integration and harmony.

It must be reiterated for the people of Afghanistan that they once had a rich culture and civilization and they had times in their history that knew nothing of violence and terrorism and a relatively peaceful and rich civilization flourished on their land.

Moreover, this should be insisted for them that they have to preserve the traces and remains of their rich history that should help the new generations realize the worth of their history and tradition. Unfortunately such insistence is very rare to see in the society where most of the discussions are centered on clashes and terrorism.

In one of the most remarkable events for the preservation of national cultural heritage, President Hamid Karzai and Prince Karim Aga Khan officially opened the restored mausoleum of Timur Shah (Timur Shah was the Durrani King who made Kabul the capital of the modern Afghan State) in October, 2012.

The historic monument had fallen into bad condition during decades of civil war. It has now been restored as part of an on-going program undertaken by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture to preserve the cultural heritage of Afghanistan. The work inaugurated in 2003 and it included the mausoleum and the rehabilitation of the one hectare park around the building.

Another such insistences took place a couple of months earlier as well. Hundreds of archaeological artifacts that were looted from Afghanistan were handed over to the country's national museum. The artifacts were basically stolen during Afghanistan's civil war in the 1990s and they were smuggled to black market. Even more unfortunate is the fact that more than two thirds of the exhibits at the National Museum in Kabul were stolen or destroyed during the civil war. The British Museum in London helped to complete their return to the Ministry of Information and Culture.

The recovery included 843 items that belonged to different eras and civilizations in the rich Afghan history – from Bronze Age to the Islamic period. They included items, such as a 1st Century AD elephant ivory, a Buddha stone statue, coins, pots, stamps and a 3000 years old axe. Stone statues of Buddha and intricate ivory carvings are up to 4,000 years old. One stone Buddha, thought to be around 1,800 years old, was stolen from the museum in Kabul and recovered in Japan.

It is really unfortunate to note that the members of Afghan society themselves have not been very much careful about the rich traditional remains and artifacts. There have been culprits even from within Afghan authorities who have been involved in the filthy business of selling their traditional treasures. It is impossible to imagine that the artifacts that have now been recovered could reach to the Black Market without the support of the responsible authorities. Moreover, the instability and the absence of a particular system to take care of such treasure also helped in their smuggling.

It is also unfortunate to note that Taliban, during their rule in the country, played a negative role regarding the preservation of the rich Afghan tradition. The destruction of the Buddha of Bamiyan in this regard was clear indication that Taliban had not respect for the historical wealth and they considered them to be the remains of the non-Islamic civilization. However, they forgot the fact that they depicted the truth about the history of Afghanistan and they also depicted a more peaceful and tranquil era.

It is also important to note that the foreigners have been more helpful for Afghanistan to keep alive its tradition and history and have assisted Afghanistan in this regard to a great extent. Even the recovery of the artifacts mentioned above could not have been possible without the support AKDN and British Museum and other contributors.

The insensitive attitude of the Afghan authorities themselves in this regard is unfortunate and the government needs to play a tremendous role to make sure that they themselves start guarding their tradition and culture. Definitely, there have been many other problems, more basic in nature, for Afghans to ponder upon and spend time on but now when they are in a better position they must play their role.

Though the return of artifacts to Afghanistan is a joyous piece of news, yet there are concerns about their fate. As there are doubts about the future of peace and tranquility in the country, the certainty about the proper preservation of the artifacts cannot be maintained at the moment.

With the withdrawal of international forces in 2014, there will be serious security challenges and if the situation is not handled properly there are possibilities that insecurity may creep within the society swiftly. The growing insecurity will definitely have a lasting impact on the capability of Afghan authorities to guard their relic, artifacts and tradition.