At the present scenario our country Afghanistan is going through a transition period. Transition period here does not mean the transition of the security responsibilities alone that are going on in the country; rather here transition is mentioned with much broader perspective. Afghanistan is moving, though to a very limited extent, from a tribal society to a democratic one. Though the real democratic signs are yet to be found in most parts of the country, there have been movement in that direction to a certain extent.

Unfortunately, this transition period is facing myriads of hurdles. The instable political and social setups have further made this period uncertain. The control mechanism itself seems to have lost the focus and devotion. It seems perplexed in the interwoven web of frequent social changes and has been contaminated with intense corruption. It lacks clear vision itself, so how it is possible for it to guide the social and political changes towards a definite goal. The country at the moment is marked with swelling wave of terrorism. Even the securest of all the people are insecure, the international forces are withdrawing, the national forces are not completely ready to shoulder the security responsibility, the political system is marked with certain incapacities to deal with the diverse political requirements and all these changes have been magnified because of their occurrence during a transition. So, the economic future is clearly uncertain and the most tragic fact is that we are completely unprepared.

However, some of the Afghan and international authorities show satisfaction from the developments made so far in the name of transition. US President Barack Obama seems satisfied from the process as well.  On Sunday, May 26, he, in his address to the nation on the occasion of Memorial day, said, “Today, a transition is underway in Afghanistan, and our troops are coming home.  Fewer Americans are making the ultimate sacrifice in Afghanistan, and that’s progress for which we are profoundly grateful.  And this time next year, we will mark the final Memorial Day of our war in Afghanistan.”

In one of his earlier messages President Obama had said, "Next year Afghans will take the lead for their own security. In 2014 the transition will be complete. And even as this war ends, we will stay vigilant so Afghanistan is never again a source for attacks against America… We are winding down a decade of war. We are destroying terrorist networks that attacked us and we've restored American leadership. Today every American can be proud that the United States is safer, the United States is stronger and the United States is more respected in the world." What President Obama might have been pointing at was the killing of Osama bin Laden who lead the 9/11 attacks in US. However, it must not be forgotten that the war against terrorism and the transition period, as their names suggests, were not started just to target Osama, rather they were meant to eradicate terrorism, change Afghan society and bring about positive changes. This suggests that as long as terrorism, political instability and economic hardships exist with certain strength in Afghanistan or the region, the war against terrorism is not believed to be concluded and the transition period would not be completed. 

It can be mentioned without a tinge of doubt that the hunt of Osama was an imperative achievement but in order to eradicate terrorism and bring about real transition in the region only achievements on operational level are not sufficient. Realization of Talibanization and Al-Qaidaism as processes and institutions must be made and extensive measures must be carried out to nip the evil in the bud. It must be comprehended without any ambiguity that the social and traditional patterns in Afghanistan and the bordering areas of Pakistan are structured in such a way that can spawn Talibanization easily. Economic hardships, illiteracy, religious extremism, rigid traditional values, and obsolete tribal norms are the factors that are multiplying the number of militants and furthering the cause of terror and terrorism. Even they are turning into a valuable market for those who have ill intentions of spreading terror.

There is no doubt in the fact that Afghanistan is going through a transition period which involves the transfer of security responsibilities from international troops to Afghan authorities. At the same time it should be considered seriously that transition of security arrangements alone would not solve the issues in Afghanistan; rather the overall scenario has to go through a transition. The country has to seek a suitable reconciliation process and above all the Afghan political system has to go through a process of change so as to make it able to govern its people properly. There have been controversies regarding Afghan government and its capacity to deal with the challenges within the country. In fact, it has been observed that Afghan government has not been able to provide rudimentary requirements of life to majority of its people and have not been able to seek appropriate solution to various political problems that influence the system to a great extent. There has been a label of corruption and many, both in national and international circles, do not believe that it has the potential to achieve ‘good governance’. Though the international community has, on various occasions, emphasized that their support is conditioned on the basis of good governance yet there has not been major steps taken by Afghan government to make achievements in this regard. A decade of support and assistance seems to have gone in vain and the country still suffers from myriads of problems.

This transition period has to be over one day, as happens with every transition period; but what could this period lead to is of immense importance. This period can either lead us to another chaotic state of affairs wherein we have to wait for a couple of more decades for the same transition or it can lead us to position from where we can move towards a successful democratic state. Definitely, the second option is what most of Afghan people desire for, but that is achievable only after prudent, agile and above all sincere efforts on the part of the control mechanism.