It was quite unlucky for me that a busy day in office did not let me watch the match but as I left the office and was passing by a row of nearby residential blocks, I saw a number of children clapping and shouting in happiness on the balcony of their apartments. Then I saw a lot many boys, teenagers and young men assembled around a shop and busy in watching the final moments of the match. Last moments were closing and Afghanistan was still leading the match and they needed some more minutes to maintain their lead and then the auspicious moment could have come. Boys were clapping, shouting, whistling and chanting slogans in favor of Afghanistan and the sensation found in players inside the stadium in Nepal was also found in every person watching it on television.
Though it was the final of a cup that was limited to South Asia only but for Afghanistan and Afghans it meant a lot. It was a first occasion after a number of decades to feel happy, feel proud, and share these precious moments with each other as a nation. Whole country was already in the tight grip and frenzy of this match when Afghanistan won the Semi-Final and president also directed some of his ministers to ensure their presence in Nepal to support the Afghan team. At 5 PM, when the match started, I already felt the sensation in the air and it felt as if Afghanistan was going to play the final of Football World Cup. And then the final whistle came and every corner of country was flooded by joy and emotions. Some were found even crying in joy for this victory.
Soon after this, medals were given to the players and the captain received the champions’ trophy. Players started jumping and dancing with the trophy in the stadium and people started doing the same in Kabul and other cities of Afghanistan. Then people broke out to the streets for celebrations. Roads were flooded with cars filled with youngsters, waving Afghan flag and shouting and laughing. Many of them assembled on main points and started dancing on patriotic songs. There was intense air shooting in different parts of the city. In short, the scenes of celebrations that were seen on streets of Kabul on the night of victory became a history to be remembered forever and ever.
Few people were wondering on these celebrations saying that Afghanistan had not won the World Cup, rather it was just a regional cup but having a look at our history, it is not difficult to understand why people were extraordinarily jubilant. These were the youngsters who were born in war and air filled with noise of shooting and bombing and from many decades, had seen nothing except war, bloodshed, and its resultant depression and fear. In all these years, they never had any such moment to enjoy and celebrate. In all these years, they had never received any good news and had never felt so much proud on being an Afghan. Even they had not tasted the joy of such a mass celebration and it was the first such occasion in our entire history.
Like other nations of the world, we also have some divisions on the basis of different ethnicities but this victory worked as an ointment to heal and finish all the rifts and divides present among the people. At that night, they were all together as Afghans. There was no discrimination of Tajik, Pashtun, Hazara, Uzbek or others. They were all waving with love and respect the flag of Afghanistan and shouting passionately ‘Long Live Afghanistan’ and ‘Long Live Afghan Team’. Even with such crowd and rush, there was no fight between the people and that night, no one was ready to get angry and it was absolutely dedicated for smiling and spreading this smile. In a sense, relations and unity between all the Afghans were strengthened and I hope that, there would be many such occasions in future which will wipe away our differences and disunity.
Afghanistan has always been regarded a country where there is fight, there is terrorism, there are bomb blasts and suicide attacks and there is general insecurity. Even some of our relatives who still live in Pakistan don’t believe that there is such smooth peace prevailing in Kabul and other parts of the country. In the international media, Afghanistan has always been portrayed as a country where there is instability and conflict. This image has become so permanent that it would take many years’ efforts before Afghanistan is known for peace, progress and stability. Our victory and its following celebrations were given so much coverage in national and international media that people of world came to know that a country is rising out of conflict and bloodshed and is slowly and gradually advancing towards peace and stability.
On Thursday, thousands of people were waiting at Kabul International airport to receive their heroes and all the adjacent roads and streets were flooded by people and their vehicles. When the national team arrived, it was received with all the love and respect and was taken to their destiny in form of a grand rally. Security threats were also present on such a mass gathering but people were not willing to lose this golden opportunity just because of some fears.
Having a look at the celebrations on the night of victory and its following day on the airport, a friend of mine made such beautiful remarks, ‘These events are really miraculous in the lives of nations. Millions of Afghans are filled with joy and proud in all the corners of country. This could have never been possible by any other mean. If one had spent billions of dollars to inject every single member of country with an injection of happiness, it could have not become possible. It is the reason why, it is said that such victories are so precious that they cannot be weighed or measured in terms of money or gain.’
Before concluding this article, I would also like to mention the dangerous and heedless air shooting in Kabul and other cities that left dozens of people injured. Then government had to make a public appeal on all television channels to stop the firing. No doubt, it was a historic occasion but joys should not end in the loss and pain of others. I hope that our thinkers and public figures will point out this problem in media and make efforts to train the people in this regard.
While the celebrations continued that night, a comment given on Facebook especially caught my interest and attention. It said, ‘Our politicians and so-called leaders, who have accumulated millions of dollars from this country, could never provide us with an occasion that could have lifted up the spirits of nation as whole while a bunch of players, who are happy in their limited income, showed performance that changed the mood and spirit of nation. We salute the players of our national football team’.
We all, as a nation, say ‘Thank you’ to our national team for giving us such a day that would always remain in our memories and keep it filling with its sweet taste. Thank you very much!