Expressez-Vous

Today, I am posting an article which has touched me personally.This is an article from Afghanistan by a person who has seen and suffered a lot of pain. As Barrack Obama prepares to take his seat in the Oval Office, he faces many tasks,one of which includes the crisis in Afghanistan.This article describes EV best: Expressing Yourself!

By Nargis Nemat

In the United States, the majority of people who voted for president Obama were among the youth. They were all active and this is a good sign. My message to all politicians is: Count on the youth!

We in Afghanistan wish that our youth would work as hard as the youth in the United States and remain politically active. They have the power to end the suffering of our people with their vote and their voice. Youth are powerful and they can make a difference. Youth are for change.

The conflict in Afghanistan cannot be resolved by bombing cities and killing the innocent. The only way to end the conflict is to improve the economy, actively involving young people to create a new generation of leaders.

As the Presidential elections are getting closer, the security situation worsens on a daily basis. Opponents of the Afghan government are trying to intimidate the public and disrupt elections.

President Karzai’s government has had many achievements as well as weaknesses which are concluded as follows:

Achievements:

1. Women have the liberty to work in the governmental and non-governmental organizations. Some have occupied important posts in the government for the first time in the country’s history. E.g. Habiba Sarabi became the first lady governor.
2. Girls can go to school and the number of girls schools has more than doubled compared to previous periods.
3. Many important construction projects in major cities such as schools, roads etc. have been completed and others are underway.
4. A new Afghan National Police and National Army is being trained to secure the country in future.Although both are very weak at the moment, signs of progress are clearly visible.
5. Opportunities for higher education have increased to a greater extent than before. Several private and governmental higher education institutes have been initiated giving the youth a greater chance to achieve higher education.

Weaknesses:

1. The government has control of only over 30% of the Afghanistan territory. The rest is either being controlled by warlords, or insurgents.
2. The infrastructure still needs to be resurrected. Many of the major cities, including the capital lack basic facilities such as electricity, water and proper sanitation.
3. Environmental issues are neglected despite the fact that they pose a dangerous threat over the local population.
4. Most of the remote areas lack the availability of basic health facilities and trained medical staff.

The Afghans want President-elect Obama to learn from the mistakes President Bush made. After several decades of war, our people want to live in peace. If Obama really knows what peace means, he would definitely prevent the occurrence of incidents such as bombing weddings and causing civilian causalities just because the soldiers ‘thought’ they were faced by a threat from insurgents. The U.S must realize that civilian casualties and mistreating prisoners (as in the case of Guantanamo) will only create more enemies and hatred towards them and NOT solve any problems.

The presence of international forces is welcomed by most Afghans because they realize that if by any chance they pull out,we will face the same catastrophic situation as the 1992-96 when different factions fought for power. However, it is important that the international forces respect the local traditions and realize that anyone wearing a turban and having a beard is not a terrorist. They must also realize the sensitivity of the fact that Afghans don’t want to be ruled by foreigners and they are only here to help and not bully. They must seriously consider involving the national army and local elders in resolving issues rather than intruding with their own soldiers which will only create more enemies for them.

It is typical of U.S presidents to make promises in order to obtain votes and when they are elected,not all the promises are fulfilled. National interest is usually taken as the excuse.Obama promised many things to the Afghan people before being elected and the Afghans expect him to fulfill each one.

Tell us what you think. How can Obama solve this crisis?