People, starvation, war criminals and justice (Part one)

photo: bbcpersian.com

The enlightening books like “War Crimes” are very useful for the people if pressures and starvation let them.

Lately an Afghan cultural NGO has published Dari and Pashto versions of a book titled “War Crimes” that is written in English by foreign writers.
In this book, which is said to be for the purpose of enlightening the people of Afghanistan about war crimes, war criminals and what could be done with them according to international laws, the writers have brought examples of war crimes in the other countries, and then examples of Afghanistan itself.

Although such books can be counted a remarkable effort, but in reality there are many challenges and problems for the people to be able to bring the war criminals before the court of justice. One of the challenges is lack of a real democracy in which the government will be by the people for the people, in which the people feel themselves a part of the government and their voice would really be reflected in that government and would be heard by the officials.
Unfortunately so far any regimes have come on power in Afghanistan whether supported by east or by the west has not been really democratic while they have only talking of democracy which is not seen in the practical lives of the people or seen for a short period and then disappeared again.

The relative democratic environment in Afghanistan that was created by the efforts of international community after the collapse of Taliban regime, first seemed to be good enough at least for the period when people had suffered a five years of hardest pressures by the most extremist regime of the world; Taliban. And now this relative democratic environment is going to be more limited day by day.
Before the victory of Mujahedeen warlords, the pressures and dictatorship of the pro communist and socialist regimes had already cleared path for he Mujaheen warlords to come on power and then their inability to govern the country had left chances for the fundamentalist group of the Taliban.

Having specific and confined definitions and interpretations of Islamic rules the extremist regime of Taliban enforced many pressures on the people in different affairs of their lives which already born the need for a real free and democratic environment for the people, where the people would live as human beings; as humans in the twenty first century, free, bright and happy. Along with attacks on WTC twin towers by Al-Qaeda and decision if international community to eradicate the extremist regime of the Taliban in Afghanistan, the Afghans were hopeful to begin a real democratic era thereafter, and now after seven years this is the result.

In the new era, up to the current time, first the people were given voice but when they shout their voices whether they are not heard or they are shut up or suffocated which could be a kind of dictatorship, a bit modern, imposed by the current government of Afghanistan. This may be named a disappearing dictatorship under the title of democracy and brings the fears of appearing dictatorships of two to three decades back.

The difference between this kind of dictatorship and apparent dictatorship is that; in direct dictatorship they kill the people directly and apparently but in this dictatorship they “cut heads with cotton” and people in the grassroots do not see it while still feel and suffer it.
Interfering in the affairs of daily lives of people, raising the costs of food, keep people always in need and then shut up any voice come out of them are all clear examples of the current situation which is going to be believed a kind of indirect dictatorship by the existing government of Afghanistan when no significant efforts are not seen to be done to resolve the problems of the people; while it is obvious that the Taliban and the warlords are the enemies of the people of Afghanistan but both groups are given chances by the Afghan government. Warlords have entered in the systems of the government since the collapse of Taliban in 2001 while Taliban are also brought inside slowly on in different periods. They are easily forgiven, given rewards and compensations for the crimes they have committed against the people. Knowing all these, many times the current Afghan government has attempted to have negotiations with the Taliban who are in direct battle among them, which indeed showed the weakness of the government and encouraged the Taliban to strengthen them.

There are some NGOs supported with a lot of funds by foreign donors and sponsors for the purpose of educating the Afghan people about such issues, but unfortunately they do not function very well; they just rely on the slogans and abusing or blackguarding only a group of the warlords of civil war. They blame the war crimes of the civil war for looting the assistances of the people, while they themselves misuses a lot of the funds they receive from their foreign donors without any clear accountability and transparency.
They do not have clear programs, while there are many practical ways for educating the people about their rights and their living conditions.
While there was only hope of a real change in the lives of people by the civil society organizations, but sometimes, the way they work makes every one hopeless of a change to take place by them.

To be continued….