People's Democracy

THE Taliban is on the run. During the course of the last one week, the situation in the battered Afghanistan changed dramatically. With the fall of Kunduz, the Taliban is faced with the insurmountable task of defending its bastion and the only territory under its hold, Kandhahar. Unlike the other parts of Afghanistan, where it was vanquished without much bloodshed, expectations are that the Taliban will not give up Kandahar that easily. The forces owing allegiance to the Northern Alliance are now in control of almost the entire country.

Not heeding to US advice, the Northern Alliance troops took over Kabul. Now hectic moves are being made both within Afghanistan and outside to arrive at an understanding on a post-Taliban setup.

The US did not want the Northern Alliance to enter Kabul before it had put in place a political dispensation that would be acceptable to it. It did not trust the Northern Alliance given the proximity it displayed to Russia, Iran and India. Amongst the several players in the Afghan scenario, the US stand is backed only by Pakistan which would like to see a Pakhtoon-dominated setup which would be not averse to include some so-called moderate elements from amongst the Taliban". The US is pitching for the former monarch, 86-year old Zahir Shah.

The global "war against terrorism" has come in handy for the US to fructify its dream of getting a foothold in Afghanistan, both in view of its strategic location as well as access to the Caspian oil reserves. While it earlier had the ostensible aim of containing the USSR, after the 1979 Saur Revolution, the US aided several terrorist outfits to take on the Soviet-backed PDPA regime. Pakistan's key role in equipping and training these terrorists gave it a stake in US's Afghan policy.

After the US-led anti-Soviet campaign ended in the early nineties, Pakistan backed Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and his Hizb-e-Islami to the hilt, in order to dominate the Afghan scenario. The ouster of Najibullah led to civil war amongst the various factions that comprised the anti-Najib forces. Hekmatyar was pitted against the forces comprising the present Northern Alliance. And finally, the Taliban, nurtured and trained inside Pakistan were sent in. They drove away Rabbani and his coalition, killed Najibullah and left his body dangling on a lamp post. Osama bin Laden, the Al Qaeda chief wanted by the US for his alleged involvement in the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon, as we all know, was the creation of US foreign policy.

In region after region, liberated from the hated Taliban, the progressing Northern Alliance forces were greeted with scenes of jubilation and celebration. While the vanquished Taliban were being abused and shouted against, the victorious Alliance soldiers were hugged and greeted with flowers. There can be no better illustration for the repugnance towards the Taliban. People were welcoming the very same people who in the years between 1992 and 1996 had killed an estimated 50,000 in internecine fighting. Unshaven men rushed to barber shops to trim their overgrown beards; music was back on the radio. These scenes of gaiety show that people of Afghanistan had been stifled for long by Taliban and nurtured a deep sense of hatred against it. More importantly, it also conveys that the overwhelming majority of the Afghan people reject the Taliban's brand and understanding of Islam.

Under the UN auspices, the meeting at Petersburg, near Bonn, Germany, began on November 27. The meeting presided over by the UN special envoy to Afghanistan, Mr. Lakhdar Brahimi saw the participation of Afghan representatives of the Northern Alliance and three other Afghan exile groups. In total thirty Afghan delegates and observers from 17 nations attended the inaugural session. India has been granted an observer status. While an agreement was reached on the formation of an interim council, details of who will head it and what role will each group or formation get to play had not been worked out untill the writing of this piece.

Burhanuddin Rabbani, the Northern Alliance leader, whose dethroned government still occupies the seat in the UN ruled out any role for the Taliban. His spokesman said "As an organisation or party, the Taliban will not be included."

The role of the BJP-led government in intervening in these developments has been pathetic. From offering unsolicited help and assistance to the US in the initial stages of the US bombardment in Afghanistan it has now gone ahead and offered refuelling and recuperation and other facilities to US Naval ships participating in the war and docked at the Chennai Harbour for some days beginning November 26. Its appeals to the US to take it along as an ally in the fight against "global terrorism" went unheeded. The US, instead opted for Pakistan.

This servile attitude is not new. Since the ascendancy of the BJP to power at the Centre, a rightward shift in India's foreign policy perceptions has come about. An out and out pro-American policy is being pursued. The BJP government is seeking the role of a junior partner from the US for India. This servile attitude was in full display during the visit of President Clinton last year. During Vajpayee's visit to New York to attend the UN General Assembly he did have a meeting with president Bush. While Bush did not concede what Vajpayee had expected to get from him, the two leaders proclaimed their "commitment" to fight terrorism and Bush even acknowledged that Vajpayee "fully understands" the importance of combating all the variants of terrorism.

In sharp contrast, the very next day, Pakistan president General Pervez Musharraf, received an entirely different treatment. Bush not only acknowledged "the frontline role" Pakistan was playing in the US war in Afghanistan but also said: "I’ve authorised a lifting of sanctions and over one billion dollars in US support. I will also back debt relief for Pakistan."

As far as Kashmir is concerned, while Vajpayee failed to get any commitment from Bush about fighting terrorism in the valley, the approach towards Pakistan on the same question was different. He did emphasise that any solution to the Kashmir problem should "take into account the wishes of the people of Kashmir." And he did say that he would endeavour to bring New Delhi and Islamabad together and engage them in a meaningful discussion. But one should not lose sight of the fact that the American gameplan has been to make Kashmir independent.

The USA is trying to use the worldwide denunciation of the terrorist attacks of September 11 to consolidate and expand its global hegemony. The war against "global terrorism" is in fact a ruse to promote its own interests. While it is necessary that the masterminds of the attacks be brought to justice, the US adopted course is determined and influenced not merely by its immediate aim. It is determined by its long term goals of establishing control over Afghanistan and gain access to the oil rich Central Asian republics.

While Kabul and Kunduz and other Afghan cities and towns have been brought under the control of the Northern Alliance and Khandhar may too follow anytime now, the declared US aim of capturing Osama bin Laden has still not been accomplished, till the writing of this piece. The BJP-led government which has been going overboard to support the US in this war, should realise the dangerous consequences. As we had been warning, the US will use its war against "global terrorism" to attack countries and regimes not subscribing to its designs.

On November 26, President Bush said that US-led war in Afghanistan is "just the beginning" of the fight against terrorism, and he warned Iraq and North Korea that there would be consequences "for producing weapons of mass destruction". Dwelling further, Bush said, "If anybody harbours a terrorist, they're a terrorist…. If they fund a terrorist, they're a terrorist. If they house terrorists, they're terrorists. I mean, I can't make it any more clear to other nations around the world."

On Iraq, Bush urged Saddam to allow weapons inspectors into the country "to prove to the world he's not developing weapons of mass destruction." Asked what will happen if Saddam refuses, Bush replied, "He'll find out." About North Korea Bush said "they ought to stop proliferating," adding that "part of the war on terror is to deny terrorists weapons." His warnings are the first in the context of questions about the next phase of the US's "global war".

Therefore, while the defeat of the Taliban is a welcome development, the signals emanating in its aftermath are all not that rejoicing. While the global players and the local chieftains will seek to dominate and gain control over the Afghan scenario, simultaneously, the US will seek to further its global interests and consolidate its hegemony worldwide. The democratic and peace loving forces will have to reassert to foil the US maneouvres and designs.