With elections just around the corner in Afghanistan, it might be time to reflect on the US engagement with that stricken nation and consider just how much foreign intervention has contributed to the prospect and possibility of free and democratic elections. More, it would be fitting to consider what kind of example the US and its allies have given to the people of Afghanistan and whether they have bestowed any wisdom and guidance on a nation facing a turbulent and uncertain future.
The US initiated a sort of “shock and awe” operation in Afghanistan in late 2001 in what appeared to many as a knee-jerk reaction to the Sept. 11 attack in the midst of a half-heartedly supportive but largely bewildered American public. The Bush administration gave many reasons and justifications for that war — to hunt down Osama Bin Laden and to defeat the newly exposed network of Al-Qaeda with its countless numbers of active and “sleeper” cells spread throughout the world. But the so-called Operation Enduring Freedom would not have become reality without an intense propaganda campaign, that once again attempted to paint the US war as an act of liberation.
To present the deadly bombs and unforgiving missiles as such, the mainstream media decried the mistreatment and abuse of women, learning new and unusual terms such as “purdah”, “burqa” and the like. The US public stared at hunger and poverty on the nightly news, and the US prepared its grief-stricken and enraged nation for decisive and direct action.
And so, the Bush administration and its many spin doctors taught us that there was only one way to reform this nation, eliminating illiteracy, advocating women’s rights, improving access to food, proper educational institutions, development, access to health care — essentially the hope for a brighter future for a young generation of Afghan children. And their redeeming plan was war.
It is simply a waste of time to read the banter of mainstream US commentators these days as they reflect on the upcoming Aug. 20 elections and wonder what else the US must do in order to “win the hearts and minds of the Afghan people.” For one, might I suggest stopping the use of drones in targeted assassinations of US enemies? In May 2009, CIA director Leon Panetta delivered a speech in which he alleged, “(Drone) operations have been very effective because they have been very precise in terms of the targeting and involve a minimum of collateral damage.”
But the use of unmanned drones as weapons of war has been decried as so “cruel as to be beyond the pale of human tolerance,” according to Lord Bingham, one of Britain’s most senior judges in a recent interview. “It may be — I’m not expressing a view — that unmanned drones that fall on a house full of civilians are weapons the international community should decide should not be used.”
Lord Bingham’s views, as those of others, are supported by ample evidence, of weddings that turned into funerals, and funerals that themselves turned into mass burials.
US enthusiasm regarding the success of the drones has in fact crossed the border into Pakistan, also claiming the lives of hundreds.
Former senior counterinsurgency adviser to the US Army, David Kilcullen told Congress in June 2009, “Since 2006, we’ve killed 14 senior Al-Qaeda leaders using drone strikes. In the same period, we’ve killed 700 Pakistani civilians in the same area.”
Yet, the charade continues. Pro-US Afghan President Hamid Karzai continues to stage his government’s make-believe democracy, although his loyalists are in continuous decline. Major media continue to cite improvements in people’s lives, regardless of contradicting reports by the UN. US officials tirelessly, although unconvincingly, prattle of winning hearts and minds as bomb blasts, drone attacks and deaths hover over a devastated country. Such a degrading view of human life says nothing of our intelligence.
But the facts are truly grim. According to a recent UNICEF report, an estimated 22 million Afghans, or 70 percent of the population, live in poverty and substandard conditions. Forty percent of children under three years old are underweight and 54 percent of children under five are stunted. Over 100,000 people — most of them women and children — have been displaced by conflict and drought.
Contrary to widespread claims of progress, UN Undersecretary General for Humanitarian Affairs, John Holmes, says the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan has worsened. In fact, in February of this year, and for the first time in seven years, the UN launched a comprehensive humanitarian action plan to try and alleviate even a small portion of the suffering there. A study conducted by the American Medical Association a few years ago found that two-thirds of Afghans over the age of 15 were depressed. Post-traumatic stress disorder was also reported as prevalent, with 41 percent of non-disabled persons showing symptoms. Of the individuals surveyed, 80 percent expressed feelings of hatred. It goes without question that these statistics have ballooned with the rising death tolls that plague the country.
So, there hasn’t been the kind of progress once hoped for — not so many schools built or hospitals established. Hunger and illiteracy, for the most part, have remained the same if not on the increase. The refugee population continues to swell and delivering aid to desperately needy towns and villages becomes increasingly difficult.
But one thing cannot be disputed regarding US contributions to the people of Afghanistan: A lot of people have been ripped to pieces by botched drone operations, a lot of young minds have been molded, through the tragedies that they endure and witness each day and who can wonder that they distrust this notion of “democracy?” The dilemma is of great concern to the US Army. In fact, in responding to this very problem, National Security Adviser James L. Jones stated regarding the use of drones in targeted assassinations, “In one mishap, you can create thousands more terrorists than you had before the mishap.”
Well, if this is our sole concern, and if the pointless loss of life in itself is not deplored, if the suffering of the Afghans is only a point of unease when it could potentially breed more “terrorists,” then “winning their hearts and minds” is quite simply utterly beyond the realm of possibilities.
— Ramzy Baroud is an author of several books and editor of PalestineChronicle.com.
