When the Afghans and the world failed to find a solution on the spot for the problems in Afghanistan, they started to search for possibilities elsewhere.  The UN headquarters at New York was the obvious choice and a site designated by the world at large to work for peace.  But the Afghan problem was bigger than the skyscraper that houses the UN political machinery.  It seems either the machinery is old or the operators lethargic or both.  The most recent operator of the section for Afghanistan, Francesc Vendrell, who conducted talks with the Taleban in Afghanistan and their opponents in Dushanbeh, the capital of Tajikistan last week scored no success.  Both sides to the Afghan conflict stated that Mr. Vendrell had no solid plan to discuss. He himself said he did not have a road map.  Ahmad Shah Masoud told him that his alliance was ready to talk with the Taleban.  He further stated that they believed the Afghan problem did not have a military solution.  This statement in contrast to the Taleban stand that still believes in a military solution to the Afghan problem belittles the latter.  However, the Taleban who rule over more than 90 percent of Afghanistan feel no obligation to trade land and power with a loose alliance which was given a chance to govern over a post war Afghanistan and failed to do so.

After the obvious failure of the UN, the Afghans and the world looked at certain other capitals for a solution. Washington, the capital of the big brother nation of the United States, the only superpower, seemed to be the first choice. However, Washington, which ignored Afghanistan immediately after the end of the cold war and left it at the mercy of Pakistan, the US ally in the region, feels, betrayed.  For one thing, Taleban and their Pakistani supporters have denied to meet the demand of the United States for the hand over of Osama the son of Laden who is accused of terrorist activities against the US interests worldwide. Thus it does not want to play a direct role in finding of a solution to the problem of a nation that is mostly ruled by an extremist Islamic movement.  It has accused the movement of usurpation of the rights of women, drug trafficking and running of terrorist training camps. 

 

London, Bonn or Berlin and Paris were not in a position to go beyond official statements for the need for peace in Afghanistan and securing of human rights and specially the rights of women there. Another capital, namely Tokyo started to get involved by inviting the warring factions in Afghanistan to use this capital as a venue for their peace talks.  Taleban stubbornly rejected the offer.  Ashkabad, Dushanbeh, and Tashkent meetings and conferences on Afghanistan proved nothing more than futile efforts for peace.

 

The last Organization of Islamic Conference meeting in Tehran and its follow up meetings too, wrote the word peace on ice and let it under the sun.  Nothing practical came out of their diplomatic talks.

Rome, where the self exiled former king of Afghanistan lives took the opportunity to convene a meeting on Afghanistan to be attended by the Afghans to search for Afghan solutions based on the former king’s age old aspiration for a traditional national assembly.  That process, it is assumed is on.  In the meantime, Tehran, one of the other main capitals involved in the Afghan issue made yet another move.  Tehran has provided asylum to the leader of Hizb-e-Islami of Afghanistan, Mr. Gulbuddin Hikmatyar.  Tehran also hosts leaders and functionaries of the anti-Taleban alliance in Iran.  These figures often get together in meetings and plans for organizing themselves to fight the Taleban.  Mr. Jarir, the son-in-law of Mr. Gulbuddin Hikmatyar along with a number of other Hizb-e-Islami renegades separated themselves to run another initiative that is known as the Cyprus Peace Process in order to find a mutually agreeable solution to the Afghan problem.   The peace formula up the sleeves of this movement also includes a Grand National assembly.  It also preaches the ideal of the will of the nation.  This movement however, boasts useful contacts it has had with the warring factions inside the country and last week a strong delegation by this movement was sent to the United States.  Apparently the delegation could not score any considerable success here as it was faced with a variety of questions that it could not satisfactorily answer.  These included: Is the move designed to open the door for Hikmatyar to reenter the arena of Afghan politics in the framework of the Jirga?  Has the movement been founded with the blessings of Iran to neutralize the Rome movement?  Where does the money come from for the numerous meetings and conferences and the proposed Loya Jirga?  Why is Iran keen on cooperation with the movement and why has Pakistan played a lukewarm part in talks with the Cyprus movement.  And has the movement obtained strong commitment by the warring factions and specially Taleban to agree to the Jirga solution even if it means giving away of power by the Taleban?  And the opposition as expected has promised looking into the plan.  They had to.  In political gambles when you are behind you do everything in your power to maintain relations with the house. Taleban opponents are in such a situation.

However, an ideal situation would be if through efforts like these a real and lasting peace will be achieved in the land of the Afghans.  But what is surprising in all this is the fact that Nicosia and Rome are just one plane hop away.  And if both of the movements have the same ideal, that of convening of the Loya Jirga, then why is it that that hop has either not taken place or has not resulted in unity of action. 

If Rome for example sees flaws in the Cyprus Peace Process, it should get together with it and try to iron out those difficulties.  If Cyprus Peace Process activists see any harm or flaw in the plans by Rome, they should set together with them and iron out those problems.  After all both sides are speaking the Afghan languages and both sides are witnesses to the continued suffering of the Afghan nation and both sides claim they want an end to the war in Afghanistan.

 

Or even better, representatives from both these movements should address a public forum of Afghans anywhere in the world and tell them why the two sides with the same objectives have chosen two different ways for the solution of the same Afghan problem. 4/21/00