Thursday, June 30, 2005
Afghan RhetIraq
Who: Various Afghanis - Names included with quotes
Source: NY Times
Quotes: From June 30, 2005 article "Mood of Anxiety Engulfs Afghans as Violence Rises"
"Three years on, the people are still hoping that things are going to work out, but they have become suspicious about why the Americans came, and why the Americans are treating the local people badly," said Jandad Spinghar, leader of the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission in Nangarhar Province in the east, just across the Khyber Pass from Pakistan.
"Generally people are not against the Americans," Mr. Spinghar said. "But in areas where there are no human rights, where they do not have good relations and where there is bad treatment of villagers or prisoners, this will hand a free area to the Taliban. It's very important that the Americans understand how the Afghan people feel."
"The Americans are the cause of the insecurity," said Abdullah Mahmud, 26, a law student in Kabul. "If they were not here, there would not be any insecurity. The money they are spending on military expenses - if they spent half of it on the Afghan Army and police and raised their skills, then there would not be any security questions."
"Students support the current presence of troops because we need them now," he said, "but not a permanent presence." - Muhammad Mir Jan, 25, a literature student
"No, I think the Americans should be here, because if they are not, the warlords would come back again and the poor people would not be able to survive in this country," said Samiullah, 27, who said he was applying for a job as a driver with a foreign group.
Abdul Zaher, 26, the owner of the shop, said, "They should not leave our country until they have rebuilt it."
Sayed Asadullah Hashimi, an assistant professor at Kabul University's School of Islamic Law, said, "Outside Kabul, two-thirds of the people think that the Americans came only to invade and occupy Afghanistan, and that is why day by day the tension is growing. The mood is worsening."
Afghans interviewed this week frequently warned that if the American forces did not show greater care, especially in their treatment of detainees and their families, the people could turn against them. "They should respect our culture and our religion and they will be successful," said Lal Muhammad, the senior partner of a real estate firm in the southern city of Kandahar.
Foreign officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the delicate nature of the issue, said much of the public disillusionment and frustration was traceable to a lack of governance - from the simple absence of government, to the failure to administer the law properly, to the corruption of the local police and the courts.
"Since 2002," one of the officials said, "we have been issuing warnings that the main threat was the failure to address profound governance problems, and if we did not take it seriously, grievances would start to stem from that."
Source: NY Times
Quotes: From June 30, 2005 article "Mood of Anxiety Engulfs Afghans as Violence Rises"
"Three years on, the people are still hoping that things are going to work out, but they have become suspicious about why the Americans came, and why the Americans are treating the local people badly," said Jandad Spinghar, leader of the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission in Nangarhar Province in the east, just across the Khyber Pass from Pakistan.
"Generally people are not against the Americans," Mr. Spinghar said. "But in areas where there are no human rights, where they do not have good relations and where there is bad treatment of villagers or prisoners, this will hand a free area to the Taliban. It's very important that the Americans understand how the Afghan people feel."
"The Americans are the cause of the insecurity," said Abdullah Mahmud, 26, a law student in Kabul. "If they were not here, there would not be any insecurity. The money they are spending on military expenses - if they spent half of it on the Afghan Army and police and raised their skills, then there would not be any security questions."
"Students support the current presence of troops because we need them now," he said, "but not a permanent presence." - Muhammad Mir Jan, 25, a literature student
"No, I think the Americans should be here, because if they are not, the warlords would come back again and the poor people would not be able to survive in this country," said Samiullah, 27, who said he was applying for a job as a driver with a foreign group.
Abdul Zaher, 26, the owner of the shop, said, "They should not leave our country until they have rebuilt it."
Sayed Asadullah Hashimi, an assistant professor at Kabul University's School of Islamic Law, said, "Outside Kabul, two-thirds of the people think that the Americans came only to invade and occupy Afghanistan, and that is why day by day the tension is growing. The mood is worsening."
Afghans interviewed this week frequently warned that if the American forces did not show greater care, especially in their treatment of detainees and their families, the people could turn against them. "They should respect our culture and our religion and they will be successful," said Lal Muhammad, the senior partner of a real estate firm in the southern city of Kandahar.
Foreign officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the delicate nature of the issue, said much of the public disillusionment and frustration was traceable to a lack of governance - from the simple absence of government, to the failure to administer the law properly, to the corruption of the local police and the courts.
"Since 2002," one of the officials said, "we have been issuing warnings that the main threat was the failure to address profound governance problems, and if we did not take it seriously, grievances would start to stem from that."
