Violence as nation-building

Much of the current debate on Afghanistan is focused on efforts to understand the changing dynamics and consequences of the ongoing conflict, plus erratic and self-serving proposals by the international community – chiefly the Americans – to 'manage' the increasing violence and prevent a total collapse of the current regime, led by the unpopular Hamid Karzai. At the heart of these proposals is the consolidation of a 'security state', helped by Western arms and money, with the primary aim of preventing the capture of Afghanistan by the Taliban and its 'global jihadists' and reducing the potential of attacks against the United States and Western Europe. Unfortunately, this very focus holds the promise of greater instability.

The conflict in Afghanistan is generally explained by narrowing down the causal factors to the roles of the Taliban and al-Qaeda, and the impact of competing policies of regional powers. The regional dimension of the Afghan conflict is certainly important – first to properly understand the situation, and second to figure out how to bolster stability. However, this regional aspect cannot be seen as independent of internal factors, which are what must be addressed in order for real peace to have a chance. Afghans, followed by the international community, have developed the habit of blaming everything on Afghanistan's neighbours and other regional powers, while ignoring the conditions at home. While it is important to deal with the regional 'spoilers', it is equally important that Afghans put their own house in order and stand united against foreign interference. It is Afghanistan's own internal weaknesses and the abuse of power by the political elites that have allowed foreign interference to prosper and internal cohesion and solidarity to suffer.