Three decades of civil war has gifted Afghan society with several misfortunes. It is not only the terrorist network that is threatening Afghan society. There are many other silent enemies such as opium trade, illiteracy and poverty that are contributing threats for Afghan society. All the issues are highly considerable, but the fundamental origin of the problems is poverty that has led the society towards instability.
Poverty has rooted the major challenges that Afghan society has been facing for many decades. Kabul, the political capital of the country seems to be turning to a beggars' capital. There is no single street in the city where beggars are not visible. There is no crossroads in the city where unsheltered women and children are not busy of cleaning the cars and begging for a loaf of bread.
Though, keeping count on the number of street beggars is quite difficult, the government has tried to remove the beggars from the capital streets. The government in 2009 established Anti-Begging Commission to dislodge the beggars. The commission managed to remove around 820 beggars from the city.
According to disclosed statements by Nawroz Ali Alizada, the head of kindergartens and spokesman for the Anti-Begging Commission at a press conference, "Among the dislodged people 447 of them were men, 240 women, 59 female children and 57 male children who used to beg at key intersections of the city. Of those, 153 were either drug addicts or mentally retarded. They were introduced to the ministry of Public Health for treatment.
Alizada added 445 were handed over to their families, 10 orphans were introduced to the ministry of social affairs, labor, disables and martyrs and nearly a dozen more were handed over to the ministry of interior because they were vulnerable to using drugs again after treatment." Since then there has not been any report published by the commission that how successful they are of supporting the beggars.
Along Afghani beggars roaming around the city, there are many Pakistani beggars, male and female, visible around the city. Pakistani beggars are using their children as the source of attractions for donations. As a result of heavy floods wreaked their homes and properties in Pakistan, they have immigrated to Kabul. Along being homed and financed by Marastoon (a social service help center) run by Afghan Red Crescent Society (ARCS) here in Kabul to provide them food and shelter, they still keep on begging and roaming around the city.
The country is able to finance 10% of its expenses as the international community is planning to withdraw the international combat troops from the region. Thanks to our warlords and Mujahids who have gifted the society with such great achievements. They really deserve gold medals as they have many times claimed for to be awarded.