Earlier this week, I was busy working on a report in one of the foreign NGO's, when the manager informed that there was peaceful protest going on at heart of Kabul city, in the front of Pameer Cinama. But he did not provide any explanation about the objective and demands of protestors though I asked him for the reason. Later on, I went through some news websites and I found out that, unexpectedly, people protested against the seventh and Eight of Sawr, the days of People's Democratic Party (PDP) and Mujaheedin's victory, respectively.
Demonstrators carried out pictures of Afghan top officials, including President Karzai, former leaders of PDP and Mujaheedin groups and put them in fire. They also chanted anti-government slogans and blamed for what they called as evasion to persecute warlords and slayers of civilians during past three decades. According to their views, former leaders of Mujaheedin and PDP are equally guilty for lasting destructive civil war which left tens of thousands of people dead and millions injured and impaired.
They blamed the government for not only persecuting the civil criminals but recruiting them in key administrative and political positions. However, government officials have been always criticized and their photos were burned down, but it was the first time that the Mujaheedin leaders were at the core of demonstration on the account of their involvement in civilian killings.
A member of National Solidarity Party told reporters that they wanted to organize the demonstration on the very day of Mujaheedin victory, but security forces did not allow them; both seventh and eighth of Sawr - two historical days in the tumultuous history of Afghanistan. In 1357, People's Democratic Party made a successful coup in Kabul with their devotees inside military ranks, which paved the way for military intervention of former Soviet Union.
Due to Red Army's intervention, western and Islamic countries were terribly frightened. It was assumed that Afghanistan would be the last front for western countries to control the growing threats of communism for so-called liberalism and free market economy.
Perhaps, it was right because the mountainous Afghanistan has such kind of natural fronts that wouldn't be conquered easily by any force. If Afghanistan was conquered, NATO had no choice other than direct military clash in Pakistan, perhaps, Indian oceans with USSR. Those days, the overall regional situation was gruesome. Socialist and communist parties were growing through the entire world, including regional Muslim countries.
See, for instance, the background of communist party in Iran. It developed rapidly that put monarchical system in danger of collapse. It was the time that one giant force was notified: the power of religion. Western countries largely supported the Islamic revolution, viewing the revolution as anti-communism movement.
On the other hand, communist parties in Iran supported the revolution as force against dictatorship what was at the core of their ideology. But soon after the monarchical regime was defeated, Ayatullah Khomeini, based on his religious charisma, pushed communist parties out of mainstream revolution and hanged over their leaders.
With success of Islamic revolution in Iran, attentions were focused on Afghanistan where the communist party took power in a well-organized and comparatively bloodless coup. Arms and money poured freely into the country and people were summoned to hold jihad against infidel and Godless communism.
Thus, with the support of regional Muslim and western countries, twenty years ago, on eighth of Sawr, the Soviet Union-backed government of Dr. Najib ended by the victory of Mujaheedin which was the start of another round of instability and insecurity. After the expulsion of the former soviet force, Mujaheedin groups could not unite on how to share power and thus forgot all about Jihad and the Day of Judgment, turned arms against one another. Their action showed that they were not thinking about religion and their slogans were merely to help them achieve their own goals and objectives.
The situation stepped on track on the both sides of which black and white walls were raised up. Jihadi groups further highlighted the communal lines and used them to summon people behind themselves. Such a situation set the Jihadi leaders in strong position and their criticism became so hard and problematic because criticizing a leader indeed interpreted into criticism of the community or the ethnic group.
Therefore, so far, no body dared to point finger at Mujaheedin leaders and blame them directly for political mayhem of past three decades. It is the first time that people directly target them. The demonstration was organized by not a very well-known political party, called National Solidarity Party.
However, some criticized the organizers on the basis that they aimed merely to fuel discussion in the media and through that acquire popularity. Whatever was the objective of organizers, the move showed that the open atmosphere appeared after the collapse of Taliban regime in 2001 with the US-led forces' intervention.
Discussions and analysis in civil society have affected the attitude of common people to a large extent towards their leaders. Now they assess events in the past three decades from a different angle. Moreover, the Jihadi leaders have lost generally their ethnic prestige. Except few of them, others are criticized severely without stoking ethnic tension. Now protestors can criticize any Jihadi leaders without fear about possible communal dissention. It is a promising step towards nation building.