I was amazed when I overheard two school children passersby saying that Afghanistan and Japan got their independence at the same day and now the development of Japan is not comparable with Afghanistan. Then the listener stared at her friend in surprise and disbelief. When they both put meaningful looks at me most probably to ask the accuracy of the issue, I hung my head pretending not to hear their discussion.  

Their discussion engrossed me deeply and I was astonished with the children’s involvement in politics. Indeed, the long instability, economic strains, social and cultural abnormalities and political challenges in the country, affected every single family in one way or another. Hence, every Afghan citizen is worried about the political structure and security system of the country. Moreover it is not only children but also common people both male and female who are mentally involved in the political issues. Likewise, the major factor which involved our people in political issues was the last three decades’ war across the country.

The tragic nightmare of Taliban’s cruelty is one of the factors which still haunt the minds of our people. Moreover, our people are still in grip with horror and terror of Taliban-led insurgents. The deaths and debris are still included in their deadly plans; as a result the lethal terrorist acts which are taking place across the country lead to deaths and destructions. In short, the cruelties and atrocities of Taliban’s regime such as gross violence, genocidal acts, etc. which left the country in destruction and bloody ground is never erasable from the memory of our history and people.

Now, we are in the threshold of presidential election and President Hamid Karzai is supposed to bid farewell to his post after more than a decade of presidency. Our people may be very willing to know the achievement of our president during his presidency. When a China reporter asked Mr. President to explain his performances during his post in the last decade, President Karzai stressed on the development of educational system and also he added that he did his best for providing stability across the country. Furthermore, Mr. President said that he did not want to explain much, however, it is people to judge about his performances.

Regarding security condition, according to reports, there has been a remarkable rise in civilian casualties recently. The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has registered a 16 per cent rise in the number of Afghan civilians killed or wounded during the first eight months of this year compared to the same period last year. On October 2nd, UNAMA’s Human Rights Director, Georgette Gagnon said, “Anti-government groups – which continue to deliberately target civilians – have caused the vast majority of civilian deaths and injuries. Their activities, not limited to violence, include intimidation, threat and abduction of civilians.” So, the security situation is deteriorating day by day.

Poverty also remains a great challenge in the country, in spite of millions of dollars pouring in from Western countries. According to the UN report released in Geneva by the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights in March,2010, nine million Afghans or 36 percent of the population are believed to live under poverty line and further 37 percent live only slightly above that line. Since the report, our country is not only experience stagnating economy but also it is worsening every day.

Regarding education, Afghanistan falls in the 6th category of the most corrupt countries in the context of education. The doors of schools are still closed in the same parts which were unstable in the outset of first Presidential election. As a result, Ghazni Province, Moqor District, wherein I have lived for many years, I remember that from the beginning of Taliban’s regime up to now, the doors of girls’ schools are closed and they are deprived from getting education. Moreover, the influence of Taliban is as much as that the tribal cases of people are brought to them for solving. Even, Taliban are collecting tax from the shopkeepers and their role is more prominent than government’s role.

I am not going to deny the facts. Of course there have been made positive changes in every aspect in the last decade. However, it is believed that even 10 percent of people’s expectations are not fulfilled. Hence, in this regard either the expectations of people have been very high or the government’s achievements are so little.

Of course, over the past decade, our President Hamid Karzai has portrayed himself as a unifying figure that kept the country together and brought different factions and ethnic groups into his government. Mr. President also wishes to bring the Taliban in from the battlefield and go down in history as a peacemaker in a country that has been rocked by more than three decades of continued violence. He wants to be remembered as a leader who liberated the country from foreign influences. Likewise, he is also playing to his own Afghan constituencies and –above all – history. Leaving a good name behind is a virtue in Afghan culture. Besides this portraying, Mr. President further said that people can judge about his performances in the last decade of his presidency. In short, due to the above mentioned causes and effects, people are not optimistic enough about the last decade.

Now, we are in hustle and bustle of third presidential election with all flamboyant promises. Of course, people are in a state of confusion with the well-known political parties. Instead of alleviating the challenges by bridging the gap among nations, the political parties, have caused more social fragments. Anyhow, the questions are that which of the political parties are more trustworthy? Will they fulfill their promises making for the next period of presidency? Won’t they forget what they say when they gain power? People are looking with hesitation and disbelief at the political parties; it is mostly due to many flamboyant promises which were not fulfilled.