A religious society which is stuck in traditional thought and fundamental social mores closes the door to development. This can be seen by glancing over the pages of our society’s history over the centuries. Because our believers were myopic and radical, our society had taken many tortuous paths, missed its destination and has often stepped backwards. Due to past political blunders, the present generation is doomed to suffer. The present insecurity and economic constraints are the legacy of our errors made by politicians in the past.
Whoever wished to rule Afghanistan under the mask of Islam was welcomed with open arms by the Afghan people. Moreover, when conditions became chaotic and turbulent, the rulers obtained blind obedience by being declared Amir-ul-Momineen by religious scholars. In other words, when their regime was on the verge of collapse, they were supported through religious terms and fatwa issued by the clergy. This sacred term, Amir-ul-Momineen, promoted their position as Muslim Caliphs. It was obligatory for the Muslim world to obey the Caliphs, because they inherited the authority of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH).
Let’s glance over the sultanate of our Afghan king Amir Habibullah Khan (1901 –1919) who inherited the sultanate from his father Abdul Rahman. In the beginning he brought great positive changes and earned the trust of the Afghan nation. At his coronation speech he promised to bring national solidarity, to resist foreign colonization and to bring internal harmony. He removed his father’s intelligence network, allowed the return of those who were in exile, revoked the cruel law of mutilation prisoners, returned the properties which were confiscated at the time of his father, Abdul Rahman, and canceled the system of slavery. He was also in contact with the clergy and supporting their ideas. In addition, he had established a high-quality school in 1903 by the name of Habibia High School and also a military school in 1909 for training student-officers. He had founded hospitals wherein Indian and Turkish Muslim doctors were the staff. Moreover, the Habibia High School Teachers were also Indian and Turkish Muslims. Printing press was set up. Popular and thought-provoking newspapers, such as the Sirajol-Akhbar, were published. He was smart enough to remain neutral during World War 1. In short, the beginning years of his kingdom saw significant activities.
Once he earned the trust of Afghan religious people, the other side of his character was revealed gradually. He started spending large amounts of money for buying expensive and rare jewelries for his wives. The expenses of the palace were extremely high, whereas common people did not have enough food to eat. He was totally dependent on Britain’s power. He also hanged many broad-minded persons who showed anti-government ideas.
If we view our history, many kings have ruled the country under the aegis of Islam. For example, Dost Mohammad Khan, whose first period of rule was between 1835 and 1839, was honored with the name of Amir-ul-Momineen by the clergy. After his demise, the prince, Shir Ali Khan, inherited the sultanate and he also received the same sacred name for the continuation of his government.
Finally, with the emergence of Taliban, their one-eyed leader, Mullah Omar, called himself Amir-ul-Momineen so as to use this sacred term once more for manipulating the sentiments of Afghan people. He started his government by fighting against anti-Islamic laws, by giving harsh punishment to burglars, making the shopkeepers close their shops for offering prayer at the time of Azan, the call to prayer. He introduced a quick form of Islamic justice to settle law-suits.
On the surface it looked like an Islamic government but soon they started going to extremes and Mullah Omar’s people gradually commenced anti-Islamic practices. They began to oppress people, shedding blood without rhyme or reason. They planned ethnic cleansing and therefore, massacred a lot of innocent people belonging to other ethnicities. They slaughtered many human beings and tortured them in the worst possible way; all under the aegis of Islam. Taliban burned down girls’ schools and barred them from getting educated. They behaved with women the same as primitive tribes of Arab before the emergence of Islam and considered them inferior creature. In short, by misusing the Afghans’ religious beliefs, they ruled the country with cruelty, spoiling our history and blemishing Islam.
Hence, as our country has had political ups and downs and our people have experienced different regimes throughout the history. We have to move on cautiously. At the least we should not be subjected to cruelties through our religious beliefs or traditional practices. We must notice the sinister faces behind the religious façade and recognize wrong practices masked in moral norms. Our religious values and cultural mores must not be spoiled. Let us learn from the history and practice upon. Of course, we live in a more modern and civilized era than our forefathers ever dreamt about. Now we have many politicians, economists and other educational personalities who can play a vital role for the betterment of our society.
We all agree that religion upholds moral standards and should lead to progress of a society. But, in case if it functions the other way around, then the problem will be with the followers. Islam is one of those religions which will certainly lead a society to betterment; however, if the Islamic laws do not get practiced properly, then the downfall of the society is beyond doubt. Therefore, we will have to consider our religious practices with due attention.
Presently, devoted politicians, intellectuals, teachers, doctors, economists and many other educational and cultural personalities are in urgent need of Afghan society. Indeed, democratic government which is greatly cherished by the people after a long period of war is only possible by having honest and dedicated personalities, especially sincere officials. Hence, unless and until we have selfless personalities, democracy will be no more than a dream as it is.