The Soviets have finally pulled out their 140,000 odd troops after nine years of bloody presence in Afghanistan. During the decade long war they lost 15,000 men and had tens of thousands others maimed. For the United States, which funneled billions of dollars in arms, ammunition and other supplies to the Islamic rebel movement that finally forced the Soviets out, it is a victory.
But for the Afghani people the devastation wrought by the decade long war has caused monumental suffering and misery a tragedy of Himalayan proportions.
A UN report on war damage to Afghanistan shows in Herat province nearly half of the 1300 villages destroyed, 60 percent of all trees cut down for security reasons; 1123 human limb amputations in the past five years due to antipersonnel mines, the great majority of them children of below 15 years, 400 school teachers killed; the majority of schools destroyed; agricultural production down by more than 50 percent from prewar levels. In Kunar province majority of population has fled; roads in appalling condition, many of them mined; pine forests stripped bare, education and health facilities nonexistent.
The regime of Afghan President, installed and propped up by Moscow, is still in place. The cities, reeling under shortages of bread, fuel and other necessities are under siege by the Islamic guerrillas who continue to shower them with rocket and mortar fire. At least 31 provinces largely rural, have been turned into wastelands, incapable of supporting human life.
More than a million Afghans are reported to have been killed. Five million others one third of the population are refugees in temporary camps scattered over the border regions of Pakistan and Iran. The rest of 9 million Afghans still in the country are facing famine, epidemics and starvation. So serious is the situation that most of the Western embassies have fled the country in anticipation of the uncertain times ahead.
The UN which had hoped to raise $1 billion in reconstruction funds to the crucial program to clear great numbers of unexploded land mines and shells the project: has been plagued by several delays essentially as a byproduct of “influence politics.” This has restricted the contribution pledge to a mere $238 million so far and $30 million in actual collections. The Soviet Union which had promised $650 million in contributions in kind is awaiting the return of the refugees to feed them and to build the roads, bridges irrigation canals and houses. Pakistan is accusing UN at the slow pace of the arrival of the promised aid and the Soviet procrastination in release of its share of the aid.
The net result is the continuing suffering and misery for 3.2 million refugees in Pakistan and 1.8 million refugees in Iran. While the regional Nero’s fiddle, Afghanistan burns. This must stop for enough is enough. The involved nations need to speedily fulfill their promises to put an end to the sufferings of the Afghans. Also an adventure like the Soviet armed intervention in Afghanistan must not be allowed to be repeated again. And finally it needs to be remembered that brutal force cannot replace political solutions to problems howsoever mighty the wielder of the power.
Article extracted from this publication >> March 3, 1989
