Author: Bharat Bhushan
Publication: The Telegraph
Date: September 10, 2002
URL: http://www.telegraphindia.com/1020910/asp/nation/story_1184795.asp
"If you are an Indian, speak in
Hindi (Indian hai toh Hindi mein bolo)," a young Afghan taxi driver admonishes
this reporter while haggling over fare.
Another accepts the fare reluctantly:
"Koi zaroorat nahin, dost (there's no need, friend)."
At the checkpoint outside the Intercontinental
Hotel, the security guard checks every vehicle for bombs and suspicious
individuals. "Pakistani?" he asks roughly. On hearing "No, Indian", he
gives a smart salute and waves the car in.
Yunus Qanuni, the Afghan minister
for education and national security adviser, shakes the hands of Indian
journalists with a broad smile and asks in Hindi: "Kaise ho dost? India
mein hamare baki dost bhi khushhaal hain? (How are you my friend? Are the
rest of my friends in India well?)" Then he turns around to an aid and
says: "Ee bachha, mehmanon ko koi taqleef nahin honi chahiye (our guests
should be well looked after)."
A taxi-driver starts a conversation
about last Thursday's car-bomb blast that killed 26 people and injured
150. Asked who could be behind it, he says: "Woh Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, aur
kaun (that Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who else)?"
And then, without any prompting,
he adds: "Aur uska peechhe hai Pakistan. Bahut ganda mulk hai. Humko barbad
kar diya. (And behind him is Pakistan. It is a dirty country. They have
destroyed us.)"
His brother, also a taxi driver,
was shot dead by the Taliban.
Ten years ago, Pakistanis were hero-worshipped
in Kabul. As an Indian journalist, one was well advised to keep one's nationality
secret. And the only way to meet the Mujahideen leaders who had just come
in from Peshawar to assume power after the fall of Najibullah was to tag
along with one's Pakistani colleagues.
Today, the anti-Pakistani feeling
among the Afghans is palpable. They openly accuse Pakistan of trying to
destabilise their country.
At a ceremony to commemorate the
first death anniversary of Ahmed Shah Masood, Pakistan was blamed not only
for assisting those who killed him but also for the assassination attempt
on President Hamid Karzai.
Except for the Pushtuns, who are
still a bit reluctant in blaming Pakistan for the woes of their country,
no one minces words in criticising their southern neighbour. Thus, Prof.
Mohammad Akbar Popal, the president of Kabul University and a Pushtun,
is very careful about apportioning blame for the attempt to assassinate
President Karzai.
Choosing his words carefully, he
says: "Any organisation or organisations against democracy and freedom
could be behind this. At this stage, I won't accuse any foreign country.
But everything is possible."
His friend, Miandad Panjshiri, an
adviser to the ministry of agriculture and a Tajik, laughs, slapping Popal
on the back saying: "He won't tell you. He is very political. I will tell
you who tried to murder Karzai - the al Qaida, the Taliban elements and
the Hizb-e-Islami of Hekmatyar, assisted by Pakistan. They are also responsible
for the bomb blasts in Kabul. They don't want a stable Afghanistan."
Of course, nobody has any evidence
but the point is that Pakistan is seen as an enemy.
In contrast, India is seen as a
loyal ally. An Afghan diplomat said: "Only India is cutting through bureaucratic
red-tape to help us. Our people see this and recognise who is their friend."
In July this year, India gave a
cash subsidy of $10million for the Afghan budget, 19 doctors and paramedics
were sent to Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif for medical assistance, 95 tonnes
of medicines and artificial limbs/Jaipur Foot were sent for amputees at
the Kabul Military Hospital. A local area network (Lan) access via V-sat
was provided to the Afghan foreign ministry to access the Net through VSNL,
three Airbus aircraft were gifted to Ariana Afghan Airlines, 50 buses were
provided to restart the public transport system and 51 airline staff, 40
diplomats, 250 policeman and 15 journalists are being trained in specialist
institutions in India. And there is much more in the offing.
"This is Pakistan's worst nightmare
come true," says a western expert on Afghanistan. "India has been smart
about providing aid which is highly visible - aircraft, buses that are
seen plying in Kabul, teachers for schools and doctors. They make a tremendous
impact. India is already training Afghan diplomats, flight crews and the
police. And the day is not far when Afghans will go to India for military
training. Can you imagine what this does to Pakistanis when they see Indian
influence growing in their neighbourhood?" he asked.
