Author:
Publication: India Today
Date: September 16, 2002
Hamid Karzai, 45, Afghanistan's
snazzily dressed President, has the world's toughest job but insists that
he isn't losing any sleep over it. Aware that it was US backing that propelled
him to the presidency, Karzai jokes that he is a pauper king. Born in Kandahar,
Karzai, a Pashtoon, is chief of the Popalzai tribe that resides in southern
Afghanistan. In the 1970s he did a part of his higher education in Shimla
in India. After serving as a mujahid adviser in the 1980s, Karzai was made
deputy foreign minister in 1992. When the Taliban seized power in 1996,
he initially backed them. In 1999, after they murdered his father Abdul
Ahad Karzai in Quetta, Pakistan, he turned against them. This June, the
Loya Jirga, or meeting of traditional tribal chieftains, elected him with
a decisive majority. Last week, at the presidential palace in Kabul, the
Afghan President, in an exclusive interview to Executive Editor Raj Chengappa,
spoke of the challenges ahead. Excerpts:
Q.: The western media has been critical
of your inability to assert central authority on the provinces. Some say
you are just the mayor of Kabul. What do you say?
A.: It is ignorance and I cannot
compete with that. The central authority in terms of political power is
absolute all over Afghanistan. In terms of extension of administration,
of course, it hasn't happened. They would be right if the appointment of
the army chief, the governors, the commandants were done by somebody else.
All these appointments, even down to the district administrator, are done
from the centre.
Q.: You are said to be too accommodative
of all groups which makes your administration less effective.
A.: You want me to fight against
Afghanistan? Of course, I am accommodative. I would like the country to
get together, for the people to go ahead and have a good life. It will
take time but we want to have peace in the country. I had to make a choice
between justice and peace. I am willing to tolerate a lot of bad people
in order to have this country go further in peace.
Q.: Most Afghan governments have
failed in the past 23 years. Why will yours work?
A.: There is qualitative difference
between past governments and ours. This government has a clear public mandate.
Secondly, this government has the clear backing of the international community.
It is these two pillars of strengths that we count on to make us better.
Q.: Is there a threat of the Taliban
regrouping and coming back to power?
A.: No. If we deliver on the promises
we have made to the Afghan people, the Taliban will not come back. If we
fail to do that, of course, anybody, even the Taliban, can come back and
throw us out. Like in India, a government that doesn't deliver has to go.
Q.: Except that in India we don't
descend to such chaos and anarchy.
A.: Yes, but you control your borders.
We couldn't. We first had the Soviets and then too many coming in from
neighbouring countries.
Q.: Why haven't you been able to
get hold of Osama bin Laden and Mullah Omar?
A.: We want to get them. It is
on our agenda, an open letter. People know it. It is difficult to hunt
down individuals in a country like ours that is vast, has too many villages
and poor transportation. With no proper policing or intelligence structure
it becomes a big problem. But we are looking for them and we should find
them.
Q.: Warlords continue to hold sway
in provinces and the movement to create a national army has been slow.
Why can't you speed up its formation?
A.: There are things you can do
immediately and those that take time. An army is one of those things that
takes time. If you compare the situation now with six months ago it is
much better now.
Q.: But the narcotics trade has
revived and is thriving.
A.: We will work against it very,
very strongly. We will be ruthless in our campaign against drugs. That
is the only area where I am going to be ruthless. It is in direct contradiction
to the national interest of Afghanistan, to our religious values. It only
benefits those who are damaging Afghanistan. Trafficking in drugs goes
hand in hand with terrorism. And the Afghan farmers don't benefit from
it. The money goes to others. We only get a bad name.
Q.: What are the areas in which
you have succeeded?
A.: The biggest success story in
the past eight months has been the fulfilment on time of every aspect of
the Bonn agreement, including the Loya Jirga. The second most important
thing has been the return of over 1.5 million refugees in seven months.
The third is Afghan children going to school. We estimate that there are
three million children going to school. Also, on all the trips I have made
in the country I have found an unbelievably solid and unified nation. The
fact that Afghanistan is going on after so many years of disaster is a
great thing.
Q.: Is Pakistan still interfering
in Afghanistan's affairs?
A.: Well, Pakistan helped us during
the years of jehad tremendously. It accepted over three million refugees
with tremendous generosity. Of course, we also had difficulties. But Afghanistan
wants to have good relations with all its neighbours and the region, India
included. It will neither be party to any dispute, nor will it allow its
territory to be used by any country or group against the interests of other
nations.
Q.: What are the main challenges
in the months ahead?
A.: Reconstruction. That's it.
I want Afghanistan's highways to be rebuilt. I want the electricity infrastructure
to be rebuilt. People are asking for that and we must give it.
