HAYWARD,
CA. - After 17 years, Afghan exiles all over the world are still
waiting for peace. But dreams of returning to Afghanistan have
turned to despair as our homeland disintegrates into a war-ravaged,
drug-infested haven for terrorism. Does anyone care? Does America
care?
The young -- like my 20-year-old cousin -- feign apathy
as a way to cope. The old -- like my father who once was "somebody"
in Afghanistan -- stay tuned to Afghan radio, CNN and our
community's widely-read Persian-language weekly Hope.
In Hope, exiled Afghan intellectuals write prescriptions
for peace and the rest of us cling to their every word. Last
year I visited a refugee Afghan family of seven living on
top of a roof in Delhi, India. "We live hand to mouth
but we pay fifty rupees (about $1.50) to buy Hope," the
husband said.
Each new development towards peace sets off an excited buzz
within the community -- only to die out when another rocket
kills more Afghans. In 1989 when the Soviets pulled out, we
exiles couldn't wipe the smile off our faces. "We beat
the Russians!" became our universal greeting. Then in
1992 the puppet communist regime fell as the Mujahids -- our
holy brothers who had fought the war against the "red
devil" -- took control. Family friends packed their bags,
ready to return home.
Before they could buy their plane tickets, the so-called
civil war broke out. Those we once hailed as Afghanistan's
friends -- Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the rebels themselves
-- suddenly became our enemies as each outside power began
supplying rival factions with weapons and promises. Thousands
of miles away, we watched speechless and confused. A grandmother
in the Bay Area who had knitted sweaters as gifts to take
her grandchildren in Kabul unraveled the yarn as Kabul was
gradually reduced to rubble.
The Soviet Union's defeat in Afghanistan paved the way for
the end of the Cold War and America's emergence as solo super-power
in the world. But America quickly forgot the Silk Road and
its hapless people.
"America owes us more than nothing. How can they leave
us like this after we defeated their greatest enemy?"
asks an Afghan neighbor in California who lost two sons in
the Afghan-Soviet war.
Abdul Ali Ahrari, former advisor to the one-time warlord
of Herat, fled in exile to the Bay Area after Taliban rebel
forces seized the city last year. He blames Afghans for their
own problems. "Afghans don't understand that America
helped them fight its war, not theirs," he says. "It's
our own backwardness, our own ignorance. No Iranians or Pakistanis
or Arabs are fighting on our soil. We ourselves are serving
these countries."
Afghan expert Alam Payind of Ohio State University says
Washington's concern right now centers on Afghanistan's growing
drug problem, its support of terrorism and the access it provides
Iran to central Asian oil and natural resources. "In
the eyes of policy makers, as long as Afghanistan is in that
kind of a mess, nothing good can come out of it."
In late June, two Republican congressmen arranged a conference
in Washington, D.C. -- the first serious peace initiative
by the U.S. government since the Soviet withdrawal. Sen. Hank
Brown (R-Colo.) and Rep. Dana Rohrbacher (R-Calif.) invited
representatives from nearly every faction and party in Afghanistan
with several U.S. based non-profit Afghan organizations to
discuss ideas for building a stable government.
The Afghan radio program in my home town of Fremont, Ca.,
covered the conference. For three days my father sat close
to our ancient hi-fi radio listening to every word. Although
the Clinton administration did not participate, the Senate
Foreign Relations Asia subcommittee reached an agreement with
the Afghans to work for a national peace assembly representing
every Afghan ethnic group and party under UN auspices.
"America's going to finally do something, Dad,"
I said, waiting for his reassurance. He shook his head. "No,
there's not enough interest for the U.S. and bringing peace
to that country is not easy. America's not going to do a thing
unless it has an important investment like it did in Kuwait."
Then, unable to bear my silence, he added: "But maybe
America is finally giving us some attention."
Pacific
News Classics: Afghanistan