We in the West tend to be woefully ignorant about the Middle East. Understandable in a way since George W. Bush when he was President shielded us from the day to day operations and the images of destruction and bloodshed in Afghanistan. Were it not for the heroic efforts of embedded journalists such as Arwa Damon
of CNN, Christiane Amanpour of CNN & ABC, Richard Engel
from NBC & MSNBC, we would have little or no coverage of not only the war, but anything ABOUT the region its culture and its people.
It always rankles me how we can be fighting in a country thousands of miles away for almost twenty years and remain SO IGNORANT of the country where thousands of Americans have lost their lives and so much money has been spent and I have to wonder if we have done much to dent the surface of the regional and political in-fighting that has been at much of the discord for so long. This war has been about the Taliban and Al Qaeda to be
sure but it is ALSO about the warring between Sunni and Shia Arabs with no end in sight, and the rancor against the Kurds and the Uzbeks, and then there is a lesser problem between other Arab sects and the Pashtoon. Give me a break.
In this series of articles I aim to explore a lot of
this but first, I want to focus on Afghanistan, the country and its people and especially its future.
Most of us in the West, but many Afghans as well have perhaps forgotten that Afghanistan used to be a mecca for Fashion designers. Yep, true. People looked to Kabul and those in the avant garde for their ideas and designs. Not only high fashion in the apparel industry, but designers,
graphics designers, architects etc. Afghanistan
is a treasure trove for the creative arts
...now long since overlooked by not only the rest of the world but by many Afghans themselves too. This needs to stop.
Another point is that there is a wealth of business acumen to draw upon. Look at the Mall at Kabul
Centre for example. My God, that is gorgeous and successful. All the big names in retailing from the West have outlets there.
We need to draw out once more these people who can help fuel a resurgence in Afghanistan. We need to coax the designers and the artisans to re-emerge and once again begin the way back
for Afghanistan.
No I don't think that we in the West need to go stomping into Kabul and take over and start directing things. BUT I DO THINK we need to find the people IN AFGHANISTAN, AFGHANS, who we can work with and begin to inspire coming out if you will of Afghanistan.
Afghans once again need to begin to find their pride in their own abilities.
PART II:
I also think that we also need to be much more supportive and loudly so and vocally so of President Dr Ashraf Ghani. I think he is one of Afghanistans best hope
for shaking off its warring past and beginning to become a vital part of the twenty-first century in the Middle East. He needs help in rooting out the corruption that has plagued both Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan for far too long. Dr Ghani needs to have around him who are forward thinking and lovers of peace and equality and freedom most of all. There are those in Afghanistan who want to see a free and vibrant economy and culture in the country as do I. Well, I think it is time to begin taking the steps to ensure that AFGHANISTAN bounces back from its long sleep and embraces this new world and its place in it.
TO BE CONTINUED:
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