Ghani’s Pakistani Process of peace is back to square one

 Nazar Mohammad Mutmaeen, Afghan writer and political Analyst based in Kabul

America, NATO, the Afghan government and former Mujahedeen and Communists in the Afghan government try to connect the entire achievements of Taliban’s 14 years’ war to Pakistan, and Pakistan is waiting to this privilege.

Former Mujahedeen try to consider the Taliban’s war as a war of Pakistan because they brought the Taliban’s regime down getting use of America’s power; Communists do it in order for the war of former Mujahedeen alongside with the war of Taliban to connect it to Pakistan; the Afghan government and America do it in order to hide the failure of NATO.

If Pakistan, really, is the enemy of the present Afghan leaders, then, why they accepted Pakistan’s money during their campaign with pleasure? Why they cheer with Pakistani servicemen and spies? Why they sign security memorandum of understanding (MoU) with them? Why they were sharing intelligence with them in past 14 years?

And eventually why they conducted joint operations against Taliban in Ningrahar? And that Pakistan invades the soil of Afghanistan but the Afghan government does not take care of it. Would enmity between countries be like this? Or they have secret friendship and just fool the Afghan nation.

Ghani’s Peace: Friendship and Enmity with Pakistan

After 10 months of delay, President Ashraf Ghani suddenly had anti-Pakistan remarks on August 8^th, 2015. Immediately after that, governmental officials, civil societies’ activists and different tribes of Afghanistan supported the President. Even pro-government religious scholars residence in Kabul on 13^th of August said that Jihad, according to Islam, is obligatory in Pakistan.

Meanwhile, President Ghani and CEO Abdullah criticized Pakistan, also. Here are the links for President Ghani’s Speech and CEO Abdullah’s Speech.

President Ghani used the term “enemy” for Pakistan, accused it for involvement in proxy war in Afghanistan, and said that the war message is being sent to us from Pakistan. All of these things are seemed to be said for special purposes by President Ghani, and some analysts think that an understanding would be made with Pakistan regarding telling these remarks, because there were emotions only, there were words only; President Ghani did not mention a red-line for that if Pakistan did not accept the demands of the Afghan government, moreover, he said that he will send a high-level delegation to Pakistan.

• First: After deadly attack in Shah Shaheed locality of Kabul that caused more than 400 Afghans to become wounded, nearly 20 others to become killed and about 2 million dollars to become vanished. This incident provoked Afghans harshly and requested the government to recognize and eliminate the factors of the incident. Due to this pressure, the President once again could change the people’s mind by bringing the issue of enmity with Pakistan to the ground, as like as he made people’s minds busy with fantasy peace for a long time.
• Second: A series of Taliban attacks in heart of Kabul and especially in Qasaba locality in which Taliban, by using Afghan forces’ Rangers (A kind of vehicles), could kill and wound several foreigners and Afghan forces. The attack on the Police Academy and the attack next to the door of Kabul Airport show weakness of the Afghan government, this could be also a reason that President Ghani apparently talked against Pakistan in order to hide the failure of Afghan security forces and to misguide the media.
• Third: President Ghani could have these anti-Pakistan expressions as a result of making an understanding with Pakistan in order for the ground to be facilitated for Pakistan to tell the Taliban that they are under extreme pressure from the Afghan government, therefore, you have to have negotiations with the Afghan government, however, Afghans have known that and experiences have proved that under-pressure-talks were always fruitless.
• Fourth: Issuing and distributing E-ID Cards is an important issue that President Ghani have repeatedly promised about starting this project, as he is not committed for starting this series, hence, it would be the reason for misguiding youth’s minds and apparently starting anti-Pakistan talks.

If we ask the President that what you practically have for putting pressure on Pakistan in order to stop interference? They do not have answer for this because they have kept distance from the people, the true answer is, giving positive response to people’s hopes, and starting truthful face-to-face talks with the Taliban and facilitating ground for withdrawal of the foreign forces.

I liked these peace-related words of Ashraf Ghani in his above-mentioned speech:

“We know who oppose the peace and for what reason? They are those who involved in crimes, drugs and cruelty, and everyone who has intentions to destroy Afghanistan for aliens is enemy of peace. Such people are afraid of peace, because they are of law and they are afraid of a developed and stable Afghanistan. Experiences have proved whenever hopes for peace increase, the opponents of peace become sad.” This entire verifies the officials in the Unity Government and Karzai’s administration that these circles are really against the peace.

Pakistan’s Enmity

I believe in that former President Karzai had good relations with Pakistan in secret, and I believe in that Pakistan’s influence was important in Karzai’s election in Bonn-I Conference. Before the attack of America on Afghanistan, it was Pakistan that was helping Karzai in arranging meetings with ambassador of the US and other countries in Islamabad.

Hamid Karzai’s support from President Ghani’s apparently anti-Pakistan words is the thing that the Afghan nation has doubt in Karzai and Ghani’s expressions. There are still a lot of figures near to Karzai, Ghani and Abdullah that are committed to Pakistan’s interests.

As President Ghani, Dr. Abdullah and National Directorate of Security (NDS) expressed that Pakistan has hand in latest attacks in Kabul, Mirwais Yasini, in an interview with well-known Pakistani TV channel, rejected hand of Pakistan in these attacks by any mean.

Who were President Ghani’s campaign comrades? Weren’t they pro-Pakistan? Is not the number of pro-Pakistan individuals high among his friends?

Considering presence of pro-Pakistan individuals in President Ghani and CEO Abdullah’s teams, such expressions create doubts, if they really consider Pakistan as an enemy or as a player, they are needed to filter their own teams at first step; it is OK, they would need them during their campaign, however, they do not need it now, so why they keep these individuals with themselves.

Ghani’s Pakistani Process of peace is back to square one

Ghani, aboveboard, was saying that the key of peace is with Pakistan, Pakistan has promised me that it will bring peace and make Taliban to have negotiations with us. Pakistan welcomed the Murree Meeting by America, China and UN, it enunciated the second meeting and meanwhile started talking about ceasefire, also.

He was rejecting face-to-face talks with Taliban; it means that if Taliban want to have talks under the influence and authority of Pakistan, Afghanistan is ready; otherwise, having face-to-face talks with the Taliban means recognizing them officially or giving them legitimacy. When Taliban were preparing for the peace talks, Afghanistan, intentionally, pushed the Taliban to bosom of Pakistan at that time.

Now, as the Taliban appointed their new leader, it will not be easy for them to prepare their military forces to support the peace process; now, as the Taliban cannot enter the peace talks immediately, the Afghan government say that it is ready to have face-to-face talks with the Taliban, and we do not accept the intercession of Pakistan; it looks like the efforts on preventing peace talks are being made intentionally, when the Taliban are ready, the government and the international community have problem, and vice versa when Taliban have problem, they talk about meetings and negotiations then.

The plan was that if the Taliban, in second meeting after the Murree Meeting, had some demands, and if they were not ready to have negotiations in Pakistan, the Afghan government and the international community was going to officially recognize the Qatar Office of Taliban for political affairs and the second round of talks would be held there, then. It was a good and appropriate job, however, leak of Mullah Mohammad Omar’s death news to media by Pakistan, various pressures, and efforts for dividing the Taliban eventually made head of the Taliban Political Commission (TPC), said Tayyeb Agha to resign.

I consider President Ghani’s anti-Pakistan remarks as like as his remarks on Atta Noor, stopping extraction of Herat’s mines, peace, economic development, providing work opportunities, not making joint-stock company from the government, not appointing corrupt people in the government, giving test in six months and that if he was not able, he would resign and answer the nation; all of them remained as “words” only, there was nothing done in practice.

Instead of making anti-Pakistan remarks, he is supposed to prevent building of Pakistani border-bases and buildings in Angor Ada, he is supposed to prevent development of Pakistani installations in Goshta, he is supposed to prevent Pakistan from using missiles on Kunar, he is supposed to prevent digging ditch alongside the Duran Line, and he is supposed to dismiss the security MoU with Pakistan.

The Afghan government talks about understandings with Pakistan, the Afghan nation has right to learn about the contents of theses understandings; I think it is just an optimism, there is nothing written exists here.

There are disagreements inside the Presidential Palace (ARG), they do not have a specific policy on peace, and repugnance is being seen in words and actions. Dostum intensify war, Dr. Abdullah consider the Taliban as criminals and people not worth-negotiation, the new leader call them “Big Criminals”, Muhaqqiq and Atta establish militias, it seems that the policy on peace process and Pakistan-related issues is given to President Ghani by the National Security Council of the Afghan government.

The Afghan nation has doubts about Daesh that it would be an excuse for elongating war in Afghanistan intentionally, no one is being given right to raise their voice on supporting the renaming 100 Ningraharis imprisoned with Daesh whose 11 were exploded with mines and killed; in the case, millions of dollars were spent, more than 60 Afghans were killed and wide operations were conducted in order to release 31 Hazara people kidnapped by this group.

What is need to be done for peace

Taliban, the Afghan government, Pakistan, Iran, India, America, China and Russia should understand that the war of Afghanistan is in interest of no one; if America, the Afghan government and Pakistan want the Taliban to become divided, and then make them to kill each other and, through this way, hide their failure, it is something that would not be that much likely.

If the Afghan government thinks that they would make the Taliban, as a result of Pakistan’s pressure, to join the Unity Government or put their weapons down, it is a dream they are seeing it since 14 years. If Pakistan thinks that they would misuse the Taliban as like as they misused the Afghan Jihad against Soviet Union, it is 21^st century and everyone can take care of the mistakes. If the Taliban think that they would invert the Afghan government by force, we have the harsh experience of Ahmad Shah Masoud, Dostum and the Coalition of Nezaar Council and Parcham Party for eliminating the government of Dr. Najibullah.

The Afghan government is needed to recline on their own Afghans instead of Pakistan; it should transfer the power and authority to a third-party neutral group of Afghans, it should make sacrifices for peace and it should officially recognize the Taliban’s Qatar Office in order for the ground for face-to-face talks to become facilitated, and the role of China should not be underestimated in this matter.

Both, the Afghan government and the Taliban should become supple in the peace negotiations, if, God forbids, there is not any improvement in the upcoming 9 months, we would enter to war for another decade, then.