Skip to main content

Media faces serious threat under Karzai

In January 2002, Tom Ford, aka Mr Fashion, at his menswear show for Gucci in Milan, comes up with a surprising idea to recognize the newly appointed Afghan leader, Hamid Karzai, “the most chic man in the world”.
He was in the news not for his political knowledge and foreign policies but for his dressing style. After eight years, Mr Karzai no longer remains a ‘’chic man ‘’.
His government appeared deeply involved in corruption and injustice. Most Afghans no longer hope for a better life while corrupt officials hold power.
‘’It is a shame that  foreign donors are wasting their money by giving it in the hands of corrupt officials and we therefore do not see any positive result’’ a Kabul shopkeeper Sayed Karim regrettably told me during an interview.


‘’International community and Afghan people should bring a change within official circles to insure that people have access to justice, food, education and remain united.’’ Karim added.

His government appeared deeply involved in corruption and injustice. Most Afghans no longer hope for a better life while corrupt officials hold power.
These are the common thoughts. Afghan media is seriously considering the frail official performance. On the other hand the Afghan government avails every opportunity to curb the Afghan writers and journalist from finding the best obtainable version of truth.
The recent detention of Radio Kapisa’s director, for being outspoken on government corruption, raised concerns within Afghan journalists.
The 34 year old Hojatullah Mujadidi has been arrested by Afghan National Directorate of Security (ANDS) in Kapisa province.
A press statement of Reporters Without Borders confirms; ‘’a high ranking ANDS official  Khajeh Zafar in Kapisa province ,ordered the arrest on 18 September in connection with terrorist activities but the ANDS has produced no evidence to support the cliaim.’’ 


Support for Mujadidi is high. His arrest damages the credibility of Karzai and his government, particularly in Kapisa where the number of his critics is widespread and his opponents are apparently active in political conducts.
There is a growing clamour from members of the press and cultural figures for a crackdown on what is seen loutish behaviour of officials.
‘’ He was not permitted by Kapisa’s governor to investigate the increasing corruption within local official branches. An innocent journalist can not behave as a violent person. We are quite hopeless.’’ Mohammed Adris a friend of Mr Mujadidi shared his via phone.
Afghan Justice Ministry suggested the safe release of Mr Mujadidi because the ANSD failed to provide evidence in support of the organisation’s claim against Mujadidi.
The dispute is a local in its very essence but the government is caught up in it. This dispute resonates among ordinary Afghans, who remember previous attempts by government to silence the voice of the country’s writers. Afghans increasingly believe that the marginalisation of writers results in marginalisation of the society at large.
Afghan intellects and journalists are still mourning the cruel murder of BBC journalist Abdul Samad Rohani andCTV’s Ahmad Javeed Yazmy-Jojo.
Rohani was kidnapped in June 2008, few metres away from provincial office, the seat of the Afghan government’s power. He has not been seen alive since. While Javeed was assassinated in Kandahar earlier last year, having spent nearly a year in an American military jail in Afghanistan, after being accused of having links to militants. He died just a few months after his release.
A great deal of Rohani’s work focused on uncovering war crimes, corruption and documenting the increase in drug trafficking. For this he was widely detested by local government.
In June 2010, the Governor of Helmand province Gulab Mangal confirmed the murder was staged by local security officials. The Governor also admitted that he was too weak to arrest the killers.
The Government’s refusal of hearing the demands for justice deteriorated its position in the Rohani and Javeed’s murders cases. In addition, by targeting Hojatullah Mujadidi, the government has left itself vulnerable as people inevitably start to question the war being waged against journalists, writers and other activists who dare to hold politicians to account.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Modern Day Child Prostitution in Kabul, Afghanistan: Children are used as Sex Workers in Afghanistan to Serve Foreigners

An eyewitness piece: Modern Day Child Prostitution in Kabul, Afghanistan: Children are used as Sex Workers in Afghanistan to Serve Foreigners. “The police told my mother that she will not receive my father’s retirement check for working at the Ministry of Agriculture unless I work as a prostitute serving foreigners. My mother at first refused but she relented once the police told her that I would be able to keep 60% of the pay and be able to keep supporting my mom and 6 brothers and sisters and the other 40% would go to the police,” says Ara. By James Van Thach  Salem-News.com 12-year-old girl named Ara Atta says, “My father was killed by the Americans because he did not stop his car at a checkpoint.  (KABUL) - When we hear about the news in Afghanistan, the mainstream media tells us stories of explosions and deaths of military personnel and civilians. A story that is not being told is of child prostitution slavery in Afghanistan. “There is a police ope
Post a Comment
Read more

Afghanistan: “It’s Just Damage Limitation Now”

By Mark Thompson Source:  time.com   Briton Ben Anderson is a documentary filmmaker (the BBC, HBO, the Discovery Channel), but he turns to the written word in No Worse Enemy : The Inside Story of the Chaotic Struggle for Afghanistan . The book offers a gritty – and grim — assessment of the war. Anderson embedded with U.S. and British troops for months in the southern part of the country from 2007 to 2011. He details corruption, incompetence, fear — by both allied troops and Afghan civilians — and a Groundhog Day kind of existence., where a battle fought for days has to be fought again, later. Most distressingly, he argues that the American and British publics are getting a misleading picture of progress on the ground. Battleland conducted this email chat with Anderson last weekend. Why did you write No Worse Enemy: The Inside Story of the Chaotic Struggle for Afghanistan? I’d been travelling to Helmand for five years, first in 2007 with the Brits, then later
2 comments
Read more

There are non-Taliban poets in the 'Poetry of the Taliban’

By Hanan Habibzai It is truly a matter of controversy as it appears that non-Taliban Afghan poets are presented as Taliban. It is a matter of shock to read in the Independent that Ezatullah Zawab, a permanent journalist and poet, is Taliban poet. It is still unclear how many more (non-Taliban names) are there in the ‘ Poetry of the Taliban ’. Zawab is not a Taliban but a critic of the US-led invasion of Afghanistan and the continuous political and social corruption within Karzai’s government. He studied at the Nangrahar University, working as a freelance journalist since 2001 in eastern Afghanistan. His reports mainly published by IWPR and the Pajhwok Afghan News . He was among the first journalists who covered the killing of tens of civilians in June 2008 where American-led air-strike bombed a wedding convoy in Shinwari district in eastern Nangrahar province killing more than 55 civilians including the bride. Most of the victims were children and women. In the aftermat
Post a Comment
Read more