Afghanistan’s Past In Better Shape Than Future: Immediate Measures Should Be Taken For Change – OpEd

Following the U.S. withdrawal of their forces from Afghanistan, the country’s state of reality fell into the hands of the Taliban in August 2021.

In the past, the democratic government had full support of the international community as a recognized government which was important to the gains to be made in Afghanistan. These gains included things like improving access to education, health, and electricity.

The past was better but not fully appreciated by some people due to corruption scandals which put Afghanistan as one of the top countries. This left the people skeptical about the future. However, in the past, education and health facilities for the people of Afghanistan was a lot better than what it is today. For most part, institutions run by the government and private sectors seemed to be working in full swing – all thanks to the investment being made by the USAID and the World Bank at the time.

It wasn’t until the year 2020 that former U.S. President Donald Trump signalled to reduce military operations in Afghanistan. He also was responsible for the order to use the “Mother of All Bombs” in east of Afghanistan as commander in chief.

Today, in Afghanistan, you have a regime that is not recognized and it has been almost two years since they took charge of power. Most western people from Kabul city have already left and the some still over there have a desire to leave. Furthermore, life is not good in the country today because two-thirds of the population is now living in poverty. This means that the health and all aspects of life have deteriorated since the Taliban gained power.

As in the past, the security situation in Afghanistan was worse than today, but it can get back to the same stage unless the Taliban regime changes their mentality which is to find ways to improve the basic rights not wait any longer for the international community to tell them what to do. This is so because, the world is faced with unprecedented issues like the current situation in Ukraine, Sudan, Syria, etc. 

In Afghanistan, women and girls’ education rights have been taken away as such it is making it harder for them to be part of the society. This is also one reason why their living standard have felt into poverty. Indeed, there is an imagery; how the past was owned by corruption and how today the lack of basic human rights is leaving too many impoverished.

While there seems to be little opposition effect in Afghanistan today, however, what needs to happen is that the Taliban must allow for different perspectives and political thought to shape the future. This includes allowing girls and women to work and go to school, work on improving health and education facilities, restore basic human rights, ensure security for all Afghans, allow humanitarian aid like food and water, and then seek recognition on the international stage.

This article also was published at The Print.