These half-trained mullahs!

These half-trained mullahs!
Saeed Naqvi

The Anglo-American combine maintains a pointless no-fly-zone over north and south Iraq, in opposition to world opinion in quite a large measure. Surely the international community could have sanctioned some sort of aerial military action, cordoning off Bamiyan from Afghan vandals. The coalition Colin Powell is trying unsuccessfully to forge against Iraq might have actually taken shape against the outrage in Afghanistan. For such a coalition India could have played a leading role in sensitising world opinion. Such a coalition would have had credibility only if major Islamic countries like Saudi Arabia, Iran and Egypt had been enlisted.

Why, even Pakistan, which has made some noises against the destruction at Bamiyan, should have been invited. Indeed, here would have been a test case, a clue to the real nature of the Pakistani establishment. Whatever itslinks with the Taliban, would Pakistan have stood with the world community in protecting the world's heritage by insulating the area against vandals? Millions of leaflets in Pushto, Darri and Arabic could have been dropped all over the Afghan countryside carrying messages from Islamic leaders prohibiting the desecration and destruction of landmarks in the history of civilisation. The leaflets would have clarified that the action was against vandals, not the proud people of Afghanistan.

There is a saying in Urdu: òf40óNeem hakim, khatraye jaan (a half trained doctor is a danger to the patient's life). Likewise, òf40óneem mullah, khatraye Iman (a half trained mullah is a menace to the faith).

We should know this better than anyone else. Afghanistan, after all, was part of our civilisational unit. Indeed, the Afghan was part of our livesmuch before Tagore's Kabuliwala. All the ``Filpa'' (elephant's foot) designs on our carpets were from Afghanistan. The delicacy at opulent Marwari weddings was òf40ósarda (melon) from Afghanistan. The best Heeng for our lentils and vegetables came from Kabul. Indeed, Indian rupees in fat bundles were the currency when most of us visited Kabul even up to the late '80s. The bazaar was the great equaliser -- Sikhs, Muslims and Hindus, all proudly claiming Afghan ancestry. The ruling class in Kabul was well conversant with Hindustani classical sangeet.

One of the greatest Afghans, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, sketched Indian civilisational reach by the sheer example of his own life. He lived in Peshawar, struggled relentlessly against the central authority in Pakistan, visited India without passport and willed that he be buried in Kandahar!

The special links India had with Afghanistan were impaired by the confusion created in the course of the Soviet occupation. Much of what is happening in Bamiyan owes its origins to the project put together by the US, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan to stimulate jehadi fervour to oust the Soviets. The basic raw material Washington, Riyadh and Islamabad operated on was highly motivated against the Soviets. Independence has been an article of faith with the Afghan from times immemorial -- as the British learnt in the 19th century.

Riyadh's participation in the Afghan project during the '80s was for three reasons. The Saudis had special ties with Islamabad encouraged by Zia-ul-Haq. There was a strong economic component to this relationship asIslamabad was an important recipient of Gulf largesse after the quadrupling of oil prices in the aftermath of the 1973 Arab-Israeli conflict. Secondly, Soviet communism and its support to leftist regimes in the Middle East was anathema to the Saudis. Thirdly, the Iranian revolution had pitted Teheran against Riyadh for supremacy of the Muslim world. Saudi investment in the Afghanistan resistance had this anti-Iranian edge as well.

Another detail must not be forgotten. Until 1996 (at least) US oil companies were pushing the US administration towards a lazy acquiescence in the Taliban overrunning Afghanistan. Once the Taliban had total control, they would be able to control them. This was official policy in Washington. I recall Richard Holbrooke telling some of us in the US ambassador's residence that American opinion found the Taliban revolting after the CNN's Christiane Amanpour exposed Islamic excesses against women. In 1996 Robin Raphel had described the Taliban as an ``indigenous'' movement. In 2000 Rick Inderfurth described them in a post-Osama bin Laden framework as ``terrorists''.

The fact is that most of the Taliban leadership, Mullah Omar included, are creatures of madrasas spreading from Karachi, Quetta, Peshawar up to Hakkanian. The destruction at Bamiyan is part of the agenda to create a triple distilled ``anti infidel'' Islam, which stands out against the Islam reared in the crucible of Hindustan, an Islam of which 140 million Muslims of India are a part of. This is not primarily an Afghan agenda but a Pakistani project. The levers of control are with elements controlling the Muttahida Jehad Council in various parts of Punjab. It is conceivable that the wild energy on show in Bamiyan has acquired a life of its own.

Here is an opportunity to forge a wide, cross-civilisational coalition against the desecration in Bamiyan unless, of course, the misplaced thought crosses some of our minds that we may ourselves be living in glass houses.

Most of the Taliban leadership are creatures of madrasas spreading from Karachi to Hakkanian