Afghans and the ‘peace of graveyard’

topic:	Human Rights
located:	Afghanistan
editor:	Shadi Khan Saif

In Afghanistan’s national Pashto language there is a saying which literally translates to: “Only the land under fire knows how it is felt to burn.”

Now, the context to state this upfront is that what the Afghans have been undergoing during the past 40 years of bloodbath is something only they know.

The resumption of a second round of peace talks has evoked some hope, but without a ceasefire in place, fears of a ‘peace of graveyard’ haunts the Afghans.

In that context, Afghans are the best judge of the way the rejuvenated yet fragile peace process is heading.

Here is a somewhat simplified picture of the horrifying life in Afghanistan for those with some sort of feelings towards humanity in this shared world of ours.

In a bid to gain a so-called ‘upper hand’ in the peace parley in the Qatari capital, Doha, the parties to the Afghan conflict have unleashed violent force against each other in towns and villages, on ground and from air, resulting in loss of lives and spread of horror at new heart-breaking levels.

Whenever in the past year or so - since the US inked a landmark peace deal with the Taliban in February 2020 - the Afghan government representatives and the insurgents sat across the table to decide the fate of their country’s violence, which has devastated the innocent civilian population in the country.

The government-controlled urban centers, including the sprawling capital, Kabul, have been rocked with targeted assassinations and small sticky bombs, ruthlessly killing pro-government figures, mostly young and educated. With no claim of responsibility for this continued spate of killing, Afghan officials point fingers to the Taliban who deny involvement.

According to the Afghanistan Civil Society Forum and the Human Rights Defenders Committee, at least 23 rights defenders and civil activists lost their lives in such targeted assassinations last year alone, along with the 5,939 civilian casualties (2,117 civilians got killed and 3,822 others got injured) between 1 January and 30 September 2020.

The second form of violence is mainly attributed to the pro-government Afghan and Allied forces. And, this is generally happening in the rural parts under the influence of the Taliban that is witnessing mounting air and ground offensives against the insurgents; caught in the middle are civilians.

Taliban and locals claimed multiple casualties in places like Nimroz, Zabul and Uruzgan and Kunduz, while the government has only promised to investigate these claims.

Every moment, day and week that passes without a ceasefire would simply mean more and more innocent lives lost to this ruthless war.

Image by Benjamin Liang.

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