Despite all the tragedy of what happened yesterday at Kabul airport, there is a positive side. Ever since the Taliban took power in Kabul, the world has been filled with hatred and fear of them and the «terrible» orders they bring. Yesterday, however, those with a shred of reason should have seen something different — there was no choice between a «secular progressive Afghanistan» and a «medieval Taliban» that replaced it. After all, this «secular progressive Afghanistan» existed only in the imagination of Islamophobes. In reality, what they represented was, first, the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, which was far from their ideas of secularism, and, second, an optical illusion that disappeared almost as soon as foreign patrons provided it. And while in Syria or Egypt the «secular forces» were able to fight for themselves, in Afghanistan they disappeared practically without resistance.
However, as was made clear yesterday, there is an alternative to Taliban rule in Afghanistan. But it is unlikely to please fans of secularism and progress, unless they adhere to the principle of «the worse, the better» (although there are plenty of those). And this is indeed an alternative to the Taliban, not their clever and hybrid move aimed at forcing the Americans to leave quickly and portraying themselves as «good investigators» against the backdrop of an «evil investigator». After all, both US President Joe Biden and the head of the US Central Command, General Kenneth McKenzie, spoke about it yesterday.
So, whether one likes the order established by the Taliban in his (!) country or not, those who observe it from the outside must first think about something else. The Taliban have no intention of attacking any country and have not committed any terrorist acts (Al-Qaeda is another story). They have given enough time to foreign forces to leave peacefully, which, by the way, shed a sea of blood in their country. They have announced their readiness to cooperate with all countries, including those responsible for the destruction of their country. And the alternative to them is not mythical secular forces, but those who, under the guise of Islam, intend to wage endless war against the entire world, recognizing no boundaries and making no distinction between military and civilian targets, non-Muslims or Muslims who happen to be in their way.
Therefore, the next time the lovers of «secular alternatives» decide to overthrow the Taliban or support those who want to do so, they should remember that this will only lead to the rise of forces that will not bring «democracy and progress» but endless slaughter. And if they look at the situation from this angle, they may come up with the «brilliant» idea that the Americans’ departure from Afghanistan is not due to their weakness or defeat, but because in the end (having seen the Taliban’s ability to evolve as well) they realized that it would be more reliable to transfer control of this country to a force that relies on the support of the majority of the Afghan nation and is capable of making agreements.
The Taliban have demonstrated their ability to reach agreements not only in words but also in deeds — a peaceful conquest of Kabul, the absence of mass symbolic reprisals against their defenseless domestic and foreign enemies, negotiations with all political forces in the country, including representatives of the former authorities who fought against them. They even offered peaceful settlement and inclusion in the new Afghan government to those who rebelled against them in Panjshir.
So, beyond fantasies, in real life the choice is not between «rainbow democrats» and «terrible fundamentalists», but between those who can play by the rules and are ready for dialogue inside and outside the country, and those who only want to kill and refuse to negotiate or abide by any international norms and rules. This is something we need to understand and explain to others.
As for the orders that the Taliban are establishing in their country and the horrors that are being talked about, it is necessary to understand and clarify that we are talking about a country that has been devastated by decades of war and anarchy. And if the people of this country did not see the Taliban and the orders they established as the bearers and defenders of justice, they would not have been able to peacefully spread their power throughout Afghanistan just two months after the Americans left.
Therefore, leave this country alone and let it recover and heal its wounds. And you will see that in doing so, either the Taliban as a national government will establish the necessary orders that the Afghan people need, or if they go against their needs and will and fail to respond to their demands, the people will remove them from power, just as they have done with other imposed authorities.
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