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Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
د افغانستان اسلامي جمهوریت
Da Afġānistān Islāmī jomhoriyat
جمهوری اسلامی افغانستان
jomhoriye-e Eslāmī-ye Afġānistān
Motto: none
Anthem: Soroud-e-Melli
Location of Afghanistan
Capital
and largest city
Kabul
Official languagesPashto, Dari[1]
GovernmentIslamic Republic
• Emir
Mullah Muhammad Omar
Independence 
From UK influence
• Date
August 19, 1919
• Water (%)
N/A
Population
• 2005 estimate
29,863,000 (38th)
• 1979 census
13,051,358
GDP (PPP)2006 estimate
• Total
$31.9 billion (91st)
• Per capita
$1,310 (162nd)
HDI (2003)NA
Error: Invalid HDI value (unranked)
CurrencyAfghani (Af) (AFN)
Time zoneUTC+4:30
• Summer (DST)
UTC+4:30
Calling code93
ISO 3166 codeAF
Internet TLD.af

Afghanistan (officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan; Pashto: د افغانستان اسلامي دولت, Dari: دولت اسلامی افغانستان), is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Asia. Generally considered a part of Central Asia, it is sometimes ascribed to a regional bloc in either South Asia or the Middle East, as it has cultural, ethno-linguistic, and geographic links with most of its neighbors. It is bordered by Iran in the west, Pakistan in the south and east, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan in the north, and China to the east.

Afghanistan is a mosaic of ethnic groups and cultures and a crossroads between east and west. An ancient land that has often been plundered and also been a focal point of trade, Afghanistan has seen numerous invaders come and go, including Aryans, Persians, Greeks, Mongols, Arabs, and Turks. Afghanistan in its current form was formed following the Anglo-Afghan wars that culminated in Afghanistan's complete independence from foreign intervention in 1919. The country's recent history has seen it ravaged by the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan, the rise and fall of the Taliban, and the United States invasion of Afghanistan in 2001.

As a result of these traumatic events, Afghanistan is in rebuilding phase as it attempts to reconcile the devastation that constant warfare has created with a new government that seeks to unify and rebuild Afghanistan. Afghanistan faces numerous problems ranging from its devastated economy, the return of millions of refugees, continued warlordism, drug trafficking, and a new government that is struggling with political forces that are trying to define what sort of country Afghanistan will become in the 21st century.

Name

Main article: Origins of the name Afghanistan

The name Afghanistan literally translates to Land of the Afghans. The origins of the name Afghanistan are shrouded in some mystery, but its modern usage derives from the word Afghan. The Pashtuns appear to have begun using the term Afghan as a name for themselves from the Islamic period onwards. According to W.K. Frazier Tyler, M.C. Gillet and several other scholars, "The word Afghan first appears in history in the Hudud-al-Alam in 982 AD." The last part of the name Afghanistan originates from the Persian word stān (country or land). The English word Afghanland that appeared in various treaties between Qajar-Persia and the United Kingdom dealing with the Eastern lands of the Persian kingdom (modern Afghanistan) was adopted by the Afghans and became Afghanistan.

History

Main article: History of Afghanistan

Afghanistan exists at a unique nexus-point where numerous Eurasian civilizations have interacted and often fought and was an important site of early historical activity. Through the ages, the region today known as Afghanistan has been invaded by a host of peoples, including the Aryans, Ancient Iranian peoples, Indo-Aryans, Medes, Persians, Greeks, Mauryans, Kushans, Hepthalites, Sassanians, Arabs, Mongols, Turks, British, Soviets and most recently the United States. Rarely, though, have these groups managed to exert complete control over the region. On other occasions, native Afghan entities have invaded surrounding regions to form empires of their own.

Buddhas of Bamiyan, dating back to 1st century pre-Islamic Afghanistan, were the largest Buddha statues in the world. They were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001 calling them "Un-Islamic". Photo by Hadi Zaheer

Between 2000 and 1200 BC, waves of Indo-European-speaking Aryans are thought to have flooded into modern-day Afghanistan, setting up a nation that became known as Aryānām Xšaθra, or "Land of the Aryans." Zoroastrianism is speculated to have possibly originated in Afghanistan between 1800 to 800 BC. Ancient Eastern Iranian languages such as Avestan may have been spoken in Afghanistan around a similar time-line with the rise of Zoroastrianism. In the eastern area, the early Indo-Aryan Vedic civilization may have had some prominence, although this has yet to be conclusively proven. By the middle of the 6th century BC, the Persian Empire supplanted the Medes and incorporated Aryana within its boundaries; and by 330 BC, Alexander the Great had invaded the region. Following Alexander's brief occupation, the Hellenistic successor states of the Seleucids and Bactrians controlled the area, while the Mauryas from India annexed the southeast for a time and introduced Buddhism to the region until the area returned to the Bactrian rule.

During the 1st century AD, the Tocharian Kushans occupied the region. Thereafter, Aryana fell to a number of Eurasian tribes — including Parthians, Scythians, and Huns, as well as the Sassanian Persians and local rulers such as the Hindu Shahis in Kabul — until the 7th century AD, when Muslim Arab armies invaded the region.

The Arab Empire initially annexed parts of western Afghanistan in 652 and then conquered most of the rest of Afghanistan between 706-709 AD and administered the region as Khorasan, and over time much of the local population converted to Islam. Afghanistan became the center of various important empires, including the Ghaznavid Empire (962-1151), founded by a local Turkic ruler from Ghazni named Yamin ul-Dawlah Mahmud. This empire was replaced by the Ghorid Empire (1151-1219), founded by another local ruler, this time of Tajik extraction, Muhammad Ghori, whose domains laid the foundations for the Delhi Sultanate in India.

In 1219, the region was overrun by the Mongols under Genghis Khan, who devastated the land. Their rule continued with the Ilkhanates, and was extended further following the invasion of Tamerlane (Timur Leng), a ruler from Central Asia. The Uzbek-born Babur, a descendant of both Tamerlane and Genghis Khan, established the Mughal Empire with its capital at Kabul by 1504. Later, the Safavids of Persia challenged Mughal rule with the Persians acquiring the area by the mid-17th century.

Ghilzai Pashtun tribesmen under the Ghaznavid Khan Nasher successfully overthrew Safavid rule, and under the Hotaki dynasty, which briefly controlled Afghanistan and Persia itself from 1719-1729. Nadir Shah of Persia defeated the Afghans in the Battle of Damghan, 1729. He had driven out the Afghans, who were still occupying Persia, by 1730. In 1738, Nadir Shah conquered Kandahar, In the same year he occupied Ghazni, Kabul and Lahore. One of Nadir Shah's high-ranking military officers, Ahmad Shah Abdali, himself a Pashtun tribesman of the Abdali clan, called for a loya jirga following Nadir Shah's assassination (for which many implicate Abdali) in 1747. The Afghans/Pashtuns came together at Kandahar in 1747 and chose Ahmad Shah, who changed his last name to Durrani (meaning 'pearl of pearls' in Persian), to be king. The Afghanistan nation-state as it is known today came into existence in 1747 as the Durrani Empire which was centered in Afghanistan. The Durrani Empire lasted for nearly a century until internecine conflicts and wars with the Persians and Sikhs diminished their empire by the early 19th century. However, the current borders of Afghanistan would not be determined until the coming of the British.

Lord Nasher after defeating the British colonial forces

During the 19th century, following the Anglo-Afghan wars (fought in 1839-1842, 1878-1880, and lastly in 1919) and the ascension of the Barakzai dynasty, Afghanistan saw much of its territory and autonomy ceded to the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom exercised a great deal of influence, and it was not until King Amanullah Shah acceded to the throne in 1919 (see "The Great Game") that Afghanistan regained complete independence. During the period of British intervention in Afghanistan, ethnic Pashtun territories were divided by the Durand Line, and this would lead to strained relations between Afghanistan and British India, and later the new state of Pakistan, over what came to be known as the Pashtunistan debate.

The longest period of stability in Afghanistan was between 1933 and 1973, when the country was under the rule of King Zahir Shah. However, in 1973, Zahir's brother-in-law, Sardar Mohammed Daoud launched a bloodless coup. Daoud and his entire family were murdered in 1978 when the communist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan launched a coup known as the Great Saur Revolution and took over the government.

Opposition against, and conflict within, the series of communist governments that followed, was considerable. As part of a Cold War strategy, in 1979 the United States government under President Jimmy Carter and National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski began to covertly fund and train anti-government Mujahideen forces through the Pakistani secret service agency known as Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), which were derived from discontented Muslims in the country who opposed the official atheism of the Marxist regime, in 1978. Brzezinski's recruiting efforts included enlisting Usama bin Laden to fight the Soviets. Bin Laden became a stinger missile expert in this war earning the nom de guerre "The Archer." In order to bolster the local Communist forces the Soviet Union - citing the 1978 Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Good Neighborliness that had been signed between the two countries in 1978 - intervened on December 24, 1979. The Soviet occupation resulted in a mass exodus of over 5 million Afghans who moved into refugee camps in neighboring Pakistan and Iran. More than 3 million alone settled in Pakistan. Faced with mounting international pressure and the loss of approximately 15,000 Soviet soldiers as a result of Mujahideen opposition forces trained by the United States, Pakistan, and other foreign governments, the Soviets withdrew ten years later, in 1989. For more details, see Soviet war in Afghanistan.

The Soviet withdrawal was seen as an ideological victory in the U.S., which ostensibly had backed the Mujahideen through 3 bipartisan US Presidential Administrations in order to counter Soviet influence in the vicinity of the oil-rich Persian Gulf. Following the removal of the Soviet forces in 1989, the U.S. and its allies lost interest in Afghanistan and did little to help rebuild the war-ravaged country or influence events there. The USSR continued to support the regime of Dr. Najibullah (formerly the head of the secret service, Khad) until its downfall in 1992. However, the absence of the Soviet forces resulted in the downfall of the government as it steadily lost ground to the guerrilla forces.[2]

As the vast majority of the elites and intellectuals had either been systematically eliminated by the Communists, or escaped to take refuge abroad, a dangerous leadership vacuum came into existence. Fighting continued among the various Mujahidin factions, eventually giving rise to a state of warlordism. The chaos and corruption that dominated post-Soviet Afghanistan in turn spawned the rise of the Taliban in response to the growing chaos. The most serious fighting during this growing civil conflict occurred in 1994, when 10,000 people were killed during factional fighting in Kabul.

During their short lived reign in Afghanistan, the Taliban forced the women to wear a full burqa

Exploiting the chaotic situation in Afghanistan, a few regional bedfellows including fundamentalist Afghans trained in refugee camps in western Pakistan, the Pakistani ISI, the regional Mafia (well-established network that smuggled mainly Japanese electronics and tyres before the Russian invasion, now involved in drug smuggling) and Arab extremist groups (that were looking for a safe operational hub) joined forces and helped to create the Taliban movement.[3] Backed by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, America and other strategic allies who claim that they have come to help Afghans rebuild there country nowadays, the Taliban developed as a politico-religious force, and eventually seized power in 1996. The Taliban were able to capture 90% of the country, aside from the Afghan Northern Alliance strongholds primarily found in the northeast in the Panjshir Valley. The Taliban sought to impose a strict interpretation of Islamic Sharia law and gave safe haven and assistance to individuals and organizations that were implicated as terrorists, most notably Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network.

Massive bombing and invasion of the country by the United States and its allies following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks helped opposition factions and forced the Taliban's downfall. In late 2001, major leaders from the Afghan opposition groups and diaspora met in Bonn, and agreed on a plan for the formulation of a new government structure that resulted in the inauguration of Hamid Karzai as Chairman of the Afghan Interim Authority (AIA) on December 2001. After a nationwide Loya Jirga in 2002, Karzai was elected President.

Loya Jirga 2002

As the country continues to rebuild and recover, as of late 2005, it was still struggling against widespread poverty, continued warlordism, a virtually non-existent infrastructure, possibly the largest concentration of land mines on earth and other unexploded ordinance, as well as a sizable illegal poppy and heroin trade. Afghanistan also remains subject to occasionally violent political jockeying, and the nation's first elections were successfully held in 2004 as women parliamentarians were selected in record numbers. Parliamentary elections in 2005 helped to further stabilize the country politically, in spite of the numerous problems it faced, including inadequate international assistance. The landmine problem persists; in 2002, the Red Cross recorded 1286 landmine deaths in Afghanistan, one of the highest mine tolls anywhere on Earth. The country continues to grapple with occasional acts of violence from a few remaining al-Qaeda and Taliban and the instability caused by warlords.

See also: Afghanistan timeline and Invasions of Afghanistan

Politics

Error: no page names specified (help). Politics in Afghanistan has historically consisted of power struggles, bloody coups and unstable transfers of power. With the exception of a military junta, the country has been governed by nearly every system of government over the past century, including a monarchy, republic, theocracy and communist state. The constitution ratified by the 2003 Loya jirga restructured the government as an Islamic republic consisting of three branches of power (executive, legislative, and judiciary) overseen by checks and balances.

President Hamid Karzai

Afghanistan is currently led by President Hamid Karzai, who was elected in October 2004. Before the election, Karzai led the country after being chosen by delegates of the Bonn Conference in 2001 to head an interim government after the fall of the Taliban. While supporters have praised Karzai's efforts to promote national reconciliation and a growing economy, critics charge him with failing to reign in the country's warlords, inability to stem corruption and the growing drug trade, and the slow pace of reconstruction.

The current parliament was elected in 2005. Among the elected officials were former mujahadeen, Taliban fighters, communists, reformists, and Islamic fundamentalists. Surprisingly, 28% of the delegates elected were women, 3% more than the 25% minimum guaranteed under the constitution. Ironically, this made Afghanistan, long known under the Taliban for its oppression of women, one of the leading countries in terms of female representation.

The Supreme Court of Afghanistan is currently led by Chief Justice Faisal Ahmad Shinwari. Dominated by fundamentalist religious figures, the court has issued numerous questionable rulings, such as banning cable television, seeking to ban a candidate in the 2004 presidential election for questioning polygamy laws, and limiting the rights of women, as well as overstepping its constitutional authority by issuing rulings on subjects not yet brought before the court. Though many believed that Karzai would make reforming the Supreme Court a priority of his administration, as of 2006 he has yet to do so.

See also: Constitution of Afghanistan

Administrative Divisions

Main article: [[:Provinces of Afghanistan, Districts of Afghanistan]]

Afghanistan is administratively divided into 34 provinces (velayat), which are further subdivided into districts.

Map showing provinces of Afghanistan

The 34 provinces are:

  1. Badakhshan
  2. Badghis
  3. Baghlan
  4. Balkh
  5. Bamiyan
  6. Daikondi
  7. Farah
  8. Faryab
  9. Ghazni
  10. Ghowr
  11. Helmand
  1. Herat
  2. Jowzjan
  3. Kabul
  4. Kandahar
  5. Kapisa
  6. Khost
  7. Konar
  8. Kunduz
  9. Laghman
  10. Lowgar
  11. Nangarhar
  1. Nimruz
  2. Nurestan
  3. Oruzgan
  4. Paktia
  5. Paktika
  6. Panjshir
  7. Parvan
  8. Samangan
  9. Sar-e Pol
  10. Takhar
  11. Vardak
  12. Zabol

Geography

Main article: Geography of Afghanistan

Afghanistan is a land-locked mountainous country, with plains in the north and southwest. The highest point, at 7485 m (24,557 ft) above sea level, is Nowshak. Large parts of the country are dry, and fresh water supplies are limited. Afghanistan has a continental climate, with hot summers and cold winters. The country is frequently subject to earthquakes.

The country's natural resources include copper, zinc and iron ore in central areas; precious and semi-precious stones such as lapis, emerald and azure in the north-east and east; and potentially significant oil and gas reserves in the north. However, these significant mineral and energy resources remain largely untapped due to the affects of the Soviet invasion and the subsequent civil war.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Afghanistan
File:Afghan60c.jpg

Afghanistan is an extremely impoverished country, being one of the world's poorest and least developed countries. Two-thirds of the population lives on less than US$2 a day. The economy has suffered greatly from the recent political and military unrest since the 1979-80 Soviet invasion and subsequent conflicts, while severe drought added to the nation's difficulties in 1998-2001.

The economically active population in 2002 was about 11 million (out of a total of an estimated 29 million). While there are no official unemployment rate estimates available, it is evident that it is high. The number of non-skilled young people is estimated at 3 million, which is likely to increase by some 300,000 per annum.[4]

As much as one-third of Afghanistan's GDP comes from growing poppy and illicit drugs including opium and its two derivatives, morphine and heroin, as well as hashish production.[1]

File:President Celal Bayar, King Zahir and Lord Nasher.jpg
Afghanistan was once a world-renowned producer of cotton. Here Turkish President Celal Bayar and King Zahir inspect the produce of Khan Nasher's Spinzar Cotton Company in 1966

On a positive note, international efforts to rebuild Afghanistan led to the formation of the Afghan Interim Authority (AIA) as a result of the December 2001 Bonn Agreement, and later addressed at the Tokyo Donors Conference for Afghan Reconstruction in January 2002, where $4.5 billion was committed in a trust fund to be administered by the World Bank Group. Priority areas for reconstruction include the rebuilding of education system, health, and sanitation facilities, enhancement of administrative capacity, the development of the agricultural sector, and the rebuilding of road, energy, and telecommunication links.

According to a 2004 report by the Asian Development Bank, the present reconstruction effort is two-pronged: first it focuses on rebuilding critical physical infrastructure, and second, on building modern public sector institutions from the remnants of Soviet style planning to ones that promote market-led development.[4] But macroeconomic planning and management at present is hampered by poor information, weak service delivery systems, and less than adequate law enforcement.

One of the main drivers for the current economic recovery is the return of over two million refugees from neighbouring countries and the West, who brought with them fresh energy, entrepreneurship and wealth-creating skills as well as much needed capital to start up small businesses. What is also helping is the estimated $2-3 billion in international assistance, the partial recovery of the agricultural sector, and the reestablishment of market institutions.

While the country's current account deficit is largely financed with the "donor money", only a small portion - about 15% - is provided directly to the government budget. The rest is provided to non-budgetary expenditure and donor-designated projects through the United Nations system and non-governmental organizations. It needs to be mentioned that there are some (as yet unconfirmed) claims that most of this money is spent on the expenses of the UN and other non-governmental organizations as well as being funneled into illegitimate activities.

The government had a central budget of only $350 million in 2003 and an estimated $550 million in 2004. The country's foreign exchange reserves totals about $500 million. Revenue is mostly generated through customs, as income and corporate tax bases are negligible.

Inflation had been a major problem until 2002. However, the depreciation of the afghani in 2002 after the introduction of the new notes (which replaced 1,000 old afghani by 1 new afghani) coupled with the relative stability compared to previous periods has helped prices to stabilize and even decrease between December 2002 and February 2003, reflecting the turnaround appreciation of the new Afghani currency. Since then, the index has indicated stability, with a moderate increase toward late 2003.[4]

The Afghan government and international donors seem to remain committed to improving access to basic necessities, infrastructure development, education, housing and economic reform. The central government is also focusing on improved revenue collection and public sector expenditure discipline. The rebuilding of the financial sector seems to have been so far successful. Money can now be transferred in and out of the country via official banking channels and according to accepted international norms. A new law on private investment provides 3-7 year tax holidays to eligible companies and a 4-year exemption from exports tariffs and duties.

While these improvements will help rebuild a strong basis for the nation in the future, for now, the majority of the population continues to suffer from insufficient food, clothing, housing, medical care, and other problems exacerbated by military operations and political uncertainties. The government is not strong enough to collect customs duties from all the provinces due to the power of the warlords. Fraud is widespread and “corruption is rife within all Afghan government organs, and central authority is barely felt in the lawless south and south-west”.[5]

In short, the Afghan economy is currently going through a hefty change period. On the one hand, there are encouraging signs of positive development and increasing wealth creation and management. But on the other hand, the security situation, the lingering war against terrorism and the opium problem have created tall barriers for Afghanistan to rejoin the international community in prosperity and economic development.

See also: Opium Production in Afghanistan

Demographics

Map of Afghanistan
Main article: Demographics of Afghanistan

The population of Afghanistan is divided into a wide variety of ethnic groups. Because a systematic census has not been held in the country in decades, exact figures about the size and composition of the various ethnic groups are not available.[6] Therefore most figures are approximations only. According to the CIA World FactBook,[1] an approximate ethnic group distribution is as follows:

The CIA factbook on languages in Afghanistan refers to the official languages of Afghanistan as being Afghan Persian (local name: Dari) 50% and Pashtu 35%, both Iranian languages of Indo-European origin. Other languages include Turkic languages (primarily Uzbek and Turkmen) 11%, as well as 30 minor languages (primarily Balochi and Pashai) 4%. Bilingualism is common.

Religiously, Afghans are overwhelmingly Muslim, with approximately 80% Sunni and 19% Shi'a). There are also small Hindu and Sikh minorities. Afghanistan was once home to a many-centuries-old Jewish minority, numbering approximately 5,000 in 1948. Most Jewish families fled the country after the 1979 Soviet invasion, and only one individual, Zablon Simintov, remains today. [7] With the fall of the Taliban, a number of Sikhs have returned to the Ghazni, Nangarhar, Kandahar and Kabul provinces of Afghanistan.

The only city in Afghanistan with over one million residents is its capital, Kabul. The other major cities in the country are, in order of population size, Kandahar, Mazar-e Sharif, Herat, Jalalabad, and Kunduz.

A recent highlighted news and media attentionto the arrest of an Afghan Muslim covert to Christianity showed that there are aproximately 3000 to 10000 Afghan Christiansinside and outside Afghanistan as well.[citation needed] The Christians live in Afghansitan with a very low key and mostly secrets fearing sever punishments if they were found even by the family members.

See also: List of cities in Afghanistan and Places in Afghanistan

Culture

Main article: Culture of Afghanistan

Afghans display pride in their country, ancestry, military prowess, and above all, their independence. Like other highlanders, Afghans are regarded with mingled apprehension and condescension, for their high regard for personal honor, for their clan loyalty and for their readiness to carry and use arms to settle disputes.[8] As clan warfare / internecine feuding has been one of their chief occupations since time immemorial, this individualistic trait has made it difficult for foreign invaders to hold the region.

Afghanistan has a complex history that has survived either in its current cultures or in the form of various languages and monuments. However, many of the country's historic monuments have been damaged in recent wars. The two famous statues of Buddha in the Bamiyan Province were destroyed by the Taliban, who regarded them as idolatrous. Other famous sites include the very cities of Herat, Ghazni and Balkh. The Minaret of Jam, in the Hari Rud valley, is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The people of Afghanistan are prominent horsemen as the national sport is Buzkashi. Afghan hounds (a type of running dogs) also originated in Afghanistan.

Although literacy levels are very low, classic Persian poetry plays a very important role in Afghan culture. Poetry has always been one of the major educational pillars in both Iran and Afghanistan, to the level that it has integrated itself into culture. Private poetry competition events known as “musha’era” are quite common even among ordinary people. Almost every home owns one or more poetry collection of some sort, even if it is not read often.

The Afghan dialect of the Persian language Dari derives from "Farsee-e Darbari", meaning 'Persian of the royal courts'. It is regarded by some scholars as the more original version of the language. Iran, having a larger population, a stronger economy and closer ties to the rest of the world has developed its language further in the course of history. Afghanistan took a more conservative approach mainly due to lack of resources. As a result, Dari has not changed much over the last few centuries.

Many of the famous Persian language poets of 10th to 15th centuries stem from what is now known as Afghanistan. They were mostly also scholars in many disciplines like languages, natural sciences, medicine, religion and astronomy. Examples are Mawlani (Rumi), who was born and educated in Balkh in the 13th century and moved to Konya in modern-day Turkey, Sanaayi Ghaznavi (12th century, native of Ghazni provice), Jami Heravi (15th century, native of Jam-e-Herat in western Afghanistan), Nizam ud-Din Ali Sher Heravi Nava'i, (15th century, Herat province). Also, some of the contemporary Persian language poets and writers, who are relatively well-known in both Iran and Afghanistan include Ustad Behtab, Khalilullah Khalili [9], Sufi Ghulam Nabi Ashqari [10], Parwin Pazwak and others.

In addition to poets, the region of Afghanistan produced numerous scientists as well including Avicenna (Ibn Sina Balkhi) who hailed from Balkh. Avicenna, who travelled to Isfahan later in life to establish a medical school there, is known by some scholars as "the father of modern medicine". George Sarton called Ibn Sina "the most famous scientist of Islam and one of the most famous of all races, places, and times." His most famous works are The Book of Healing and The Canon of Medicine, also known as the Qanun. Avicenna's story even found way to the contemporary English literature through Noah Gordon's The Physician [11], now published in many languages.

Before the Taliban gained power, the city of Kabul was home to many musicians who were masters of both traditional and modern Afghan music, especially during the Nauroz-celebration. Kabul in the middle part of the 20th century has been likened to Vienna during the 18th and 19th centuries.

The tribal system, which orders the life of most people outside metropolitan areas, is certainly as potent in political terms as the national state system of 1914 Europe. Men feel a fierce loyalty to their own tribe, such that, if called upon, assemble in arms under the tribal chiefs and local clan leaders (Khans) in the same way that men throughout Europe "flocked to the colours" in 1914, forming up in regional divisions and battalions under the command of the local nobility and gentry. In theory, under Islamic law, every believer has an obligation to bear arms at the ruler's call (Ulul-Amr), but this was no more needed than was enforced conscription to fill the ranks of the British Army in 1914. The Afghan shepherd or peasant went to war for much the same mixture of reasons as the more "civilised" European clerk or factory worker - a desire for adventure, a desire not to be left out or lose esteem in the eyes of his fellows, a contempt for invading foreigners, revenge against those that ruined his family life or threatened his faith, perhaps even the chance of extra cash or enhanced personal prospects.

The tribal system is not something particularly backward or warlike. It is simply the best way of organizing large groups of people in a country that is geographically difficult, and in a society that has an uncomplicated lifestyle - from a materialistic point of view.[8]

See also: Radio Kabul, Music of Afghanistan, and Islam in Afghanistan

Education

Main article: Education in Afghanistan

In the spring of 2003, it was estimated that 30% of Afghanistan's 7,000 schools had been seriously damaged during more than two decades of civil war. Only half of the schools were reported to have clean water, while fewer than an estimated 40% had adequate sanitation. Education for boys was not a priority during the Taliban regime, and girls were banished from schools outright.

As regards the poverty and violence of their surroundings, a study in 2002 by the Save the Children Fund said Afghan children were resilient and courageous. The study credited the strong institutions of family and community.

Up to four million Afghan children, possibly the largest number ever, are believed to have enrolled for class for the school year beginning in March of 2003. Education is available for both girls and boys.

Literacy of the entire population is estimated at 36%, the male literacy rate is 51% and female literacy is 21%. The male literacy rate is higher because previous Taliban laws prohibited the education of women.

Another aspect of education that is rapidly changing in Afghanistan is the face of higher education. Following the fall of the Taliban, Kabul University was reopened to both male and female students. In 2006, the American University of Afghanistan [1] will open its doors, with support from USAID [2] and other donors. With the aim of providing a world-class, English-language, co-educational learning environment in Afghanistan, the university will take students from Afghanistan and the region.

View of Afghanistan

  • statue of Buddha
    statue of Buddha
  • Ghazni Minaret
    Ghazni Minaret
  • Mazar-e Sharif mosque
    Mazar-e Sharif mosque

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b c CIA - The World Factbook - Afghanistan
  2. ^ Infoplease - Afghanistan: History
  3. ^ Rashid, Ahmed (2000) "Taliban - Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia", Yale University Press
  4. ^ a b c Fujimura, Manabu (2004) "Afghan Economy After the Election", Asian Development Bank Institute
  5. ^ The Economist magazine, UK, October 2005
  6. ^ BBC News - Afghan poll's ethnic battleground - October 6, 2004
  7. ^ Washingtonpost.com - Afghan Jew Becomes Country's One and Only - N.C. Aizenman
  8. ^ a b Heathcote, Tony (1980, 2003) "The Afghan Wars 1839 - 1919", Sellmount Staplehurst
  9. ^ Afghanmagazine.com - Ustad Khalilullah Khalili - 1997
  10. ^ Afghanmagazine.com - Kharaabat - by Yousef Kohzad - 2000
  11. ^ Noah Gordon

Additional references

  • Ghobar, Mir Gholam Mohammad. Afghanistan in the Course of History, 1999, All Prints Inc.
  • Griffiths, John C. 1981. Afghanistan: A History of Conflict. André Deutsch, London. Updated edition, 2001. Andre Deutsch Ltd, 2002, ISBN 0233050531.
  • Levi, Peter. 1972. The Light Garden of the Angel King: Journeys in Afghanistan. Collins, 1972, ISBN 0002110423. Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1973, Indianapolis/New York, ISBN 0672512521.
  • Moorcroft, William and Trebeck, George. 1841. Travels in the Himalayan Provinces of Hindustan and the Panjab; in Ladakh and Kashmir, in Peshawar, Kabul, Kunduz, and Bokhara... from 1819 to 1825, Vol. II. Reprint: New Delhi, Sagar Publications, 1971. Oxford University Press, 1979, ISBN 0195771990.
  • Rashid, Ahmed (2000) "Taliban - Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia", Yale University Press
  • Caroe, Olaf. 1958. The Pathans (about the ethnic origin of Afghans).
  • Toynbee, Arnold J. 1961. Between Oxus and Jumna. Oxford University Press, London. ISBN B0006DBR44.
  • Wood, John. 1872. A Journey to the Source of the River Oxus. New Edition, edited by his son, with an essay on the "Geography of the Valley of the Oxus" by Henry Yule. John Murray, London. Gregg Division McGraw-Hill, 1971, ISBN 0576033227.
  • Heathcote, T.A. The Afghan Wars 1839-1999, 1980,2003, Spellmount Staplehurst

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