By: Bashir Ahmad
New York, USA.
April 24, 2008

After USSR (Union of Soviet Socialists Republics) withdrew its army completely from Afghanistan in 1989, fighting between the Communist-backed government and the Mujahedeen (Holy war fighters) continued until they overthrew it in 1992.
The best-known mujahedeen were various disunited Afghan opposition groups that fought against the USSR allied Afghan governments during the 1980s, and then fought against each other in the Afghan civil war. The parties involved were Hizb-e-Islami Afghanistan (the Afghanistan Islamic Party), Jammiat-e-Islami (the Islamic Party), Dawat-e-Islami (the Islamic Invitation Party), Junbish-e-Milli Islami (National Islamic Movement), Wahdat-e-Milli (National Unity) and Harakat-e-Islami (Islamic Movement), and many other minor ethnic parties. Afterwards, except for Hizb-e-Islami, they all established a co-unit called the Northern Alliance.  
With the cooperation of the International community, the Mujahedeen prematurely formed a leadership council but never agreed on the distributed official positions. They captured one or another part of the capital, Kabul, and started fighting among each other. The central government had no authority, and provinces were conquered by unfettered Mujahedeen commanders. Instability, theft, robberies and killings were at their peak. The country sank even further into anarchism which caused thousands of civilian casualties in Kabul and elsewhere and forced thousands of people to be displaced and become refugees. Mujahedeen were not the holy fighters anymore, but warlords. 
In reaction to the anarchy, prevalent warlords in the country, and the lack of stability in the Kabul government, a movement arose called the Taliban. According to Encyclopedia, “By 2001, the Taliban, with backing from the Pakistani ISI (Pakistan’s intelligence agency) and possibly even the regular Pakistan army had defeated most of the militias and controlled most of Afghanistan. The remaining militias were in the north-east of the country. Many Taliban were educated in madrassas (religious schools) and supported by Pakistan just like as the mujahedeen groups were backed by Russia, Iran, India, France and Saudi Arabia. In 2001 with U.S. and International military aid ousted the Taliban from power with the help of Northern Alliance.”
The Northern Alliance was then widely given the opportunity to contribute in the newly installed government. This opened the doors for warlords to regain their power, impose their Stone Age ideas on people and achieve their selfish goals.       
 This three-decade war has introduced gun culture and affected Afghanistan badly, leaving its footprints in every path of life. It has destroyed economical, health and educational infrastructures and extensively harmed ordinary lives.  Furthermore, people have experienced shocking events of shootings, killings and butchering, which changed them into savage people. Warlords have played and are playing the biggest role in all of this and are sabotaging the country. 
Although it has the cooperation of the international community, Afghanistan has been able to launch presidential and parliamentary elections, formulated a new constitution and formed an elected parliament, former commanders who continue to control private militia remain a dangerous and commanding force. Many have ties to criminal networks linked to the country’s growing opium production and trade. They have long records of similar abuses in the past. 
Using their broadly based force and influence, they won most of the parliament’s seats. This made them more powerful and now able to back their fellow warlords who are already working in high ranking posts in the Afghan government. Warlords and their militias operating across the country, their political presence is the major problem.
Afghanistan has become one of the biggest opium-producing countries in the world due to the negative effects of the warlords in the country. Their presence in law enforcement forces has strengthened the smugglers and their activities. The judicial sectors are very weak and are unable to adjudicate and control the smuggling, production and cultivation cases. Young Afghans have become drug addicts due to miserable and adverse lives outside the country as refugees.
Many Afghan teenagers are still in militia groups and are left behind, uneducated, which has affected the county in a very negative way. The ancient country literacy rate is much lower. The CIA World Fact Book has this estimate until 2003; “28.1% of total population (male: 43.1%, female: 12.6%).
Corruption is on the highest level in government offices because of the presence of warlords. This has made the central government weaker and feeble. As a result, it does not have control over the provinces or remote areas. Local armed commanders are still taking money from people through taxes and tributes. Rape, robbing, killing, kidnapping, and keeping ordinary people in illegal prisons have increased in Afghanistan’s rural areas. In addition, there is no freedom of speech and none of the publications dare to publish anything about the filthy activities of warlords.  Many journalists have been killed for publishing the truth. Reporters without Borders’ website states; “Press freedom is one of the few achievements of the five years since the fall of the Taliban regime. But it remains fragile as journalists feel the effects of deteriorating security, threats from warlords, conservative religious leaders and an increasingly hard-pressed government.” In short, People are unable to live according to their own will.
Enough is enough, and now it is time that the groups which are not under control of the central government must be disarmed. The warlords and superior commanders who disagree with the central government policies must be arrested and be sent through court procedures. Other countries should be stopped from being involved in the negative activities of warlords, such as cross-border smuggling and drug trade.