Return of Mediaeval Times

             A YEAR has passed since the Taliban stormed Kabul to restore control of Afghanistan, some 20 years after American soldiers toppled the country's hardline Islamic government in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. Although there was a promise of some restraint, it was a return to the previous order.

 

Sadly, the Taliban government has completely returned to its previous practices. Afghanistan is experiencing a significant step backward as basic human rights are severely restricted, even though the war is over and there is a largely peaceful environment. The Taliban government may still be in contact with the outside community, but there is no indication that they have received official recognition.

 

Even those nations that had been in favor of a more lenient approach to them have expressed grave concern over the Taliban because of their own intransigence, which was encouraged by the hard-liners among them, regarding women and other human rights as well as their constant violation of the promises made.

 

As a result, even after a year, the Taliban, who support a rigorous interpretation of religious law, have broken their promises to soften their stance on issues like women's access to education and government employment, among other things.

 

The infamous Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice is back in operation under the dictatorship. In addition, women are not allowed to take taxis farther than 72 kilometers without a male family member's company, according to Taliban officials. Such acts bring to mind the stringent guidelines established and upheld by Mullah Omar's Taliban government before 9/11.

 

The Taliban had earlier declared they would reopen high schools for girls, but they immediately changed their minds after coming under international pressure. This crushed the hopes and aspirations of a million girl students who were eager to resume their education.

 

The Taliban's educational authority justified their move by saying that unless a plan based on Islamic principles was developed to reopen the schools, girl pupils would not be permitted to attend them. Some officials are even alleged to have stated that Muslim women's access to education is restricted by their religion. The precise date of these schools' reopening is unknown.

 

Clearly, this decision to reverse the decision to reopen girls' high schools demonstrates that the hard-liners dominate and direct the current administration. The action was taken after a council meeting. The dictatorship has also put limits on the country's media and clamped down on nonviolent protests as part of their continued effort to impose their conservative rule.

 

Such actions only confirm one thing: the extremist Taliban members have no qualms about excluding the more moderate Taliban members to advance their obscurantist ideals over international participation. Such a strategy will undoubtedly lead to disaster for a nation already struggling with several economic, social, and political issues.

 

Taliban members don't seem to understand that the problems facing the nation cannot be effectively remedied as long as Afghanistan remains cut off from the rest of the world, which is unable to support a regressive government that stifles equal rights for women and basic human rights.

 

The crisis is far from ending despite some humanitarian assistance from the international community that helped to lessen the suffering in Afghanistan last winter. The situation for the dictatorship will only get worse as international isolation grows.

 

It is unlikely that donors will go forward given the Taliban's blatant disregard for human rights and their recent U-turn on ensuring that females receive an education, which was a crucial requirement of potential donors if Afghanistan was to accept foreign funding and recognition. The dictatorship may lose millions of dollars in international aid as a result of its conduct.

 

Reports of international extremist groups returning to Afghanistan and posing a serious danger to regional security are even more concerning. The darkest worries that Afghanistan would once again become the epicenter of militant activity are being realized by the presence of Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of Al Qaeda, in Kabul, where he was ostensibly living under the security of the Taliban interior minister. He was slain by a US drone attack in a luxurious, well-guarded area of the capital.

 

Zawahiri's audio and video messages were becoming more frequent, which increased people's concerns about his whereabouts in the nation. His death has dealt the Taliban government a significant blow because it had promised the international community that it would not permit any insurgent action on Afghan soil. A portion of the Taliban remained connected to the international terrorist organization.

 

Along with Al Qaeda, other militant organizations like the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the East Turkestan Islamic Movement also use Afghanistan as a base for their transnational activities. These organizations are a major source of concern for Beijing and Islamabad, the two nations' capitals, which have been urging the international community to keep in close contact with the Taliban government.

 

In the former tribal regions of Pakistan and other areas of KP, there has been a noticeably increased amount of militant activity that has been linked to the TTP. Numerous Pakistani soldiers have lost their lives as a result of insurgent attacks during the past 12 months. The Taliban have been calling on Pakistan to seek a truce with the terrorist group rather than taking action against the terrorist havens.

 

The Afghan Taliban's Haqqani group is defending the TTP. The initial excitement among a segment of the Pakistani governing elite following the Taliban's takeover of Kabul last year ought to have subsided due to the country's conservative regime's spillover consequences.

 

One year later, the Taliban leadership in Afghanistan may not be up against any organized opposition, but because of its regressive policies, public resentment has been growing and may eventually manifest as a powerful movement. Additionally, the Taliban might become even more isolated internationally as a result of its support for international militant organizations.