Our mission in Afghanistan needs to be re-assessed. In the recent Afghan elections there are complaints of hundreds of fraud cases. Karzai's own former foreign minister and now his main political opponent Abdullah Abdullah has spoken out about the rampant fraud. On CNN he said that Karzai is doing as much harm to Afghan society as the Taliban. This is very depressing to hear when our soldiers are giving their lives to better the lives of Afghans. Unfortunately the lives of Afghans are not getting better, it is definitely not the fault of the soldiers, it is the corrupt political system in Afghanistan.
Karzai is allied with war lords and drug lords and yet all he can claim control of is Kabul - that's why he is called "the Mayor of Kabul." Maybe he needs these alliances to merely survive. Can NATO change that situation? Many experts say not through military force. The only solution left is negotiations, including with tribes allied to the Taliban, and to put a government in place that will better represent the will of the people of Afghanistan. A very tall order.
Our main concern must remain that our soldiers are not giving their lives in vain.
Click here to read the story of Pte. Patrick Lormand.
I intended to write more about the Afghanistan situation, the Karzai government, the corruption and fraudulent elections as claimed by Karzai opponents and some independent observers, but out of respect for Pte. Patrick Lormand I leave it at this for the time being. Recommend this post
What a sad story. He's from my neck of the woods, and I know a lot of people who knew him.
ReplyDeleteMay he rest in peace.
Sad indeed.
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