Amid rocket attacks and gunfire, Afghanistan’s three-day peace assembly of elders that could help expand President Hamid Karzai’s support base and improve chances of stability began in Kabul on Wednesday.
At least one rocket landed around 70 metres from the giant air-conditioned tent pitched near the Intercontinental Hotel, where around 1,600 invitees had assembled for the National Consultative Peace Jirga . “It seems that some people are trying to disrupt the Jirga by firing rockets,” said Mr. Karzai after waves from one blast shook the tent. “I would like you to remain in the tent and continue the Jirga . I am sure you all agree with me that we all are used to bombings and explosions.” India's Ambassador to Afghanistan, Jayant Prasad, was inside the tent at the time.
The purpose of the Jirga is to adopt a road-map of reconciliation involving vast sections of people who have been associated with the Taliban. Diplomatic sources told The Hindu that according to the Afghan assessment, only around one per cent of the people within the movement can be designated as “hard-core Taliban” having terror links with the al-Qaeda. The rest outside this hardened inner circle have been with the Taliban in anticipation of political patronage and protection. It is mainly the majority lower rung Taliban foot-soldiers that the Karzai government wishes to engage.
Nevertheless, the President's $160-million reintegration plan does envisage dealing with top extremist leaders by offering them “potential exile” in a third country, which could be Saudi Arabia. At the heart of the reintegration process would be the establishment of a High Level Peace Council, which would hold dialogue with those who wish to join the mainstream, put them in “demobilisation centres” and assess their vocational requirements within a 90 day time line. The government also plans to absorb disarmed ex-Taliban in large infrastructure projects, such as road construction, to be earmarked by the proposed Engineering and Construction Corps.
A day ahead of the conference, the Taliban leadership rejected Mr. Karzai's initiative, by saying it did not represent Afghans and served to promote the interests of outsiders.
The Hizb-e-Islami, of former Prime Minister Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, also dismissed the Jirga as a “useless exercise”.
“The participants of the Jirga are state favourites,” said a statement released by the group. “They have no power of decision. It is only a consultative Jirga without any participation of the Mujahideen [resistance fighters].”
The success of Mr. Karzai's initiative could help in the realisation Washington's “exit strategy” said to begin with American troop withdrawal from Afghanistan in July 2011.
