In the past two and a half years, the Taliban have continuously imposed restrictions on various sectors and segments of society. Amidst the imposition of these restrictions, numerous atrocities have been inflicted upon the people, with many instances of crimes against humanity perpetrated by this group. International organizations, alongside their special rapporteurs and free media, have documented a small portion of these crimes. During this period, the Taliban have repeatedly violated their commitments to the global community, particularly to the United States of America, and have acted treacherously towards them. They have also reneged on commitments to the Afghan people, such as “general amnesty,” and have not remained faithful to their pledges. Furthermore, in other important instances, this group deems the Afghan people unworthy and undeserving of engaging in dialogue, consultation, and negotiation with them. Instead, they engage in discussions and negotiations with the United States of America, Pakistan, Iran, Russia, China, India, Qatar, and several other countries. It seems that the most significant unilateral commitment of the Taliban to the people of Afghanistan is what is colloquially referred to as “General Amnesty” by Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada. However, reports continuously communicate cases of detention, abduction, torture, and killings of former security forces. As of the writing of this note, the latest of these incidents occurred yesterday in Kabul, where they apprehended Issa Khan, a retired general.
The current situation in the country is clear to many, yet society endures the Taliban’s crimes and atrocities in deadly silence. Despite the presence of military fronts and underground groups of protesting women, none of these have posed a serious challenge to the Taliban so far. While they have managed to dent the Taliban’s image and question their claims, they have failed to threaten the group’s existence or compel them to change their behavior. Even the women who have ignited underground protest networks after being suppressed on the streets do not receive solidarity from other members of society. Some even unjustly accuse them of protesting to open immigration files. The men of society have also left these protesting women alone. Even when some of them are detained and tortured, no one reacts to the Taliban’s actions. This silence has many reasons, with the most significant being the ongoing terror instilled by the Taliban in society. However, other important factors could also contribute to this deadly silence. But before delving into the primary reasons for this silence, it is necessary to discuss why it is so deadly.
The Taliban treat the people of Afghanistan as they please. Arrests, sexual assaults, torture, and killings are part of these atrocities. Dozens of reports have been published so far about the killings of former soldiers and other Taliban opponents in prisons and under torture. These deaths occur in the shadow of Afghan society’s silence towards their surrounding atrocities, rendering it deadly. Another form of oppression by this group, which makes the silence even deadlier, is the executions resulting from vigilante justice. In Taliban vigilante courts, the accused is usually a Taliban opponent, and even the right to a fair defense is denied to them. Narratives and reports from Taliban prisons and trials depict this exact situation. The face of this heavy silence in society against the Taliban’s inhumane behavior is very bloody.
One reason for this silence is the people’s expectations of the Taliban. In two rounds of governance and twenty years of war against the people and government of Afghanistan, the Taliban have demonstrated the most inhumane behaviors. When faced with the Taliban’s rule, people, based on previous experiences, have lowered their expectations of governance. Now these people, who have endured centuries of genocide, oppression, torture, and sexual assault from a group as old as their history, do not expect humane behavior. For this reason, as events become more inhumane and the Taliban execute them, people realize that they are dealing with an updated version of the Taliban and expecting more humane behavior from them is futile; a Taliban whose thinking may be ancient but who utilizes the internet, smartphones, and social networks.
Another reason for this deadly silence is the mistrust of the people towards the power of social movements. Popular protests must take place within the framework of social movements, but unfortunately, the experience of such movements in Afghanistan has not been successful. Even during the republic era, which was the most humane regime in recent decades, social movements were severely suppressed by the government and accused of crimes left unresolved until they were eventually dismantled. These movements, notably the Enlightenment Movement and Uprising for Change, sacrificed to achieve their goals but achieved nothing. Perhaps the experience of these movements has created the mistaken belief in people’s minds that protest and social movements are not the way to power or change, but rather armed conflict for which people are currently unprepared. In reinforcing this view, the phenomenon of “political turnovers” has played a direct role in contemporary Afghan history. However, we have many successful global experiences where social movements have effectively acted against totalitarian regimes. One or two unsuccessful experiences in Afghanistan cannot be sufficient reason for the failure of future movements.
Another reason for the people’s silence is their disbelief in people’s power. In contemporary Afghan history, powerful countries globally and regionally have prominently played roles in regime change, from the era of Shah Shuja to Abdul Rahman Khan and then to the Taliban’s resurgence. In the twenty-first century, when the first Taliban emirate was defeated, it was due to the military intervention of the international community, led by the United States. Although resistance forces continued their war against the Taliban, especially in the north of the country, when American fighter jets targeted the Taliban from the sky, they uprooted the Taliban’s emirate on Afghan soil. Similarly, when after two decades the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan fell to the Taliban, it was due to the Taliban’s deal with the United States in Doha and the interventions of neighboring countries, including Pakistan and Iran. Therefore, a mistaken notion has been formed that apparently in Afghanistan, the system will not change until powerful countries intervene. Since currently no country is inclined to become involved in Afghan affairs, people are disillusioned with foreign support. On the other hand, the Taliban have emphasized their steadfastness in both rounds of their rule, despite the narrative of Taliban change being preached towards the end of the republic. However, in practice, this group has not changed from its first round. People, due to the same tradition of system change following foreign intervention, are disillusioned with foreign support and do not believe in Taliban change internally. Therefore, they remain silent in the face of the atrocities of this group until the day another external power sidelines the Taliban again.
The reasons and factors for the people’s silence, as mentioned, are undoubtedly very serious, but that’s not the whole story. If people trust each other and stand together, no Mullah Haibatullah can resist people’s power indefinitely. The minimum action would be the Taliban’s behavior becoming more humane as a result of social pressure. However, protests and launching social movements are not possible without costs, especially when faced with a radical and hardline group like the Taliban. This is happening while society already pays a heavy price. The killing of former security forces, the arrest, and torture of journalists and civil activists, the detention and torture of female protesters, disrespect towards families, sexual assaults by this group on people’s dignity, extortion, and hundreds of other costs are paid by society daily. In social movements and major protests, protesters may pay an even heavier price, but they will not always pay this price. The difference is that they do not pay the price every day, but they might pay the heaviest price once. However, society is not ready to pay the price. On one hand, people want a country free from social costs to rescue the country from Taliban rule, and on the other hand, in the absence of strong external support, they do not believe in the power and strength of the people.
Afghanistan’s mosaic and pluralistic society have made cohesion among social forces difficult, but not impossible. If women and men stand together for their freedom and rights, no Mullah Haibatullah can be an absolute ruler and bloodthirsty as he pleases with the people. When global powers do not have their interests at stake, they do not care about the people of Afghanistan, and if people do not push themselves and pressure the Taliban for more humane governance, they will be forced to bear the daily and continuous cost of Taliban rule. No amount of repression can suppress the power of social forces, and no suicide bomber can defeat them. We have seen small examples of this even during the Taliban’s dark era. When after the abduction of young girls from Dasht-e-Barchi in Kabul by the Taliban, Waizada Behsudi protested against it and people echoed his protest, the Taliban reduced the scope of abductions and even justified or denied them in the media at times. Therefore, no one but the people of Afghanistan themselves will save them.