Alpharabius, a scholar and thinker in the realm of politics and civics, regarded society as a means to elevate people to virtue. Societies, according to him, are divided into two categories: complete and incomplete. Complete societies are those divided into three groups: “great,” “middle,” and “small,” encompassing all people on earth, a portion of land, a nation, and a part of a country, while “incomplete” societies include villages, neighborhoods, alleys, houses, etc.
Examining Afghanistan from a native perspective reveals that the republic era in Afghanistan had relatively acceptable success in defining civil society. The emergence and decline of various social movements in Afghanistan before the Taliban and Afghanistan under the banner of this group indicate that the groundwork for institutionalizing civic activities in Afghanistan had been laid. The presence of women on the streets of Kabul after the Taliban takeover and the underground and hidden formations of boys and girls throughout Afghanistan to demand social rights are significant indicators of this important value.
Although the terrorist regime of the Taliban in Afghanistan has severely damaged the relatively fragile body of civil society, it still gasps for breath. People who were gradually becoming familiar with modern social phenomena such as equal education, the right to vote, freedom, women’s rights, and children’s rights under the canopy of republicanism were pushed back decades upon the country’s fall.
Despite its shortcomings, the republic era made efforts to instill a culture of entitlement in the public consciousness. Civil institutions were introduced to the people as powerful arms of society and were utilized. Young girls and boys in various provinces of the country were practicing democracy. The activity under the umbrella of civil institutions was an honor for the youth and a launching pad toward a better future. The media also played a significant and influential role in shaping public opinion.
Although influential figures in Afghanistan’s civil space were introduced and began their activities freely, the lack of proper and precise oversight of civil activists led many opportunists to infiltrate civil campaigns and gain fame and wealth under the guise of democracy. However, in the face of the great wave of civil and cultural activists, the presence of opportunists was not so noticeable, and their activities were limited.
The fall of Afghanistan to the grip of the Taliban has darkened almost everything. Ethical values in civil society have collapsed. The intelligence and media apparatus of the Taliban, by demonizing prominent cultural figures and the country’s culture, sought to maintain and undermine civic mental frameworks. Instead, they presented thugs and fraudsters as cultural activists to legitimize their actions.
The same thugs who were pretending to be civil actors before the collapse of civic values have now found sustenance and support under the terrorist regime of the Taliban. From their semi-infamous and dark reputation, they have turned to preaching for the Taliban terrorist regime to gain profit. While these figures were infamous, they shared one thing with the Taliban: the downfall of values!
Now, less than three years into the presence of the illegitimate Taliban regime in Afghanistan, ineffective former civic figures have turned into active members of this group and have become even more demanding than the Taliban themselves.
The future after the Taliban is very concerning. The big question is how to convince the people and the society, who have seen duplicity and hypocrisy from civil activists and their contractors, to take to the streets for their rights.