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Syed Rahmatullah Hashimi
(Senior
Advisor to Amir ul-Mu'mineen, Mullah 'Umar, Afghanistan)
MARCH 10, 2001
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA,
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
***Important Note: What follows are some of the answers to
some of the questions that were asked during the Question and
Answer session. Most of the questions were not included due to
the poor recording. Apologies for the inconvenience.***
[Questioner asks about the infighting between Mujahideens now.
He asks, in the past we knew that there was one common enemy (the
Russians) and it was easy to support the Mujahideen but now it s
the groups of Mujahideens fighting between each other. How do you
explain this?]
They [the different Mujahideen groups] killed so many people,
and there were so many problem[s]. And that s why we started our
movement. It s all in these people. They didn't t fight for Shari
ah, or they didn't fight for Afghanistan, they only fought for
their future post in power. So we, as I told you that, we finished
that. And only now, we have one opposition headed by Ahmed Shah
Masood. And we don't have much problems with him. We had talks
with his representative in Ashkabad in Ramadhaan this year, and
I was there. So, we say that he failed in bringing about a constitution,
a unified gove! rnment; he could not even unify the capitol, Kabul.
So we did all these things. So we asked him, despite that he controls
nothing, except 5% in the mountains, and we have said we are still
open-minded. We agree that he should have a post, because he has
fought the Russians. And in `98, we agreed on a joint government;
actually, I was also there, so we agreed in giving them three
ministries and accepting their judicial system merging with our
judicial system, and giving them three or four district or provincial
governors or something like that. And they agreed on that. Our,
on our part, we asked them to give us their weapons, because the
problem in Afghanistan is not political differences. The problem
in Afghanis! tan is the weapons. Everybody has had weapons, and
now if they are fighting us, it is not because of our very much
ideological differences; it s because of weapons. There were a
lot of weapons before, and you know, the Afghans will know that
so many times they tried to have one government and then after
a week or so, they fought, because all of them got different defense
ministries, and they would fight. So now we have said that the
problems in Afghanistan is not the political problem; it is the
arms which exist. We are, we will accept them to be in our government
if he accepts to give his arms to the Ministers of Defense. We
have no problem however.
[Question asked about how people, especially Muslims, need to
be educated about the situation in Afghanistan. He went on further
to ask about whether or not he would be under a physical threat
if he were to shave his beard and walk into Afghanistan, or if a
sister would be under a physical threat if a sister were to wear
Hijab according to the Islamic standards, not wearing Burqah.]
You say that all the Muslims, or all the people, must be educated
on the situation in Afghanistan. And now I am thinking that first
they must be de-educated to try to understand what we are saying.
There are not [--], they are really trying how to approach, and
you are right, and I agree
that you must have Public Relations, in teaching people, or at
least, letting them know what we say. But as I told you that we
have other priorities. Our priority is to save the children. Our
priority is to de-mine our country. Our priority is to reunify
our country. Our priority is to stop the foreign! interference.
Our priority is to fight the [--] that is already operating in
our country. So for us to talk about Public Relations, it is important,
but it cannot what would you do if you were in this status? And
it is not easy to do Public Relations. You have to spend a lot
of money. I will tell you a story of CNN. CNN was in Afghanistan
interviewing bin Laden, in `98. You have to be careful in listening
to this. I was there, and they asked bin Laden as to what was
the thinking about the killing of civilians in Iraq. After three
hours of formal conversation, and the camera was rolling. He said,
that if all American citizens and if all British citizens are
willing, or supporting, to kill all Iraqi civ! ilians, then all
American citizens and all British citizens deserve the same thing
or to be killed. CNN cut everything. Three-hour conversation was
not there, only thing they put was and it was not complete the
only clause that they said was, the independent clause of what
he said, they said that, all American and British citizens must
be killed. This is what came on the air. But he didn t mean this.
And I know that all Americans do not support the killing [of]
civilians there. Not even a quarter of that. That was impossible.
But now what they taught their people was that bin Laden is saying
that all American civilians must be killed. That is the story
of media, and the media here is very irresponsible. They are commercialized,
and they'll do anything for selling advertisements.
He [the questioner] talked about the beard and the veil. First
of all, for all non-Afghans, this rule does not apply. So there
are many non-Afghans who are working there; there are actually
Americans who are working there in the UN, there are many people
from different parts of the world. And they do whatever [--],
they don't care. And we don't have a law for them. But Afghanistan
is a country that has gone through 23 years of war, and there
is still war, and the military is mixed with the people. Then
you must have some sort of strict law, in order to insure
security and peace in Afghanistan. So, maybe it is ridiculous
for you that we ask people to grow beards, but this is what, it
is in Afghanistan, and the Afghans do leave beard, whether or
not you tell them. And it s something natural, and it s something
[--]. And regarding the veil, or the Burqas, or the Islamic dress
code, that is something that exists in Afghanistan for centuries.
And it does exist in Iran, it does exist in Saudi Arabia, it exists
in many Islamic countries. It has nothing to do only with Afghanistan.
And it does even exist here. So you can t force people not to
have Burqas, and we do have that constitution that at this time,
women should cover up. For us because our priority is that they
should be safe.
[Questioner asks about what Afghans living in the US can do for
Afghanistan. She also gives a brief account of her experience in
Afghanistan, when she traveled there recently, and gave proof that
schools existed there, and that the situation there is much better,
more peaceful than it was six years ago. She traveled alone, all
over the country.]
Thank you very much. I m very happy that at least I found a proof!
[Audience laughs]
I m thankful to you [for] what you say, and I really appreciate
the emotions you have for your country. I myself, I m 24, and
serving my country. I could play football now, and I could even
play here, and I could stay in the United States, but I don't
do any of those things I serve my country. So I agree that whatever,
all those things that exist in Afghanistan, maybe there are many
things that we don't want, but they do exist. So we are not a
sponsor for that. They did exist for two decade[s]. So the best
thing to do for Afghanistan is to have an association of Afghans
to raise funds, and the best thing I would say [is to] educate
people. Instead of criticism, they can come there! and open a
school. They can open a school for girls, for boys. But that would
be the best thing. Unfortunately some of our Afghans are sitting
in their air-conditioning rooms here, play their TV s, and when
they have nothing to do, then they criticize us because we can
t make Europe for them. We can do it, we have a lot of problems,
but the first thing they should do is to stop harming us. They
have to come and help us, in all the sectors. We do need all the
Afghans from here. If they really criticize our policies, they
should come there and criticize our policies, not from here. So
the best thing for ! you is for you people to raise funds, do
NOT give it to us, one of you should come there, help the people.
[Questioner asks about women being required to have a male escort
whenever they go out. She also questions whether or not if she were
to go into Afghanistan wearing what she was now (a jilbab and hijab)
would she be under any physical threat.]
You [the questioner] said, told me about whether a woman was allowed
to go without a male escort. I m here, and my wife is shopping in
Kandahar now. So they don't have to be escorted, this is absolutely
wrong. Yes, they were, in those cities that we captured first, because
that was for their safety. Now, they don't have to. And I don't
have any problem with whatever you wear, and women do wear the same
thing that you do wear, and they don't have any problems. And I
say that those cities, which are close to the frontline and there
is military operations going on close, there are thousands of military
soldiers of ours, we do ask women to avoid the social areas. Now
you re not understanding what I mean, but some of our friends here
do understand. In a country that is in a war, the military is mixed
with the people, and there are certain limitations. So I can't go
beyond that, and I say that women does not have to be escorted.
I m here now and my wife is shopping maybe in Kandahar.
[Questioner asks What is Afghanistan s priority in regards to
establishing an Islamic state for all Muslims, not just for Afghans?
]
He'd like to destroy us.
[Audience laughs]
We have our first headache in Afghanistan, and that s a big headache.
We have a full-time job there. If we were worked 24 hours a day,
we will hardly ever be able to re-construct an [--] Islamic system
in our own country. And we have no intention of going beyond our
borders, and neither we can. So, all these people who exist in other
countries, or their policies, they have nothing to do with us. We
are only concerned about Afghanistan. And please do not try to make
assumptions. Ask me questions. I was asked in... I was in Bay Area
just yesterday, a journalist asked me, Why do you hate women? And
I told him, Why do you beat your wife? And he said, I don't beat
my wife. I said, I don't hate women.
[Audience laughs]
So you have to ask me questions. You just make assumptions. You
just make an assumption. Like he said, you explain for one hour,
for five minutes saying the same thing again and again, you ve
made an assumption. You didn t ask me whether a woman must be
escorted or not
this is an easy question. But if you say, Why are you doing this
, Why are you doing... We re not doing it. The question is, here,
you don't have to make assumptions.
[Questioner: My country (Iran) is suffering from drug-trafficking
from Afghanistan; you said that you [--] drugs from your area, but
how can you explain this contradiction? You have said that you cannot
even make a needle, what does it mean..? ]
I would like to answer this question first and then I will not forget.
I said Afghanistan produced 75% of all worlds Opium, 75% of all
worlds. And we eradicated it last year. And this was announced not
only by United Nations, who rejects this? All of them know it was
announced by Iranian government [--]. I don't say it was we eradicated
five years ago [it was] this year. United Nations announced ...
[Questioner: You mean 2001? So that s two months ago??
But our country is still suffering from that?! He continues to
argue]
Please, please try to hear what I m saying.
[Questioner continues to talk and argue, MSA representatives try
to calm him down.]
[Questioner goes on, I know, but this is the question I wanted
to ask ...]
My brother, listen to me. You say that your country is still suffering
from Opium from Afghanistan. I do not say that we eradicated it
five years ago. This year, the United Nations Drug Control Program,
announced that there was 0% Opium cultivation; Iran, too, admitted
that. So if you don't know that, your problem. New York Times
announced this; it was in a New York Times editoral. So if you
don't know this, then it s your problem. I do admit that there
are still some piles of Opium that exists from the years before
the last cultivation that may [have been sent] to
your country. But we will admit, that we have, and I told you
that, there are missions for us, across Afghanistan, to Iran,
to our country, and they are trying to eradicate the already existing
Opium; it was not produced this year; it was produced the year
before last.
[Questioner asks whether or not they have asked for a loan
from the World Bank or IMF]
Not yet. We have not asked IMF neither the World Bank to help
us. But if they do help us, we will no reject it. So we are not
asking because we are not being recognized so we can t ask them
for loans.
[Questioner : is a Political Scientist and is asking whether
or not Bureaucrats and Technocrats are needed in Afghanistan because,
according to him, the Taliban are not smart enough, suitable to
be governing Afghanistan.]
We never say that we are perfect. The question is, Who could do
more than we do? These seven parties? The Communists? Or the King?
Who did this? The things that we have done? Who could do more
than that? It s very easy to say, to criticize from here, Do this,
do this, do that.. But it s very difficult to do that. You said
that the Taliban are not Bureaucrats and Technocrats, and we re
not going to change that. I m sorry to say, you know what the
old king of Afghanistan, he was 88 years old, and he spent seven
years living in Rome, he had bought an island there, and now this
man wants to come back to Afghanistan and head the government.
The old, rotten knucklehead.
[Audience laughs]
So, we were very surprised as to what did he do in 43 years of
his government? He didn t do anything. He only knew how to decorate
his palace. I am sorry to say this. And now the same man, after
43 years Sorry, 27 years, is willing to go back and govern; he
cannot even take a
flight back to Afghanistan. He is too weak. So how is he going
to? So we do need professionals. We don't say that we are perfect.
And I repeat it again, we cannot come here, and ask everybody
to come help us. We have asked so many times. Anybody willing
to help their country, come and
help. And many people come and ask me, Well, how do we go?
..How did you come here?!
[Audience laughs]
And yeah, go there if women can go there, what is the problem?
But if you ask us to give you the government, then that s difficult.
So I agree with you that we need Technocrats, but we don't need
politicians.
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