The Story from APM

Murder In Afghanistan

Monday, October 23 2006

Murder In Afghanistan

The Taliban has reasserted its presence in Afghanistan. The soldiers and religious leaders who make up the Taliban believe that Afghanistan is best served by a return to a strict form of Islamic law. They fought their way to power in the 1990s, were ousted after September 11, but now they have crept back.

There was brief period after the Taliban was ousted when it was thought that a massive infusion of aid could actually turn Afghanistan into a functioning democracy. But in September, the head of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime reported that 92% of the world's supply of illegal opium is now coming from Afghanistan.

Joel Hafvenstein

Dick talks to Joel Hafvenstein, who was an aid worker in Afghanistan during the first upsurge of the opium market in 2004. Joel hired 20,000 workers to rebuild the country's irrigation system. But over a three day period, his project was repeatedly attacked and several workers were killed. Drug money or the Taliban? Joel still doesn't know.

Our guard commander was one person we knew who was not going to sell us out to the Taliban. Because he himself had lost most of his family to a Taliban attack and had earned his command by revenge. Our security coordinator found that the captain and two of his deputies had vanished. The other guard said they had just gone home to take care of a family problem. Later that day, we saw a report that ten suspected Taliban had been killed in the home district of the captain. So a couple of days later the captain re-appears and our security coordinator goes to have a chat with him.

 He says, "So I understand you had a family problem?" The commander said "Yes."
"Was it a Taliban problem?"
"No"
"Was it an honor problem?"
"Yes."
"Did you kill ten Taliban?"
"Yes!"

Our security coordinator had to explain that while he was acting as our guard commander we would appreciate it if he didn't go on personal vendettas.

- Joel Hafvenstein

Joel recently returned to Afghanistan to begin a new project.

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