by Christine Douglass-Williams
“We were asking for our rights. A political system that respects all Afghans. And an end to Pakistan’s constant interference in Afghanistan, that’s it”
Freedom advocates do not have a bright future in Afghanistan, given the ruthlessness of the Taliban. Nonetheless, “hundreds of protesters took to the streets of the capital Kabul chanting anti-Pakistan slogans and calling for ‘freedom’, a day after resistance leader Ahmad Massoud called for an ‘uprising’ against the Taliban rule.”
Anything reported out of Afghanistan will increasingly become shrouded by propaganda, given Taliban control over media and its strong-arming of the population to keep it in a stranglehold under strict Islamic rule.
The protesters tried to avoid anti-Taliban rhetoric as they focused on demands for freedom, women’s rights and an end to Pakistani interference. But the Taliban fired shots to disperse the demonstrators and injured some, causing at least two to be hospitalized.
Unfortunately all of the protester demands in the Taliban’s view translate to rebellion against Taliban rule, as Pakistan supports the Taliban, the Taliban is extremely oppressive to women as per the Sharia, and freedom is incompatible with the Islamic law to which the Taliban strictly adheres.
“Hundreds of Afghans take to Kabul’s streets calling for ‘freedom,’” by Ali M. Latifi, Al Jazeera, September 7, 2021:
Kabul, Afghanistan – Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of the capital Kabul chanting anti-Pakistan slogans and calling for “freedom”, a day after resistance leader Ahmad Massoud called for an “uprising” against the Taliban rule.
The demonstrations – which ranged in size from several hundred to a few dozen – began on Tuesday morning and continued into the afternoon before they were dispersed by the Taliban fighters firing into the air, protesters told Al Jazeera.
Journalists also said that they were prohibited from filming, with TOLONews, a private broadcaster based in Kabul, saying at least one of their cameramen was detained for filming the protests.
A source in the traffic police from the previous administration speaking to Al Jazeera from near the entrance to the Presidential Palace, said they saw the Taliban destroy several cameras and arrest journalists as they followed protesters towards the palace.
Shakib Ghori, one of the protesters who marched towards the Presidential Palace, said that the crowd of hundreds were only calling for “freedom” and criticising the “intrusion” of neighbouring Pakistan into Afghanistan’s domestic affairs.
Ghori said though the protesters were demanding an inclusive government and that the rights of women be respected, none of their gatherings was meant to be explicitly anti-Taliban.
“We were asking for our rights. A political system that respects all Afghans. And an end to Pakistan’s constant interference in Afghanistan, that’s it,” Ghori said adding that he saw no reason for the Taliban to try and break up the protest.
“We didn’t say anything about the Taliban, so why would they fire?”
Ghori said the Taliban also began to hit people, and he was also hit by the butt of a gun. He also said that he transferred at least two injured protesters to nearby hospitals….
Christine Douglass-Williams
Source: https://www.jihadwatch.org/2021/09/afghanistan-protestors-chant-anti-pakistan-slogans-and-call-for-freedom
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