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Roadside bomb kills 10 in Afghanistan
By MIRWAIS KHAN | Associated Press – Sun, Jan 27, 2013
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) — A police truck packed with officers and detainees struck a roadside bomb in southern Afghanistan's largest city, killing 10 of those aboard, officials said Sunday.
It was one of four blasts Saturday that left at least 24 people dead across the country. Attacks by insurgents are a daily occurrence around Afghanistan and the Afghan police with their unarmored pickup trucks and remote checkpoints are a common target.
In the Kandahar city blast, police had driven to a residential neighborhood of the city at night to inspect a bomb that had been found there, said Javid Faisal, a spokesman for the provincial government. They detained three suspects and were driving back with them in a police pickup truck when the vehicle struck another explosive buried in the road. Eight police officers and two detainees were killed in the blast.
Meanwhile, Afghan authorities accused NATO of killing three civilian men in a nighttime ambush in the eastern Logar province. The coalition disputed the account, saying it had no operations in Logar's Baraki Barak district Saturday night. NATO said there were three dead, but they were insurgents killed by Afghan forces.
Deputy provincial police chief Rais Khan Abdul Rahimzai said all three of the added were civilians. "They were brothers. They had dinner at one of their brother's houses in another part of the district and it was when they were driving back that they were ambushed by the foreign soldiers," Rahimzai said. "It was a misunderstanding in which foreign forces shot and killed three people."
A spokesman for the international force disputed the Afghan version of the incident. "This was the ANSF," said Maj. Martyn Crighton, referring to the Afghan National Security Forces. He said they went after three men who had been seen burying a bomb in the ground and "got engaged in a firefight with these guys."
It was not possible to reconcile the conflicting accounts.
Earlier Saturday, 10 policemen were killed when a suicide bomber on a motorcycle blew himself up in Kunduz province in the north. Elsewhere, a remote-controlled bomb planted on a bicycle exploded in the eastern city of Ghazni, killing one police officer and a civilian. And in the west, officials in Farah province said Sunday that two police officers were killed there Saturday evening when their vehicle hit a roadside bomb.
On Sunday in the south, a roadside bomb in the town of Marjah killed another three police officers, said Ahmad Zarak, a spokesman for the Helmand provincial government.
Main opposition leaders discuss Afghan presidential election
By Sajad Khaama Press January 27, 2013
Senior members of the National Front — the main political opposition coalition of the Afghan government following a joint press conference with the provincial governor for northern Balkh province of Afghanistan Ata Mohammad Noor announced to support a specified candidate introduced by the coalition for the upcoming presidential election.
The National Front of Afghanistan following a statement also expressed their concerns regarding a free and fair presidential election.
The press conference was attended by head of the National Front Ahmad Zia Massound, Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum, Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq and former Afghan spy chief Amrullah Saleh besides Balkh governor Ata Mohammad Noor.
Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq head of the Hezb-e-Wahdat Millie Afghanistan and a member of the National Coalition said they are concerned regarding the presidential election due to be organized in 2014.
He said the main reason behind their gathering was to convey their message to Afghan people that the National Front of Afghanistan will remain and move united towards the upcoming presidential election.
Mohaqiq said, “We call on the Afghan people not waste their votes, they should vote for a specified candidate and we will hopefully announce him in the near future.”
In the meantime Balkh governor Ata Mohammad Noor said he will participate in 2014 presidential election only if his conditions are met.
Ata Mohammad Noor said this should be shared and consulted with Abdullah Abdullah head of the national coalition, Mohammad Qasim Fahim deputy president and the leadership of Jamiat party.
He also said to consider participating in upcoming presidential election and announced that he had meetings with Zalmai Khalilzad regarding his unity for the presidential election however he said that they could not reach to an agreement.
Ata Mohammad Noor is serving as Balkh governor since 2004 and is considered to be one of the most powerful provincial governor in Afghanistan.
Despite almost a year is left for the presidential election in Afghanistan however coalition parties and other political parties have started their activities and a similar session was organized in capital Kabul on Saturday by other coalitions and political parties to express their concerns regarding a fair and free election in 2014,
According to political observers the National Front of Afghanistan will become a key player in 2014 presidential election if other political parities and coalitions agree to join them.
Hekmatyar: Judicial Immunity to US Soldiers Prolongs War in Afghanistan
Fars News Agency January 27, 2013
TEHRAN (FNA)- Leader of Hezb-i-Islami Afghanistan (HIA) Gulbadin Hekmatyar described complete withdrawal of the foreign forces as his party's precondition for attending the next presidential election, and said if Kabul gives judicial immunity to the US forces, war will continue in Afghanistan.
"If the foreign military forces withdraw from Afghanistan and a transparent and fair election is held, the Hezb-i-Islami will participate in the upcoming presidential election," Hekmatyar said in an interview with Kabulnews private tv channel on Sunday.
He, meantime, said that if Kabul and Washington sign a security pact which gives judicial immunity to the US forces in Afghanistan, his party will be left with no other way but continued resistance and war.
The US-led war in Afghanistan began in October 2001. The offensive removed the Taliban from power, but insecurity continues to rise across the country, despite the presence of thousands of US-led troops.
Iranian officials have frequently lashed out at the US and NATO forces for occupation of Afghanistan for more than a decade under the pretext of war on terror.
Tehran stresses that the responsibility for the establishment of security and stability in Afghanistan should be in hands of the country's government and security forces, but not foreigners.
Afghanistan has long been a focus of imperial rivalry and scene of foreign intervention, most recently since the 2001 US-led invasion but also in the 1980s uprising against Russian troops that ultimately helped bring down the Soviet Union.
Washington denies it is seeking to establish permanent military bases in Afghanistan, but American military sources say they envisage around 15,000 forces remaining in Afghanistan after the 2014 withdrawal.
Qatar set to host Afghan art expo
Gulf Times By Zia Khan/Staff Reporter 27 January 2013
Qatar will this year host an exhibition of Afghan art in an apparent cultural-cum-political move as Doha prepares to mediate between the Kabul administration and the Taliban, to seek peace in the war torn country.
A top official said yesterday that the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) will organise the event in March, to let the world get a feel of the heritage of Afghanistan—a country otherwise known for Al Qaeda inspired violence and decades of deadly armed conflict.
“We look forward to it as one of our major achievements,” said Aisha al-Khater, the director of MIA. She was speaking to the media at the official launch of the first Alain Ducasse restaurant in the Middle East, IDAM, at the museum premises on the Corniche Street.
Ducasse combines world famous French Mediterranean style with Arab influences.
Aisha said the launch of the world class restaurant at the museum would give visitors a whole new feel of the traditional Arabian cuisine. “It feels we are complete today,” she added.
Though she attempted to downplay any political motive or significance of having Afghan art on display in Doha, the timing of the event suggests it is likely to be much more than just a cultural experience.
“It has nothing to do with the politics or diplomacywe started planning it almost two years ago,” said Aisha.
The announcement came amid assertions by top Qatari leaders including Prime Minister and Foreign Minister HE Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani, that they would facilitate the Afghan reconciliation process by allowing the militia to open a temporary liaison office in Doha.
Qatar Museum Authority (QMA) — of which MIA is a flagship project — has never organised in the past any exhibition to display cultural heritage from Muslim countries located in the neighbourhood of Afghanistan including Pakistan.
Officials from Afghanistan and Pakistan told Gulf Times over the weekend that negotiators from the Afghan Taliban ranks had already arrived in Doha to kick-start the process and the opening of the office is expected soon.
Many experts are also on record explaining that Qatar being one of the most significant players in the global arena, especially in the Islamic world, has decided to go all out to support international efforts to end the bloodshed in
Afghanistan since the Russian invasion in 1979.
“When you go for aggressive diplomacy, you are supposed to try all avenues, culture, trade, politics and even coercion, if it is neededthis may be the idea behind the event,” said Irfan Shahzad, a researcher on Afghanistan and Central Asia with Pakistan-based Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), in reply to an online query.
In Afghanistan, teaching music to overcome war's percussion
Stars and Stripes By Heath Druzin January 26, 2013
KABUL - When insurgents launched a brazen attack that turned into a nine-hour siege in the heart of the capital, many government and Western offices shut down for the day. Down the road from the attack, young Afghan students at the Afghanistan National Institute of Music were playing Bach and Mozart, punctuated by the occasional thud of an explosion.
“Why we should shut down? Give up to the Taliban?” the institute’s director, Ahmad Sarmast, said incredulously a day after the attack. “When I came yesterday, I was amazed to see 137 students at the school. They came from all over town. It’s a nice way to say ‘no’ to violence.”
Sarmast is the founder and driving force behind the music institute. Six days a week, young Afghans come to learn and play Western and regional music. Next month, more than 50 students from the school will embark on a two-week U.S. tour that includes dates at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center.
Sarmast, an animated musical crusader who chased his education from the Soviet Union to Australia as Afghanistan crumbled, has made it his quest to rebuild his country’s musical heritage. The institute, which opened in June 2010, grew out of his Revival of Afghan Music project, which he launched in 2006.
Most of the teachers at the school come from abroad, including a large contingent from the U.S.
The school has about 140 students, half of whom are either orphans or who were working on the street selling trinkets and chewing gum. There are plans to greatly expand in the coming years. Tuition is free for all students and the school compensates families of former street kids so they don’t have to work during their studies. While Sarmast set out to re-establish music education, his goals are much broader.
“Music has got a strong healing power,” he said. “In a post-conflict country like Afghanistan, where the majority of people are badly traumatized, definitely they need music for their healing.”
In the bustling hallways of the school, anyone who has spent time in Kabul is struck by one aspect: Girls and boys study together, still a rarity in Afghanistan and something on which Sarmast has been insistent. Students are also carefully picked from across Afghanistan and from the country’s different ethnic groups, which Sarmast says is aimed at building national unity. He hopes his project helps build not only the country’s music scene but the foundation of a democratic future.
“You can’t establish a civil society or democratic society or contribute [to] human rights when you’re ignoring cultural rights,” he said.
Many of the students at the school harbor hopes that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago: They aim to become professional musicians. Whether that will be possible in Afghanistan remains to be seen, but there’s no lack of optimism among the students.
Confident, curly haired Sapna, 10, came to the institute from an impoverished family. Her father is dead and her mother struggles to support her five siblings. Sapna said she was immediately drawn to the piano when she came to the institute two years ago.
“It has a very sweet voice,” she said.
Now a top student, Sapna will be representing the school on the U.S. tour, and aims to become a concert pianist.
“I can teach a lot of people about Afghanistan,” she said. “Just yesterday, there was fighting in Afghanistan, and we don’t want this fighting in Afghanistan. We are the future of Afghanistan, and we continue to change the future.”
Faiz Sultani, 18, a violin student, said he looks forward to the cultural exchange between Afghans and Americans on the tour.
“I’m sure American people think just about war and fighting (in Afghanistan), but I think they should know we can do something else,” he said.
The school is supported in part by about $500,000 per year from the U.S. State Department that goes toward both English language programs and a winter music academy. The State Department is also spending about $355,000 on the institute’s U.S. tour.
It’s part of a U.S. Embassy Kabul cultural affairs program that also included funding for the short film “Buzkashi Boys,” which was shot entirely in Kabul using Afghan actors and recently snagged an Oscar nomination.
The tour is not only a good opportunity for the students to experience the U.S. but can provide an opening for Americans to learn more about a country they hear about mostly through the prism of war, said Michelle Jones, a cultural affairs officer at the U.S. Embassy Kabul.
“I think it will incite people to want to know more about Afghan music and Afghan culture,” she said.
Sarmast has another goal: to show Americans that their 11-year venture in Afghanistan has meant something.
“One of the major ideas behind the tour of the United States is to show the taxpayers who have been supporting the army in Afghanistan — people who supported the fight against terrorism in Afghanistan, people who have been eager to help the Afghan people stand on their own feet — to show the investment is not gone,” he said. “I believe musicians are the best ambassadors of the nation.”
Zubair Babakarkhail contributed to this report.
druzinh@estripes.osd.mil
Govt Setting Up 2014 Election for Fraud: Political Council
TOLOnews.com By Sayed Azim Arash Saturday, 26 January 2013
The Cooperation Council of Political Parties and Coalitions of Afghanistan has accused the Karzai regime of setting up the 2014 presidential election for fraud after the government forced the country's election body to back down on implementing new voter registrations.
Members of the 20-party council said that the president intervened in the affairs of the Independent Election Commission (IEC) instead of encouraging a fair and transparent election.
The IEC revealed Wednesday that it will allow the use of the previous registration system and voting cards instead of pursuing its earlier demand for new registrations and electronic cards in order to reduce the chance of fraudulent votes.
The shift came after pressure from President Hamid Karzai himself who declared there was not enough money to implement the IEC demand.
"The government is trying to provide opportunities of fraud in an election by using old cards in the election," member of Islamic Unity party Rajab Ali Danish said at a press conference in Kabul.
"We are aiming for a transparent election and we ask the government to not intervene in the election," National Coalition member Eng Asim said.
Furthermore, council members warned that the Taliban is likely to try to sabotage the election process by launching attacks and violations.
"The Taliban still does not believe in holding an election. They will try to sabotage it with violence," National Front member Mohammad Natiqi said.
The press conference was held after some political parties warned Thursday that the IEC decision could ultimately lead to a political crisis if the election is fraudulent.
The IEC said that new voting cards and registrations will only be given to those who were not registered in Afghanistan's past elections.
Iranian Energy Minister Conveys Ahmadinejad's Message to Karzai
Fars News Agency January 27, 2013
TEHRAN (FNA)- Iranian Energy Minister Majid Namjou, who is on an official visit to Kabul, submitted a message from President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai.
In his message, President Ahmadinejad has underlined the necessity for Iranian companies' more active participation and partnership in Afghanistan's water and power sectors, and called on Kabul officials to pave the way for these companies' increased presence and operation in Afghanistan.
In his meeting with President Karzai on Sunday, Namjou also discussed mutual cooperation in different economic fields, including water and electricity.
The Iranian energy minister arrived in Afghanistan today to discuss further expansion of ties and energy cooperation between the two nations.
During his stay in Afghanistan, Namjou also attended the inaugural ceremony of two Iranian-made electric turbines today.
Two diesel turbines with the power generation capacities of 25 megawatts became operational on Sunday. Afghanistan's Energy and Water Minister Ismail Khan was also present at the inaugural ceremony of the Iranian-made electric turbines.
Namjou described his meeting with Afghan Energy and Water Minister Ismail Khan as positive and constructive.
Iran has helped Afghanistan in upgrading g its electricity system and half of Herat city's electricity needs are supplied by the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Iran is one of the most important donors to Afghanistan which has kept its promises to help to the reconstruction of the war-hit country.
Iran has built some roads, power transmission lines, and border stations, among the other infrastructure projects which would better link the two nations.
Beach Football Cup Hopes Dashed After Loss to Bahrain
TOLOnews.com Saturday, 26 January 2013
Afghanistan's beach football team lost to Bahrain 2-5 in its fourth and final match in Doha Friday night, its last chance to qualify for the 2013 FIFA Beach Football World Cup in Tahiti later this year.
Afghanistan had started out strong in the Asian qualifiers for the FIFA tournament, convincingly beating Qatar 7-3 last week. But it lost its three following matches to Oman, Australia and now Bahrain respectively.
The Afghan team finished 11th place out of 16 countries vying for three spots from the Asian nations.
Samiullah Mohammadi, the team captain and striker, scored nine goals – the most of any other player in the team – across all four games.
The team's starting lineup was Kavosh, Jameel Naseeri, Ghulam Hazrat Baran, Mahmoud Azad, and Samiullah Mohammadi.
The FIFA Beach Football World Cup is played every two years. Russia won in 2011, with Brazil, Portugal and El Salvador securing second, third and fourth.
Traffic Laws Mostly Broken by Officials: Police
TOLOnews.com By Haseeb Maudoodi Saturday, 26 January 2013
Kabul police officials Saturday said that a crackdown on illegal vehicles and increased enforcement of road rules has found that it is primarily top officials who ignore traffic laws.
Specifically, a presidential decree banning vehicles from having black, tinted windows is largely flouted by figures in power, despite the National Security Council urging for two years for these vehicles to no longer be used.
The police are seeking to remove the heavily-tinted vehicles from the roads while also reviewing vehicles' documents and licenses for weapons.
"We have removed the cars of two officials, of two MPs. They have to consider the laws and the president's decree," Deputy chief Gen. Zaheer of Central Police Corps 111 Kabul.
There are fears that such vehicles are used for illegal activity including transporting insurgents into Kabul.
"The enemy misuses the vehicles that are black-tinted or have no documents. We request the officials and those who carry out illegal activities to stop the enemy from doing such things," said Kabul Police HQ Deputy of Security Mohammad Amin Daoud.
It is not clear how many of these vehicles are still on the roads and how many have been removed as there are no documents recording these statistics.
www.afghanistannewscenter.com
By MIRWAIS KHAN | Associated Press – Sun, Jan 27, 2013
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) — A police truck packed with officers and detainees struck a roadside bomb in southern Afghanistan's largest city, killing 10 of those aboard, officials said Sunday.
It was one of four blasts Saturday that left at least 24 people dead across the country. Attacks by insurgents are a daily occurrence around Afghanistan and the Afghan police with their unarmored pickup trucks and remote checkpoints are a common target.
In the Kandahar city blast, police had driven to a residential neighborhood of the city at night to inspect a bomb that had been found there, said Javid Faisal, a spokesman for the provincial government. They detained three suspects and were driving back with them in a police pickup truck when the vehicle struck another explosive buried in the road. Eight police officers and two detainees were killed in the blast.
Meanwhile, Afghan authorities accused NATO of killing three civilian men in a nighttime ambush in the eastern Logar province. The coalition disputed the account, saying it had no operations in Logar's Baraki Barak district Saturday night. NATO said there were three dead, but they were insurgents killed by Afghan forces.
Deputy provincial police chief Rais Khan Abdul Rahimzai said all three of the added were civilians. "They were brothers. They had dinner at one of their brother's houses in another part of the district and it was when they were driving back that they were ambushed by the foreign soldiers," Rahimzai said. "It was a misunderstanding in which foreign forces shot and killed three people."
A spokesman for the international force disputed the Afghan version of the incident. "This was the ANSF," said Maj. Martyn Crighton, referring to the Afghan National Security Forces. He said they went after three men who had been seen burying a bomb in the ground and "got engaged in a firefight with these guys."
It was not possible to reconcile the conflicting accounts.
Earlier Saturday, 10 policemen were killed when a suicide bomber on a motorcycle blew himself up in Kunduz province in the north. Elsewhere, a remote-controlled bomb planted on a bicycle exploded in the eastern city of Ghazni, killing one police officer and a civilian. And in the west, officials in Farah province said Sunday that two police officers were killed there Saturday evening when their vehicle hit a roadside bomb.
On Sunday in the south, a roadside bomb in the town of Marjah killed another three police officers, said Ahmad Zarak, a spokesman for the Helmand provincial government.
Main opposition leaders discuss Afghan presidential election
By Sajad Khaama Press January 27, 2013
Senior members of the National Front — the main political opposition coalition of the Afghan government following a joint press conference with the provincial governor for northern Balkh province of Afghanistan Ata Mohammad Noor announced to support a specified candidate introduced by the coalition for the upcoming presidential election.
The National Front of Afghanistan following a statement also expressed their concerns regarding a free and fair presidential election.
The press conference was attended by head of the National Front Ahmad Zia Massound, Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum, Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq and former Afghan spy chief Amrullah Saleh besides Balkh governor Ata Mohammad Noor.
Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq head of the Hezb-e-Wahdat Millie Afghanistan and a member of the National Coalition said they are concerned regarding the presidential election due to be organized in 2014.
He said the main reason behind their gathering was to convey their message to Afghan people that the National Front of Afghanistan will remain and move united towards the upcoming presidential election.
Mohaqiq said, “We call on the Afghan people not waste their votes, they should vote for a specified candidate and we will hopefully announce him in the near future.”
In the meantime Balkh governor Ata Mohammad Noor said he will participate in 2014 presidential election only if his conditions are met.
Ata Mohammad Noor said this should be shared and consulted with Abdullah Abdullah head of the national coalition, Mohammad Qasim Fahim deputy president and the leadership of Jamiat party.
He also said to consider participating in upcoming presidential election and announced that he had meetings with Zalmai Khalilzad regarding his unity for the presidential election however he said that they could not reach to an agreement.
Ata Mohammad Noor is serving as Balkh governor since 2004 and is considered to be one of the most powerful provincial governor in Afghanistan.
Despite almost a year is left for the presidential election in Afghanistan however coalition parties and other political parties have started their activities and a similar session was organized in capital Kabul on Saturday by other coalitions and political parties to express their concerns regarding a fair and free election in 2014,
According to political observers the National Front of Afghanistan will become a key player in 2014 presidential election if other political parities and coalitions agree to join them.
Hekmatyar: Judicial Immunity to US Soldiers Prolongs War in Afghanistan
Fars News Agency January 27, 2013
TEHRAN (FNA)- Leader of Hezb-i-Islami Afghanistan (HIA) Gulbadin Hekmatyar described complete withdrawal of the foreign forces as his party's precondition for attending the next presidential election, and said if Kabul gives judicial immunity to the US forces, war will continue in Afghanistan.
"If the foreign military forces withdraw from Afghanistan and a transparent and fair election is held, the Hezb-i-Islami will participate in the upcoming presidential election," Hekmatyar said in an interview with Kabulnews private tv channel on Sunday.
He, meantime, said that if Kabul and Washington sign a security pact which gives judicial immunity to the US forces in Afghanistan, his party will be left with no other way but continued resistance and war.
The US-led war in Afghanistan began in October 2001. The offensive removed the Taliban from power, but insecurity continues to rise across the country, despite the presence of thousands of US-led troops.
Iranian officials have frequently lashed out at the US and NATO forces for occupation of Afghanistan for more than a decade under the pretext of war on terror.
Tehran stresses that the responsibility for the establishment of security and stability in Afghanistan should be in hands of the country's government and security forces, but not foreigners.
Afghanistan has long been a focus of imperial rivalry and scene of foreign intervention, most recently since the 2001 US-led invasion but also in the 1980s uprising against Russian troops that ultimately helped bring down the Soviet Union.
Washington denies it is seeking to establish permanent military bases in Afghanistan, but American military sources say they envisage around 15,000 forces remaining in Afghanistan after the 2014 withdrawal.
Qatar set to host Afghan art expo
Gulf Times By Zia Khan/Staff Reporter 27 January 2013
Qatar will this year host an exhibition of Afghan art in an apparent cultural-cum-political move as Doha prepares to mediate between the Kabul administration and the Taliban, to seek peace in the war torn country.
A top official said yesterday that the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) will organise the event in March, to let the world get a feel of the heritage of Afghanistan—a country otherwise known for Al Qaeda inspired violence and decades of deadly armed conflict.
“We look forward to it as one of our major achievements,” said Aisha al-Khater, the director of MIA. She was speaking to the media at the official launch of the first Alain Ducasse restaurant in the Middle East, IDAM, at the museum premises on the Corniche Street.
Ducasse combines world famous French Mediterranean style with Arab influences.
Aisha said the launch of the world class restaurant at the museum would give visitors a whole new feel of the traditional Arabian cuisine. “It feels we are complete today,” she added.
Though she attempted to downplay any political motive or significance of having Afghan art on display in Doha, the timing of the event suggests it is likely to be much more than just a cultural experience.
“It has nothing to do with the politics or diplomacywe started planning it almost two years ago,” said Aisha.
The announcement came amid assertions by top Qatari leaders including Prime Minister and Foreign Minister HE Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani, that they would facilitate the Afghan reconciliation process by allowing the militia to open a temporary liaison office in Doha.
Qatar Museum Authority (QMA) — of which MIA is a flagship project — has never organised in the past any exhibition to display cultural heritage from Muslim countries located in the neighbourhood of Afghanistan including Pakistan.
Officials from Afghanistan and Pakistan told Gulf Times over the weekend that negotiators from the Afghan Taliban ranks had already arrived in Doha to kick-start the process and the opening of the office is expected soon.
Many experts are also on record explaining that Qatar being one of the most significant players in the global arena, especially in the Islamic world, has decided to go all out to support international efforts to end the bloodshed in
Afghanistan since the Russian invasion in 1979.
“When you go for aggressive diplomacy, you are supposed to try all avenues, culture, trade, politics and even coercion, if it is neededthis may be the idea behind the event,” said Irfan Shahzad, a researcher on Afghanistan and Central Asia with Pakistan-based Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), in reply to an online query.
In Afghanistan, teaching music to overcome war's percussion
Stars and Stripes By Heath Druzin January 26, 2013
KABUL - When insurgents launched a brazen attack that turned into a nine-hour siege in the heart of the capital, many government and Western offices shut down for the day. Down the road from the attack, young Afghan students at the Afghanistan National Institute of Music were playing Bach and Mozart, punctuated by the occasional thud of an explosion.
“Why we should shut down? Give up to the Taliban?” the institute’s director, Ahmad Sarmast, said incredulously a day after the attack. “When I came yesterday, I was amazed to see 137 students at the school. They came from all over town. It’s a nice way to say ‘no’ to violence.”
Sarmast is the founder and driving force behind the music institute. Six days a week, young Afghans come to learn and play Western and regional music. Next month, more than 50 students from the school will embark on a two-week U.S. tour that includes dates at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center.
Sarmast, an animated musical crusader who chased his education from the Soviet Union to Australia as Afghanistan crumbled, has made it his quest to rebuild his country’s musical heritage. The institute, which opened in June 2010, grew out of his Revival of Afghan Music project, which he launched in 2006.
Most of the teachers at the school come from abroad, including a large contingent from the U.S.
The school has about 140 students, half of whom are either orphans or who were working on the street selling trinkets and chewing gum. There are plans to greatly expand in the coming years. Tuition is free for all students and the school compensates families of former street kids so they don’t have to work during their studies. While Sarmast set out to re-establish music education, his goals are much broader.
“Music has got a strong healing power,” he said. “In a post-conflict country like Afghanistan, where the majority of people are badly traumatized, definitely they need music for their healing.”
In the bustling hallways of the school, anyone who has spent time in Kabul is struck by one aspect: Girls and boys study together, still a rarity in Afghanistan and something on which Sarmast has been insistent. Students are also carefully picked from across Afghanistan and from the country’s different ethnic groups, which Sarmast says is aimed at building national unity. He hopes his project helps build not only the country’s music scene but the foundation of a democratic future.
“You can’t establish a civil society or democratic society or contribute [to] human rights when you’re ignoring cultural rights,” he said.
Many of the students at the school harbor hopes that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago: They aim to become professional musicians. Whether that will be possible in Afghanistan remains to be seen, but there’s no lack of optimism among the students.
Confident, curly haired Sapna, 10, came to the institute from an impoverished family. Her father is dead and her mother struggles to support her five siblings. Sapna said she was immediately drawn to the piano when she came to the institute two years ago.
“It has a very sweet voice,” she said.
Now a top student, Sapna will be representing the school on the U.S. tour, and aims to become a concert pianist.
“I can teach a lot of people about Afghanistan,” she said. “Just yesterday, there was fighting in Afghanistan, and we don’t want this fighting in Afghanistan. We are the future of Afghanistan, and we continue to change the future.”
Faiz Sultani, 18, a violin student, said he looks forward to the cultural exchange between Afghans and Americans on the tour.
“I’m sure American people think just about war and fighting (in Afghanistan), but I think they should know we can do something else,” he said.
The school is supported in part by about $500,000 per year from the U.S. State Department that goes toward both English language programs and a winter music academy. The State Department is also spending about $355,000 on the institute’s U.S. tour.
It’s part of a U.S. Embassy Kabul cultural affairs program that also included funding for the short film “Buzkashi Boys,” which was shot entirely in Kabul using Afghan actors and recently snagged an Oscar nomination.
The tour is not only a good opportunity for the students to experience the U.S. but can provide an opening for Americans to learn more about a country they hear about mostly through the prism of war, said Michelle Jones, a cultural affairs officer at the U.S. Embassy Kabul.
“I think it will incite people to want to know more about Afghan music and Afghan culture,” she said.
Sarmast has another goal: to show Americans that their 11-year venture in Afghanistan has meant something.
“One of the major ideas behind the tour of the United States is to show the taxpayers who have been supporting the army in Afghanistan — people who supported the fight against terrorism in Afghanistan, people who have been eager to help the Afghan people stand on their own feet — to show the investment is not gone,” he said. “I believe musicians are the best ambassadors of the nation.”
Zubair Babakarkhail contributed to this report.
druzinh@estripes.osd.mil
Govt Setting Up 2014 Election for Fraud: Political Council
TOLOnews.com By Sayed Azim Arash Saturday, 26 January 2013
The Cooperation Council of Political Parties and Coalitions of Afghanistan has accused the Karzai regime of setting up the 2014 presidential election for fraud after the government forced the country's election body to back down on implementing new voter registrations.
Members of the 20-party council said that the president intervened in the affairs of the Independent Election Commission (IEC) instead of encouraging a fair and transparent election.
The IEC revealed Wednesday that it will allow the use of the previous registration system and voting cards instead of pursuing its earlier demand for new registrations and electronic cards in order to reduce the chance of fraudulent votes.
The shift came after pressure from President Hamid Karzai himself who declared there was not enough money to implement the IEC demand.
"The government is trying to provide opportunities of fraud in an election by using old cards in the election," member of Islamic Unity party Rajab Ali Danish said at a press conference in Kabul.
"We are aiming for a transparent election and we ask the government to not intervene in the election," National Coalition member Eng Asim said.
Furthermore, council members warned that the Taliban is likely to try to sabotage the election process by launching attacks and violations.
"The Taliban still does not believe in holding an election. They will try to sabotage it with violence," National Front member Mohammad Natiqi said.
The press conference was held after some political parties warned Thursday that the IEC decision could ultimately lead to a political crisis if the election is fraudulent.
The IEC said that new voting cards and registrations will only be given to those who were not registered in Afghanistan's past elections.
Iranian Energy Minister Conveys Ahmadinejad's Message to Karzai
Fars News Agency January 27, 2013
TEHRAN (FNA)- Iranian Energy Minister Majid Namjou, who is on an official visit to Kabul, submitted a message from President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai.
In his message, President Ahmadinejad has underlined the necessity for Iranian companies' more active participation and partnership in Afghanistan's water and power sectors, and called on Kabul officials to pave the way for these companies' increased presence and operation in Afghanistan.
In his meeting with President Karzai on Sunday, Namjou also discussed mutual cooperation in different economic fields, including water and electricity.
The Iranian energy minister arrived in Afghanistan today to discuss further expansion of ties and energy cooperation between the two nations.
During his stay in Afghanistan, Namjou also attended the inaugural ceremony of two Iranian-made electric turbines today.
Two diesel turbines with the power generation capacities of 25 megawatts became operational on Sunday. Afghanistan's Energy and Water Minister Ismail Khan was also present at the inaugural ceremony of the Iranian-made electric turbines.
Namjou described his meeting with Afghan Energy and Water Minister Ismail Khan as positive and constructive.
Iran has helped Afghanistan in upgrading g its electricity system and half of Herat city's electricity needs are supplied by the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Iran is one of the most important donors to Afghanistan which has kept its promises to help to the reconstruction of the war-hit country.
Iran has built some roads, power transmission lines, and border stations, among the other infrastructure projects which would better link the two nations.
Beach Football Cup Hopes Dashed After Loss to Bahrain
TOLOnews.com Saturday, 26 January 2013
Afghanistan's beach football team lost to Bahrain 2-5 in its fourth and final match in Doha Friday night, its last chance to qualify for the 2013 FIFA Beach Football World Cup in Tahiti later this year.
Afghanistan had started out strong in the Asian qualifiers for the FIFA tournament, convincingly beating Qatar 7-3 last week. But it lost its three following matches to Oman, Australia and now Bahrain respectively.
The Afghan team finished 11th place out of 16 countries vying for three spots from the Asian nations.
Samiullah Mohammadi, the team captain and striker, scored nine goals – the most of any other player in the team – across all four games.
The team's starting lineup was Kavosh, Jameel Naseeri, Ghulam Hazrat Baran, Mahmoud Azad, and Samiullah Mohammadi.
The FIFA Beach Football World Cup is played every two years. Russia won in 2011, with Brazil, Portugal and El Salvador securing second, third and fourth.
Traffic Laws Mostly Broken by Officials: Police
TOLOnews.com By Haseeb Maudoodi Saturday, 26 January 2013
Kabul police officials Saturday said that a crackdown on illegal vehicles and increased enforcement of road rules has found that it is primarily top officials who ignore traffic laws.
Specifically, a presidential decree banning vehicles from having black, tinted windows is largely flouted by figures in power, despite the National Security Council urging for two years for these vehicles to no longer be used.
The police are seeking to remove the heavily-tinted vehicles from the roads while also reviewing vehicles' documents and licenses for weapons.
"We have removed the cars of two officials, of two MPs. They have to consider the laws and the president's decree," Deputy chief Gen. Zaheer of Central Police Corps 111 Kabul.
There are fears that such vehicles are used for illegal activity including transporting insurgents into Kabul.
"The enemy misuses the vehicles that are black-tinted or have no documents. We request the officials and those who carry out illegal activities to stop the enemy from doing such things," said Kabul Police HQ Deputy of Security Mohammad Amin Daoud.
It is not clear how many of these vehicles are still on the roads and how many have been removed as there are no documents recording these statistics.
www.afghanistannewscenter.com