A Letter from Kabul

The catastrophic situation of the lives of Afghans living inside Afghanistan according to one of our fellow Afghans who has sent this letter (dated May 2,1999) to his relatives abroad.

Fahim and Susan are still in the country side. When I went there in October, the economic and security situation seemed to be good, but now that the province has fallen again under the control of the evil forces, the scarcity of food products and their unaffordable prices are taking an unbearable toll on people. Robbery and pillage are at their peak, and there is no economic or personal security.

There is no hope anymore for any improvement in the situation of our country. People's lives are worsening on a daily basis. The monstrous children of capitalism are looking under every stone to deprive people of their last livelihoods. They have amassed such an obscene amount of wealth under the Mujahideen's and Taliban's rule that the cost of their daily fruit consumption is equivalent to a few hundred thousand Afghanis, while half of the population has turned to beggary and there half, except for a few bloodsuckers who have prospered under this ruthless system, have nothing to survive on except their own misery. Under these conditions, the suppressive regime is concerned with men's beards and women's clothes. These world-class reactionary forces have turned our country into a live museum of medieval history to teach a lesson to all liberation movements of the world.

I have a painful heart, and, as the great Hafiz has said, what one feels in a short interval of time cannot be understood by others. Whenever I want to express my and my people's sorrow, I remember this poem by the great Mowlana who said, "When it comes to describing the situation, the pen breaks and the paper tears."

From the July of last year, Javad, Samim, and Navida have been working at a rug-weaving workshop, with no wages, so that they can learn. Javad has learned the job a little bit and we hope that we can make ends meet this way. What else can we do? These young children, who should be in school in this age to provide for the future of the nation, are doing such hard labors -- just another law of the capital, exploitation and more exploitation. The father exploits his sons, the husband exploits his wife, and the mother exploits his daughters. Most families here do rug-weaving, broidery, and sewing. At an age when children need playing and recreation, they are working from dawn to dusk.. What will be the future of these children? They will either end up exploiting others or being exploited -- the law of jungle, otherwise they have no place under this corrupt system. They will pursue only their own interests instead of those of society.

What is more painful and bitter is the fact that, while people are desperate just to stay alive, the priests of the Devil are screaming in their loudspeakers from mosques and are trying to soothe people; as if they were telling people that their suffering is because of their own sins. They just ask people to pray to God and have patience. People remember very well that these same mullahs were praying for Zahir Shah and were calling him the shadow of God, then for Dawood, and then were working for Taraki, Karmal, and Najib, and then were in the councils of Rabbani and Masood. Our bleeding people should realize the hypocrisy of these rascals and throw them out of the sacred mosques. At a time when our children are dying from the cold of the winter and the heat of the summer, they want to console us by saying, "Everything will be for the better; you will be rewarded in the afterlife." Why don't they, and their masters to whom they bow, go and get their afterlife reward? Why don't they ever tell the wealthy to eat and sleep a little less so that our hungry people can have something to eat? Our people don't need their charity. Which nation has ever reached prosperity through charity? Our people are demanding their rights, not the charity that the rulers are distributing on streets. When state employees have not been paid for more than six months, they are distributing their pathetic charities -- just another laughable game played on our people. The prices change a few times a day, and not only ordinary people but also small shopkeepers are being swallowed by the big merchants.

I don't know about which misery and pain of this hell I should write to you. Sometimes I think that those who die by all the rockets that pour on us night and day are really fortunate, because they are free from this slavery. But then, the hope of peace and stability keeps us alive.

I wish you well,

Mojib

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