International Affairs Forum Interview December 25th 2006 By Jason Miks IA-Forum talks with the Afghan Ambassador to Japan, HE Haron Amin. Mr. Amin has previously been the acting ambassador at the Embassy of Afghanistan in Washington, D.C. and served for several years as the representative of Commander Ahmad Shah Massoud and the Northern Alliance to the United States. International Affairs Forum: assistance. Of this, $108 million was Following the Bonn Accord in spent on the political process and December 2001, which provided for $119 million was spent on improving an interim administration in security. An additional $456 million Afghanistan, Japan hosted the first dollars were spent on infrastructure Donors’ Conference for the such as improving roads, agriculture country’s reconstruction. What and so forth. Between January of support has Japan been able to last year and January this year a give to these efforts? total of close to $180 million dollars had been spent on the same sectors. Ambassador Haron Amin: Without As you can see Japan has played a Japan or the Tokyo conference the very significant role and will significance of Bonn would not have continue to. Given that in the post 9- been as great. What gave teeth to 11 world its foreign policy has taken the Bonn process was the fact that on a new dimension and despite the Japan was not only the first fact that it is going through a country to host this conference, but transitional stage and developing a that it set the tone for the new foreign policy dogma, Japan has international community’s pledges. distinguished itself as a country that Also, because it delivered more has contributed significantly to the than initially pledged it dispersed ongoing development of an emerging the funding at a very appropriate democracy. time – in fact before the deadline. The significance has been that Japan has provided more than a IA-Forum: How do you view billion dollars in the context of relations between Afghanistan and assistance. Between January 2002 Japan, and what opportunities do and January 2005 Japan provided you see for this relationship in the a total of $683 million worth of next 5 years? copper reserves and also has natural gas and oil and also other minerals Ambassador Amin: I think that and semi-precious stones. The future before I discuss the future it is I see is not just further pledges of important to consider the relations support for the development of that have existed between Japan Afghanistan but regional trade and and Afghanistan in the past. There cooperation. The dynamics are not are historical impacts that the two just about assistance and we hope to countries have had on each other. further consolidate this. For example as you know Buddhism has travelled towards the east and has made it to Japan. IA-Forum: How significant is it for Therefore in the context of religion, Afghanistan to become the newest trade or etiquette - whatever - there member of the South Asian has definitely been an impact on Association for Regional Cooperation the Japanese. And in return Japan, (SAARC)? through the age of modernisation, has impacted the entire globe including particularly with those Ambassador Amin: As you know the countries seeking to modernise. significant of this forum is of Having said that, the most paramount importance. This forum significant issue for Afghans is the represents a population of about 1.5 idea that if the Japanese were able billion people. In this there is a to develop in the post World War II middle class of about 250 million period so quickly, then so can the people which could grow rapidly in Afghans. This, psychologically, is the next decade. This region is a having an enormous impact on the thirsty region - for energy and raw Afghans. materials. Afghanistan, being the land bridging or land linking country Afghanistan is the best example of constitutes a significant transit route the co-operation and dialogue to these countries. Afghanistan can between different civilisations. bring oil to SAARC countries. And Japan has a unique role as a we’re not even talking about the fact country able to bridge the gap that China is the other major between different civilisations. May economy. SAARC provides I also say that Japan’s lifestyle is Afghanistan an opportunity and heavily dependent on raw materials Afghanistan offers SAARC an – in our part of the world there are opportunity. I hope we will be able to an abundance of them. I think that capitalise on the experience of the genius of the Japanese is that SAARC member countries. One thing they have managed to effectively that makes this co-operation easier manipulate raw materials – the raw is that Afghanistan was not materials which our region can colonised and therefore maintains provide for them, and they will be many cultural affinities with these able to continue their lifestyle. That people which itself makes co- of course will help promote trade operation more forthcoming. between Japan and Afghanistan. Afghanistan has the second highest iron reserves, the third highest IA-Forum: How important do you is very important for Afghans. think last year’s Parliamentary Afghans feel proud. Afghanistan elections were, and how confident derives a great deal of its strength are you that such a diverse range of from its diversity. Nobody has talked people will be able to work together as far as I know about secession. I for the common good? think we can say that with these elections Afghanistan took the final test on the road to democracy. We are still a developing democracy, but Ambassador Amin: The we took the step with valour and Parliamentary elections were of courage. We committed ourselves to significance because they were the the process and would like to see the last chapter of the Bonn Accord. As finalisation of that process. you know the political road map which served as a ‘beginners constitution’ for Afghanistan was laid in Bonn. It was a second act of IA-Forum: In many respects women defiance against the threats posed were treated particularly badly by by the Taliban and Al Qaeda. It was the Taliban. What has the a time that made the people of government been able to do to Afghanistan proud because they improve this and what does it hope were able to elect their own to achieve in the future? representatives in an act that devolved power from a central authority to locally elected officials. Ambassador Amin: The best It also showed that Afghanistan example of equality between men would move towards checks and and women was the launching in the balances and gave hope that there post Taliban period of schools across would not be a monopoly of power Afghanistan. Right now we have by the central government. more than 6 million students and 40 per cent are girls and women. The The most important thing is that government also immediately whilst there is this impression that restored their rights to go back to Afghanistan is this enormously any kind of work day. Afghanistan perfidious society, I would pose a has a history of tolerance towards counter argument that for the last women. Women’s rights are 5,000 years or more Afghans have guaranteed in the constitution, we existed – whatever their country have four female ministers in the may have been called. The cabinet, a female governor and today inhabitants of this diverse land 28 per cent of parliamentarians are have termed themselves inhabitants women which I would say is of this place first and then probably the highest in the world. As something else. For example you know, nobody compelled these Pakistani-British – they see women to be elected. They made themselves first as British before their own choices and were they see themselves as something courageous enough to go out and else. In the US they have people earn those votes. Progress within any from all over the world, but they see kind of scheme requires themselves as American first. This inclusiveness and Afghanistan cannot afford to overlook 50 per Afghanistan to find solutions there cent of its population. That is why needs to be an enormous amount of we have passed very enlightened discussion, including dialogue with and progressive laws and we local farmers. If we take the underscore the fact that we strongly enforcement mechanism. believe we must integrate women Afghanistan’s informal economy is a and we hope that we can continue third of its GDP - that is what to take into account the narcotics brings. We need strong expectations of this more than 50 anti-corruption laws and we need to per cent of the population. have the work of everyone including the European community to look at the demand side. Two decades ago we had the Golden Triangle. Today IA-Forum: While Helmand province we have Afghanistan. Given the recorded a 10% decline in opium demand, we are going to have a third cultivation in 2005, neighbouring country, so we are not curing the Nimroz saw a dramtic increase. disease. We are basically injecting How much of a problem is this, and morphine, we are injecting what can the international painkillers into the problem but community do to help? instead need to cure it. This is a modest request, the middleman who makes the money will always be Ambassador Amin: For the last one there to prosper if there is month or so President Karzai has disconnect between the supplier and considered narcotics to be a greater these making demands. menace than terrorism. More than 90 per cent of Afghanistan remains fairly secure but the fact is that the problem in Afghanistan, if not IA-Forum: The Kunar province has constrained, would pose a challenge been described by one US soldier as to international stability if the issue ‘enemy central’.