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Democracy for Afghanistan
23 November 2009 - Naysan Adlparvar
The foundations of democracy are alive and well in Afghanistan. However the recent elections did nothing to build upon them. They were meant to present a facade to the 'folks at home' demonstrating that all is well, allowing the state-building machinery to roll on. But they failed to contribute to a sustainable democracy. Why? The answer lies behind the elections.
Is Western-style democracy valid?
The recent fraudulent elections in Afghanistan cost over $250 million, and added to a growing dissatisfaction among the Afghan people. This money was spent on staging an elaborate political exercise - an exercise aimed at demonstrating that the 'West' had brought democracy to Afghanistan. The exercise failed. What it did demonstrate, however, was first, patronage on a grand scale, second, the importance of ethnic allegiance, and third, the inappropriateness of the 'Western' model of democracy for Afghanistan. Following the reinstatement of Hamid Karzai as president we must not take our eye of the ball: Is democracy for Afghanistan? Was this multimillion-dollar fortune wasted?
A new approach to democracy: Deepening Democracy
To respond to these questions we must look at the focus and approach of democracy building in Afghanistan. We, the US-dominated international community in Afghanistan have been naive in our pursuit of democracy. We have focused our efforts on the visible outcomes of democracy at the expense of the quality of the processes that produce them. Democracy is about people and their interactions. It is only by broadening our focus beyond democratic outcomes - beyond elections - to include democratic process that we have any chance at democratising Afghanistan. We must strive to promote social and economic equality in a land rife with corruption, where money is power and the majority is poor; where ethnicity, tribe, and gender determine one's lot. We must work at local levels - in villages - with ordinary people to do this. The democratic ideal will never be achieved solely through national-level initiatives.
A realistic process: Afghan conceptions of democracy
But what is the democratic ideal in Afghanistan? If we are to engage on the uneven ground of inequality, hierarchy and patronage we must do so carefully. It is only by beginning a process of democratisation that is amenable to the Afghan people and realistic in its expectations that we have any chance of success. We must always be working at the boundary of what is culturally and religiously acceptable, rather than rushing toward benchmarks founded on Western values and concepts. If we demand too great a change from Afghan culture it is likely to be rejected and provide ideological ground for the Taleban's advance. To identify the Afghan 'democratic ideal' then we must separate democracy as a mode of governing from democracy as a value: We must separate the concept of the democratic political system from its associations with Western liberal values, which will not be accepted in present-day Afghanistan. We must Afghanise democracy.
The democratic foundation
Research recently conducted by the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit indicates that a different notion of democracy exists in Afghanistan. It is a democracy shrouded in culture and founded on Islam. It is a democracy that is founded on the Islamic concept of 'Shoura'. In Afghanistan a Shoura is a group of selected people, who through consultations, resolve problems and make decisions. However, years of conflict, political interference and opportunism have distorted its functioning. Thus, another cornerstone of Islam must be promoted: Social justice. This has already been demonstrated in Afghanistan and with mixed results. Across the country village-level Shouras have been elected as part of the National Solidarity Program. This process has met with mixed results, but what cannot be denied is that the first seeds of an Afghan Islamic democracy have been sown. We must nurture these seeds to help them grow. We must nurture a progressive Islamic Democracy.
Read the full version of this article published in Arab News
Naysan Adlparvar is a DPhil Student at IDS.
Photo: Jeroen Oerlemans / Panos.
Related Publications
- Gaventa, J. (2006) 'Triumph, Deficit or Contestation? Deepening the 'Deepening Democracy' Debate', IDS Working Paper 264, Brighton: IDS
Related Projects
- Development Research Centre on Citizenship, Participation and Accountability - Exploring approaches that work to strengthen rights and meaningful citizenship for poor people (Ongoing)
- Participation Resource Centre - Practical and theoretical resources on participation from around the world, including participatory methods, approaches and critiques (Ongoing)