Samstag, 17. Oktober 2009
Samstag, 23. Dezember 2006
Abdul Khaliq shayeed
was born in 1916 and his father, Mawladad, had a special hand in his upbringing from the start. He showed special attention to his young son and was very much involved in Khaliq’s life. When his son was old enough, Mawladad applied and got Abdul Khaliq admitted to Lycee Nejat. Abdul Khaliq developed a special relationship with the members of the Charkhi family and was especially close with Shah Bibi Khanum, the wife of Ghulam Jelani, whom he highly respected and considered to be like his own mother.
Abdul Khaliq was a very serious young man from the start. He was emotional and hot-headed and people always said he had the characteristics of a real man even at a young age. Determination resonated from his very being; he was a decent and honest man, always kept his word and was punctual, was handsome and athletic, particularly fond of gymnastics and soccer. All his life he was surrounded with politically-motivated figures and was aware of their stance and of the situations around him. It wasn’t unusual that he himself became revolutionary; after all, he did not have a normal childhood, one of carefree days and equal footings. The special attention his father bestowed on him by keeping him educated and informed made it seem as if Abdul Khaliq had accomplished ‘the destination of one hundred years of travel in one night,’ thus giving him the experiences and knowledge of a much older person. He was changed to a fighter, not scared of anything and was able to fight against tyranny.
Abdul Khaliq was a very serious young man from the start. He was emotional and hot-headed and people always said he had the characteristics of a real man even at a young age. Determination resonated from his very being; he was a decent and honest man, always kept his word and was punctual, was handsome and athletic, particularly fond of gymnastics and soccer. All his life he was surrounded with politically-motivated figures and was aware of their stance and of the situations around him. It wasn’t unusual that he himself became revolutionary; after all, he did not have a normal childhood, one of carefree days and equal footings. The special attention his father bestowed on him by keeping him educated and informed made it seem as if Abdul Khaliq had accomplished ‘the destination of one hundred years of travel in one night,’ thus giving him the experiences and knowledge of a much older person. He was changed to a fighter, not scared of anything and was able to fight against tyranny.
Afghanistan had to be purged of such a cruel and barbaric person as this Nadir Khan, who never tired of sending out his prejudiced and hate-filled decrees and new ways of torturing and killing Hazaras. Abdul Khaliq refused the idea that he was the one born guilty, as was the mentality of most Hazaras because of the laws of Nadir Khan. He knew it was the ruler himself who was not only born guilty but was, in fact, digging his own grave. Khaliq knew that by eliminating the tyrant he would go down in history and be remembered by such a noble cause. No matter how young he died, he knew that his name would at least live eternally. And yes, the people of the world and of the region, especially the Hazaras and non-Hazaras, have realized that indeed, young Abdul Khaliq had taken a noble mission as his own personal duty. This has become even more evident in the past few decades as people realized just how big of a despot Nadir Khan really was. In the beginning, the news and media were all manipulated by Nadir Khan’s family but now that people are less afraid to report and write the truth, the shadow of lies have slowly been pushed aside, revealing the facts and reality. In the last few decades, people have been writing the no-longer censored truth and Abdul Khaliq changed from a “John Wilkes Booth” to a shining star for those who suffered for too long under tyrants, he became to be known as a symbol of freedom, equality, and justice.
The dark times led Abdul Khaliq to his life’s mission. The monarchs and their mercenary family openly admitted to terrorizing groups of people in order to keep their precious crowns and their position of power. They kept the masses in the dark, kept them from being educated so that hardly anyone would be able to tell what was right and what was wrong. It’s been recorded that Abdul Rahman Khan has committed genocide against the Hazara, eradicated 62% of their population. Those who lived were forcefully removed from their ancestry lands of Urzogan, Zabul, and Kandahar.
Abdul Khaliq’s family was among those that were forcefully removed. His grandfather was from Daya, Foland and for a short time they were settled in Dahzangi and Ghazni. During Abdul Rahman’s time, Abdul Khaliq’s grandfather was forced to run away with his family in order to save their lives. Their positions, money, and any valuables along with their land were taken away by Amir Rahman Khan. Their lands were to be given to kuchi nomads who were moved in from Indian or other areas. Abdul Rahman’s grandfather had no other choice but to helplessly watch half of his family be executed; those that couldn’t escape were murdered to make sure they would never come back. Abdul Khaliq’s grandfather was survived by two sons by the name of Mawladad –Abdul Khaliq’s father – and Khodadad. Both of them found work with the family of Charkhi. Mawladad worked for Ghulam Sediq while Khodadad worked for Ghulam Jelani. Later on, when Abdul Khaliq was old enough to work, he worked alongside his uncle for Ghulam Jelani.
Mawladad, Khaliq’s father, was a very educated man. He was self-taught and read whenever he could get the chance. He would often accompany Ghulam Sediq on short business trips to Europe and learned how to fluently speak German, English, and Russian. He was also very politically opinionated, well aware of everything that was happening around them. Abdul Khaliq and his family came under the influence of movements for social justice and democracy. Abdul Khaliq was especially moved by these ideas and at a younger age was influenced by the movements. He witnessed the struggle for freedom and social justice and willfully became a partner and follower himself to fight against the tyranny of the puppet region of the British.
Martyr Khaliq became a member of the secret organizations and the young revolutionary Hazara wanted to show he was fully committed to them. He wanted to prove that he was capable to perform any mission and he made contacts with people anywhere that he could. The Charkhi family was a very political family and they admired his willingness. In his school, Lycee Nejat, several of the teachers were politically motivated as well and they helped Khaliq establish contacts. One of his teachers, Mohammed Azim Khan, and the Vice Principal, Mohammed Ayub Khan, would often discuss such politicized issues and Khaliq grew more aware from these people. He constantly thought about the future of his country and of ways he could help.
Khaliq of the Hazaras was the son of a disadvantaged society, who were denied basic rights. He would gaze upon his vast underprivileged people, the inheritors of suffering. Just as how a blacksmith shapes steel by first placing it in a fiery furnace, Khaliq was shaped the same way. He endured the fiery furnace of poverty, of unbearable and unfair disadvantages of his kind and was thus shaped into a man of steel; nothing could hurt him after what he had witnessed first hand. In this continuous struggle of his people, he became the torchbearer and knew he had to do something about the injustices that had wrongly befallen his people.
He came to understand what his sole mission in life was and knew he would be the one to accomplish it. And so he looked for every opportunity to carry out his task. One day, in Kabul, parts of a fortress were to be rebuilt and Nadir Khan was placing the first foundation stone as a ceremonial gesture towards the reconstruction. Abdul Khaliq attended the function with plans of executing his mission there but other circumstances arose and he was not successful and so, he had to wait for another day. Abdul Khaliq then had hopes of performing his duty during the month of Sunbolah, on the anniversary of when Nadir Khan overthrew Kalakani’s government and taken over power. But again, circumstances arose that kept Khaliq from accomplishing his task. Then, Khaliq was given a chance on November 8th, 1933. On this day, Nadir Khan was planned to attend the final examinations of Lycee Nejat as well as act as a judge on the Fall sport tournaments. He was scheduled to go to different classes and observe while the students took their final exams.
One of the classes he attended was Abdul Khaliq’s. Nadir Khan walked through each row, glancing around him without a care and reached the row where Khaliq was standing. He took that first auspicious step and his fate was sealed. As Nadir Khan took a few more steps into the row, Khaliq stepped out of his place and came forward to meet Nadir Khan in a calm and relaxed manner. His gun rose as call to battle and Khaliq pulled the trigger and fired a bullet aimed at the tyrant in front of him. Before anyone could react, he pulled the trigger again and once again and Nadir Khan’s body shook with each hit before dropping to the floor, motionless once and for all. Abdul Khaliq had finally accomplished his task, killing one of the worse tyrants in history, the puppet of the British, an evil and unprincipled man who had betrayal running through his veins.
Abdul Khaliq was neither ashamed nor scared of his actions. He did not run away to hide or to escape; he was a man and wanted to face the circumstances. It did not take long for Nadir’s henchmen to give the news to Nadir’s brothers. All the freedom-loving people and those against the tyranny and injustice had cause to celebrate; they said they would always remember this day as the victory of righteousness over evil. Abdul Khaliq surpassed even placing the “bell around the cat’s neck” and went straight to eliminating the cat altogether.
However, even in death, Nadir managed to spread injustice like a toxin spilling over. Nadir Khan’s brothers and clan wanted to kill every single student in the school for what had happened to the ruler. The rest of the governmental officials intervened and consulted with them and convinced Shah Mahmood, Nadir Khan’s brother, that the killer and the supposed accomplices were arrested and that the other 2,000 students had nothing to do with it.
In the afternoon of December 19, 1933, when it was so cold that even a stone would crack, injustice was administered once more upon Khaliq and his people. Not only was Khaliq arrested but several innocent people were taken as well: Mahmud Khan, his teacher; Mawladad his father; Khodadad his uncle; Qurban Ali, the cold water seller; his mother’s brother Rabbani; Mustafa and Latif, the youngsters of the Charkhi family; Ali Akbar Meshir; Mahmud, the employee of Anis Press; Students Mir Masjidid, Mohammed Zaman, Mohammed Aziz, Mohammed Eshaq; Mohammed Ayub, the Vice Principal of Lycee Nejat a.k.a Amani High School; Mohammed Azmeem, a teacher. Aside from them, 21 of Abdul Khaliq’s family members, friends and acquaintances including two of his uncle’s little children Abdullah, 9, and Abdul Rahman, 11, were taken as well. They were all taken towards the southern gate of Ark to be shot and then hanged. There was no trial, no chance to defend oneself, nothing. 17-year old Khaliq was condemned to be martyred. Many others were imprisoned for no stated reason, like Hafiza, Khaliq’s 9 year old sister, who ended up dying in prison because of mistreatment.
Abdul Khaliq was tortured before he was killed. Though the human body could only take so much, Khaliq showed incredible endurance. His animalistic punishers dried to demanded to know who his accomplices were and who the mastermind behind his mission was. They wanted him to name names and would not relent the severe punishment until he spoke. But all Khaliq would say was that he took full responsibility and that only he should be punished and no one else. It fell on deaf ears, however.
One of his friends, Mohammed Eshaq, was tortured so much, he could not control his emotions and anger any longer. While screaming and moaning in pain, he yelled at Abdul Khaliq, saying “What kind of damn friend were you? Why didn’t you tell us and trust us with your plan? Why did you keep it a secret? Together, we would have killed the entire team of these bastards. We would not have left one of them alive. And so, it’s your fault we are in this position, we could have gotten rid of them all.” They were his last words to Khaliq before he was hanged.
Khaliq saw his only regret was that he did not confide in anyone else. He said, “Yes, he was right. My precautions were all meaningless. I was consumed with the need to rid us of Nadir Khan that I did not consider his marauders would be so unjust. Please forgive me.” Khaliq’s body was cut into many pieces, slowly and one by one, he was shown his severed body parts before they were tossed away. There was nothing left of him to hang.
Khaliq and his friends and family will always be remembered by the people of Afghanistan for their courage and the elimination of such an evil and corrupted man. They lost their lives, had sacrificed their lives for the Hazaras, Tajiks, and other people. These were the brave people of our nation, standing up to face tyranny in the face.
One should ask, because of Khaliq’s actions, why did others have to be killed? Why did the barbarians murder Khaliq’s father, his uncle, his mother’s brother, his 9 and 11 year old cousins, his classmates, teachers, and various other people? Why did other have to be locked up in prisons for something they obviously had no part in? Years later, the skulls of those people were found in the jail cells. What kind of mentality did these barbarians have? How could any civilized person think this was right? Human beings are not capable of this kind of cruelty, only the tribal mentality would lead someone to punish innocent people so severely. This is beyond the cruelty of Changiz Khan, who has one of the worst reputations of being brutal. Even Changiz did not kill his own Mongolians so how could Nadir Khan and his inhumane clan members kill their own countrymen? The soulless yes-men of Nadir Khan did everything for money or perhaps out of fear; they wrote books and articles insulting and badmouthing Khaliq. They have eliminated every single member of Khaliq’s family until there is no trace of his bloodline left. They were able to murder innocent people and children and yet they are the ones condemning one single act of Khaliq’s.
Before the hero Khaliq pulled the trigger, he had surrounded himself to God. He said, “Almighty God, I am doing this to save my people from this tyrannical dictator. I will sacrifice my life so that my people can have a chance of a better future. You are the only Witness I need. With my blood, I seek peace for my nation. And so, I am asking you to forgive me.” And then he pulled the trigger.
That trigger pushed Afghanistan into the next chapter of its dark history as Nadir Khan’s brother and son rose to power like a multi-headed beast. But for that one second before the bullet escaped the chamber, there was a glimmer of hope that perhaps Abdul Khaliq would not die in vain.
The dark times led Abdul Khaliq to his life’s mission. The monarchs and their mercenary family openly admitted to terrorizing groups of people in order to keep their precious crowns and their position of power. They kept the masses in the dark, kept them from being educated so that hardly anyone would be able to tell what was right and what was wrong. It’s been recorded that Abdul Rahman Khan has committed genocide against the Hazara, eradicated 62% of their population. Those who lived were forcefully removed from their ancestry lands of Urzogan, Zabul, and Kandahar.
Abdul Khaliq’s family was among those that were forcefully removed. His grandfather was from Daya, Foland and for a short time they were settled in Dahzangi and Ghazni. During Abdul Rahman’s time, Abdul Khaliq’s grandfather was forced to run away with his family in order to save their lives. Their positions, money, and any valuables along with their land were taken away by Amir Rahman Khan. Their lands were to be given to kuchi nomads who were moved in from Indian or other areas. Abdul Rahman’s grandfather had no other choice but to helplessly watch half of his family be executed; those that couldn’t escape were murdered to make sure they would never come back. Abdul Khaliq’s grandfather was survived by two sons by the name of Mawladad –Abdul Khaliq’s father – and Khodadad. Both of them found work with the family of Charkhi. Mawladad worked for Ghulam Sediq while Khodadad worked for Ghulam Jelani. Later on, when Abdul Khaliq was old enough to work, he worked alongside his uncle for Ghulam Jelani.
Mawladad, Khaliq’s father, was a very educated man. He was self-taught and read whenever he could get the chance. He would often accompany Ghulam Sediq on short business trips to Europe and learned how to fluently speak German, English, and Russian. He was also very politically opinionated, well aware of everything that was happening around them. Abdul Khaliq and his family came under the influence of movements for social justice and democracy. Abdul Khaliq was especially moved by these ideas and at a younger age was influenced by the movements. He witnessed the struggle for freedom and social justice and willfully became a partner and follower himself to fight against the tyranny of the puppet region of the British.
Martyr Khaliq became a member of the secret organizations and the young revolutionary Hazara wanted to show he was fully committed to them. He wanted to prove that he was capable to perform any mission and he made contacts with people anywhere that he could. The Charkhi family was a very political family and they admired his willingness. In his school, Lycee Nejat, several of the teachers were politically motivated as well and they helped Khaliq establish contacts. One of his teachers, Mohammed Azim Khan, and the Vice Principal, Mohammed Ayub Khan, would often discuss such politicized issues and Khaliq grew more aware from these people. He constantly thought about the future of his country and of ways he could help.
Khaliq of the Hazaras was the son of a disadvantaged society, who were denied basic rights. He would gaze upon his vast underprivileged people, the inheritors of suffering. Just as how a blacksmith shapes steel by first placing it in a fiery furnace, Khaliq was shaped the same way. He endured the fiery furnace of poverty, of unbearable and unfair disadvantages of his kind and was thus shaped into a man of steel; nothing could hurt him after what he had witnessed first hand. In this continuous struggle of his people, he became the torchbearer and knew he had to do something about the injustices that had wrongly befallen his people.
He came to understand what his sole mission in life was and knew he would be the one to accomplish it. And so he looked for every opportunity to carry out his task. One day, in Kabul, parts of a fortress were to be rebuilt and Nadir Khan was placing the first foundation stone as a ceremonial gesture towards the reconstruction. Abdul Khaliq attended the function with plans of executing his mission there but other circumstances arose and he was not successful and so, he had to wait for another day. Abdul Khaliq then had hopes of performing his duty during the month of Sunbolah, on the anniversary of when Nadir Khan overthrew Kalakani’s government and taken over power. But again, circumstances arose that kept Khaliq from accomplishing his task. Then, Khaliq was given a chance on November 8th, 1933. On this day, Nadir Khan was planned to attend the final examinations of Lycee Nejat as well as act as a judge on the Fall sport tournaments. He was scheduled to go to different classes and observe while the students took their final exams.
One of the classes he attended was Abdul Khaliq’s. Nadir Khan walked through each row, glancing around him without a care and reached the row where Khaliq was standing. He took that first auspicious step and his fate was sealed. As Nadir Khan took a few more steps into the row, Khaliq stepped out of his place and came forward to meet Nadir Khan in a calm and relaxed manner. His gun rose as call to battle and Khaliq pulled the trigger and fired a bullet aimed at the tyrant in front of him. Before anyone could react, he pulled the trigger again and once again and Nadir Khan’s body shook with each hit before dropping to the floor, motionless once and for all. Abdul Khaliq had finally accomplished his task, killing one of the worse tyrants in history, the puppet of the British, an evil and unprincipled man who had betrayal running through his veins.
Abdul Khaliq was neither ashamed nor scared of his actions. He did not run away to hide or to escape; he was a man and wanted to face the circumstances. It did not take long for Nadir’s henchmen to give the news to Nadir’s brothers. All the freedom-loving people and those against the tyranny and injustice had cause to celebrate; they said they would always remember this day as the victory of righteousness over evil. Abdul Khaliq surpassed even placing the “bell around the cat’s neck” and went straight to eliminating the cat altogether.
However, even in death, Nadir managed to spread injustice like a toxin spilling over. Nadir Khan’s brothers and clan wanted to kill every single student in the school for what had happened to the ruler. The rest of the governmental officials intervened and consulted with them and convinced Shah Mahmood, Nadir Khan’s brother, that the killer and the supposed accomplices were arrested and that the other 2,000 students had nothing to do with it.
In the afternoon of December 19, 1933, when it was so cold that even a stone would crack, injustice was administered once more upon Khaliq and his people. Not only was Khaliq arrested but several innocent people were taken as well: Mahmud Khan, his teacher; Mawladad his father; Khodadad his uncle; Qurban Ali, the cold water seller; his mother’s brother Rabbani; Mustafa and Latif, the youngsters of the Charkhi family; Ali Akbar Meshir; Mahmud, the employee of Anis Press; Students Mir Masjidid, Mohammed Zaman, Mohammed Aziz, Mohammed Eshaq; Mohammed Ayub, the Vice Principal of Lycee Nejat a.k.a Amani High School; Mohammed Azmeem, a teacher. Aside from them, 21 of Abdul Khaliq’s family members, friends and acquaintances including two of his uncle’s little children Abdullah, 9, and Abdul Rahman, 11, were taken as well. They were all taken towards the southern gate of Ark to be shot and then hanged. There was no trial, no chance to defend oneself, nothing. 17-year old Khaliq was condemned to be martyred. Many others were imprisoned for no stated reason, like Hafiza, Khaliq’s 9 year old sister, who ended up dying in prison because of mistreatment.
Abdul Khaliq was tortured before he was killed. Though the human body could only take so much, Khaliq showed incredible endurance. His animalistic punishers dried to demanded to know who his accomplices were and who the mastermind behind his mission was. They wanted him to name names and would not relent the severe punishment until he spoke. But all Khaliq would say was that he took full responsibility and that only he should be punished and no one else. It fell on deaf ears, however.
One of his friends, Mohammed Eshaq, was tortured so much, he could not control his emotions and anger any longer. While screaming and moaning in pain, he yelled at Abdul Khaliq, saying “What kind of damn friend were you? Why didn’t you tell us and trust us with your plan? Why did you keep it a secret? Together, we would have killed the entire team of these bastards. We would not have left one of them alive. And so, it’s your fault we are in this position, we could have gotten rid of them all.” They were his last words to Khaliq before he was hanged.
Khaliq saw his only regret was that he did not confide in anyone else. He said, “Yes, he was right. My precautions were all meaningless. I was consumed with the need to rid us of Nadir Khan that I did not consider his marauders would be so unjust. Please forgive me.” Khaliq’s body was cut into many pieces, slowly and one by one, he was shown his severed body parts before they were tossed away. There was nothing left of him to hang.
Khaliq and his friends and family will always be remembered by the people of Afghanistan for their courage and the elimination of such an evil and corrupted man. They lost their lives, had sacrificed their lives for the Hazaras, Tajiks, and other people. These were the brave people of our nation, standing up to face tyranny in the face.
One should ask, because of Khaliq’s actions, why did others have to be killed? Why did the barbarians murder Khaliq’s father, his uncle, his mother’s brother, his 9 and 11 year old cousins, his classmates, teachers, and various other people? Why did other have to be locked up in prisons for something they obviously had no part in? Years later, the skulls of those people were found in the jail cells. What kind of mentality did these barbarians have? How could any civilized person think this was right? Human beings are not capable of this kind of cruelty, only the tribal mentality would lead someone to punish innocent people so severely. This is beyond the cruelty of Changiz Khan, who has one of the worst reputations of being brutal. Even Changiz did not kill his own Mongolians so how could Nadir Khan and his inhumane clan members kill their own countrymen? The soulless yes-men of Nadir Khan did everything for money or perhaps out of fear; they wrote books and articles insulting and badmouthing Khaliq. They have eliminated every single member of Khaliq’s family until there is no trace of his bloodline left. They were able to murder innocent people and children and yet they are the ones condemning one single act of Khaliq’s.
Before the hero Khaliq pulled the trigger, he had surrounded himself to God. He said, “Almighty God, I am doing this to save my people from this tyrannical dictator. I will sacrifice my life so that my people can have a chance of a better future. You are the only Witness I need. With my blood, I seek peace for my nation. And so, I am asking you to forgive me.” And then he pulled the trigger.
That trigger pushed Afghanistan into the next chapter of its dark history as Nadir Khan’s brother and son rose to power like a multi-headed beast. But for that one second before the bullet escaped the chamber, there was a glimmer of hope that perhaps Abdul Khaliq would not die in vain.
Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq
Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq is a high-ranking official of the Hizb-e-Wahdat political party of Afghanistan. He came to prominence during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the Afghan Civil War, becoming one of the two most prominent Hazara Leaders during the 1990s alongside Abdul Ali Mazari.
As part of the Northern Alliance during the civil war, Muhaqiq led numerous successful attacks against the ruling Taliban government from his stonghold of the Hazarajat. In 2001, his militia, alongside with those of Uzbek Leader Abdul Rashid Dostum and Tajik warlord Mohammed Atta, captured Mazari Sharif from the Taliban, the first major victory of the Northern Alliance in the final months of the civil war.
Following the overthrow of the Taliban, Mohaqiq was appointed Minister of Planning and one of four vice chairmen in the transitional government led by Hamid Karzai, but later resigned over differences with members in the government.
Mohaqiq was a candidate in the 2004 Afghan presidential elections, placing third behind Karzai and current parliamentary leader Yunus Qanuni.
Currently, Mohaqiq is a member of the Afghan parliament and has become one of the leading opponents in the parliament to Hamid Karzai's administration.
As part of the Northern Alliance during the civil war, Muhaqiq led numerous successful attacks against the ruling Taliban government from his stonghold of the Hazarajat. In 2001, his militia, alongside with those of Uzbek Leader Abdul Rashid Dostum and Tajik warlord Mohammed Atta, captured Mazari Sharif from the Taliban, the first major victory of the Northern Alliance in the final months of the civil war.
Following the overthrow of the Taliban, Mohaqiq was appointed Minister of Planning and one of four vice chairmen in the transitional government led by Hamid Karzai, but later resigned over differences with members in the government.
Mohaqiq was a candidate in the 2004 Afghan presidential elections, placing third behind Karzai and current parliamentary leader Yunus Qanuni.
Currently, Mohaqiq is a member of the Afghan parliament and has become one of the leading opponents in the parliament to Hamid Karzai's administration.
Sultan Ali Kishtmand---------------------------------------------------
Sultan Ali Keshtmand (b. 1935) was an Afghan politician. He served twice as Prime Minister during the 1980s, from 1981 to 1988 and from 1989 to 1990 during the Soviet-backed Democratic Republic of Afghanistan.
A Hazara, occupied the highest ever position from his community in the pro-Moscow People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan regime that tenuously ruled Afghanistan in the 1980s.
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Early years
Keshtmand was born in Kabul. He is a member of the minority Hazara ethnic group. He studied economics at Kabul University and became involved in the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan. He joined the Parcham Faction of that party, which was led by Babrak Karmal.
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Role in politics
Immediately after the April 1978 coup in which the People's Democratic Party came to power, forming the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan, Keshtmand became minister of planning.
He lost that post in August 1978 when he was arrested for an alleged plot against President Nur Mohammad Taraki, a member of the rival Khalq faction of the party.
The PDPA Politburo ordered the arrest of Keshtmand and Public Works Minister Muhammad Rafi’i for their part in the possible anti-regime conspiracy. He and inmates went through severe torture and long imprisonment.
He remained in prison and was sentenced to death, but this decision was soon revoked and he was resentenced to 15 years in prison.
On December 1979, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, bringing Babrak Karmal and the Parcham faction to power. He was released from jail, and was once again restored in the Politburo.
Friction among the and People's members heightened in 1980 when Karmal removed Assadullah Sarwari, a member of the People's Party, from his position as first deputy prime minister and replaced him with Sultan Ali Keshtmand.
Keshtmand, a Parchami, soon became one of the most important leaders of the regime. In June of 1981, Karmal retained his other offices, but resigned as prime minister and was succeeded by Keshtmand.
A 21-member Supreme Defense Council headed by Najibullah effectively assumed power.
The rise in the deficit greatly concerned the government, and as Prime Minister Keshtmand noted in April 1983 that the tax collections were inadequate in view of the increased state spending. The security situation in the country, however, prevented the government from improving its tax collections.
In September, 1987, the Kabul government sponsored a large convocation of Hazaras from various parts of the country and offered them autonomy. In his speech to the group, Keshtmand said that the government was going to set up several new provinces in the Hazarajat that would be administered by the local inhabitants.
==Rise to power and the fall
He served as Prime Minister from 1981 to 1988 and 1989 to 1990, and as vice-President from 1990 until 1991, when he was dismissed shortly before the fall of the government.
A mujaheddin radio station reports intra-Parcham (a faction of the PDPA) (P) clashes in Kabul between supporters of Najibullah and Keshtmand, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Council of Ministers.
Non-PDPA member Mohammed Hassan Sharq was selected by President Najibullah to be the new prime minister, replacing Keshtmand. This move was made in order to free spaces in the new government for nonparty candidates.
He then left Afghanistan, first moving to Russia and then to England. There he became an outspoken defender of the rights of Hazaras, claiming that the Pashtun majority in Afghanistan had had too much power in all of Afghanistan's regimes.
Mohammad Karim Khalili
Abdul Karim Khalili is son of Mohammad Aslam. Karim Khalili was born in 1329 H.S. (1950) in Qol-e-Khesh Behsud. It means, a part of Behsud district, province of Maidan. He has been Economic Minister of Afghanistan from 1993-1995. Today Abdul Karim Khalili is the current Leader of Hizb-e-Wahdat and Vice President of Afghanistan.For more details about Abdul Karim Khalili and his political life, visit the official web-site of Hizb-e-Wahdat, so you can read his biography, background and much more.
Dienstag, 19. Dezember 2006
About Life of Baba Mazari
Abdul Ali Mazari was born 1946 in the village of Charkint, south of the northern Afghan city of Mazar-e-Sharif, in a Hazara family. Hence, the surname 'Mazari".He began his primary schooling in theology at the local school in his village, then went to Mazar-i Sharif , then Qom in Iran and then to Najaf in Iraq. Like most of the Hazaras of Afghanistan, Mazari grew up in poverty.In Iran Mazari was imprisoned and tortured after being accused of conspiracy against the Shah of Iran in assistance with Irani Shi'ite clerics.Simultaneously with the occupation of Afghanistan by the Red Army, Mazari returned to his birthplace and gained prominent place in the Anti-Soviet resistance movement. During the first years of the resistance, he lost his young brother, Mohammed Sultan, during a battle against the Soviet backed forces. He soon lost his sister and other members of his family in the resistance. His uncle, Mohammad Ja'afar, and his son, Mohammad Afzal, were imprisoned and killed by the puppet regime in Kabul. He also lost his father, Haji Khudadad, and his brother, Haji Mohammad Nabi, in the rebellion and resistance movement.Mazari was one of the founding members and the first leader of Hizb e Wahdat Islami Afghanistan (Islamic Unity Party). In the first Congress of the party he was elected leader of the Central Committee and in the second Congress, Secretary General of the Wahdat Party. Mazari's initiative led to the creation of the Jonbesh-e Shamal (Northern Movement), in which the country's most significant military forces joined ranks with the resistant rebels, leading to a coup d'etat and the eventual downfall of the regime in Kabul.The fall of Kabul to the Mujahideen led the foundation stone of the Afghan Civil War among various factions, parties and ethnic groups. During this period, Mazari led the forces of Hizb e Wahdat who were based in West Kabul. More than twenty-six fierce battles were fought between Hizb e Wahdat and the forces of Ahmad Shah Massoud, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, Abdur Rasool Sayyaf and Abdul Rashid Dostum. The result was total destruction of Kabul city and the death of more than 50,000 civilians. More than 900 civilians were massacred in the Hazara dominated district of Afshar in Kabul and many more in Karte Seh, by the invading forces of Ahmad Shah Massoud and Abdur Rasool Sayyaf assisted by mainly Sayed traitors in Hizb e Wahdat.Mazari was lured into peace, betrayed and then brutally killed.EnlargeMazari was lured into peace, betrayed and then brutally killed.The Massoud-Hekmatyar-Sayyaf triangle never considered Hazaras to be of significance in the Afghan government. The Hazaras had been and have been targets of mass scale ethnic and religious persecution. Hazaras lived in the lowest class of Afghan social hierarchy. Because of having features different to those of other Afghans they could be easily pin pointed and distinguished. Majority of the Hazaras are followers of the Shi'ite branch of Islam in contrast to the majority Sunnis which has followers in all the other ethnic groups of Afghanistan. It wasn't until the battle for West Kabul that Hazaras came to global consideration as a potential power in Afghanistan.During the civil war these leaders changed affiliations on many occasions. Mazari's affiliations and peace accords on different occasions were with Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, Rasheed Dostum and the final one was a failed attempt of peace accord with the Taliban in 1996 which resulted in his own death.Hizb e Wahdat was also on many occasions accused of serious human rights violation and killing of civilians.When asked by Sayed Mansour Nabi: "What are your demands for your people?", Mazari replied: "Our only wish for our people is that being Hazara should no longer be a crime." The bloody tragedy at Afshar marked the darkest moment in the leader's life, the memory of which always brought tears to his eyes, whereupon he would sigh: "I wish I had not been alive to see the Afshar tragedy." In his speech in 8 Saur, 1372 AH (28 April 1994), on the day of the execution of the traitors responsible for the events at Afshar, he said: "The Afshar tragedy has completely overturned my beliefs." The hatred inspired in Mazari by the collaborators and traitors, was rooted in the depth of a tragedy which continued to pain him. In his speech at the commemoration ceremony for the martyrs of 23 Sonbolah 1373 AH (14 Sept 1994), Mazari, who exposed the depth of his pain, bitterly sighed: "The painful events of the Afshar tragedy, from whose memory our people and future generations shall always suffer and hurt, was the work of collaborators, led by Sayed Anvari." In recalling Sayed Hadi's betrayal, he added: "it is Sayed Hadi who is responsible for the blood of Ashar's 700 martyrs and for the destruction and looting of 4000 homes."The resistance of West Kabul against the occupation forces of Massoud, Hekmatyar, and Sayyaf lasted until Saturday, 21 Hoot (11 March, 1995). The west Kabul resistance was unique considering the imbalance of forces, weaponry, training and experience between the two sides.On Saturday, the 11th of March 1995, Mazari wrote to Mullah Burjan, Taliban commander before Mullah Omar:"Mr Mulla Burjan,"Greetings..."We have told you before that you will not be able to defend our front-line positions. We are still ready to defend our people if you return our heavy arms and arsenal into our hands. We can form a front-line of defense against Showra-ye Nizar and Rabbani composed, of these people. Our envoy has come to you; clarify your position so that we can take control of all of West Kabul."He wrote a second letter to the brave people of West Kabul, appealing to them to fight to the last drop of their blood, to repulse the enemies of their honor and good name, and to prevent a repetition of the Afshar tragedy.Mullah Burjan, the Taliban leader, requested for a personal meeting with Mazari. He set of towards Chahar Asiyab in the company of a group of the Central Committee members, in a convoy of two cars, whereupon they were betrayed, disarmed and arrested. His forces were disarmed and soon the whole of West Kabul came under Taliban rule.Though Mazari and his companions were intended to be transferred in helicopters to Kandahar, the Taliban stronghold, they were brutally killed somewhere close to the city of Ghazni.Mazari today is considered by the Hazaras as a legendary leader and an epitome of their historic struggle towards equal rights and justice in the Afghan society. He is likewise revered by the other ethnic groups on grounds of his steadfastness for the cause of Jihad and justice. Recently, the road from downtown to West Kabul has been named after him.
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