Ladies and Gentlemen,
Afghanistan was a monarchy until 1973. The last king was Mohammad Zahir Shah, who ruled the country from 1933 to 1973.
The Afghan people were very satisfied during the reign of King Zahir Shah.
It was a liberal government. There was peace, stability, freedom, and justice. Women's rights were respected. All ethnic groups and tribes were united. Relations with our neighbours and other countries around the world were friendly and based on mutual respect.
In July 1973, Dauod Khan ended the monarchy after a coup and introduced the Republic of Afghanistan as a new form of government. This is when all of the problems in Afghanistan got their start. Relations with our neighbours and other countries around the world began to deteriorate. Various difficulties also developed domestically. Political parties became active and caused conflicts and, over time, caused destabilisation of the situation.
After another coup in April 1978, Nur-Mohammad Taraki assumed power.
He was member of the Khalq Party. The Democratic Republic of Afghanistan was introduced as a new form of government. The problems in the country increased further. The situation became unstable. Relations with the outside world became worse.
In October 1979, President Taraki was murdered by his party comrade, Hafizullah Amin. Mr. Amin took over the government, but was killed by the Soviet Army shortly thereafter in December 1979.
Subsequently, Mr. Babrak Karmal of the Parcham Party became the new President of Afghanistan. During his reign, several Mujaheddin groups formed to fight the government and the Soviet Army. There was chaos in the country.
Dr Najibullah then served as Afghan President from September 1987 to April 1992. During his time in office, the Soviets left Afghanistan in 1989. The fighting continued in the form of a civil war.
In 1992, the Mujaheddin came to power. They proclaimed the Islamic State. Mr. Burhanuddin Rabbani was named the new President. Anarchy reigned in every city and district. Different Mujaheddin groups controlled individual parts of the country. Afghanistan was experiencing a kind of lawlessness. Girls were being kidnapped from their homes and forced to marry. Citizens, including traders, shopkeepers, etc. were repeatedly blackmailed into paying money by various militias.
In November 1994, the Taliban conquered Kandahar province. By September 1996, they had gained control of almost the entire country through warfare. They proclaimed a new form of government, the Islamic Emirate. The times under the Taliban rule were a tragedy. Human rights were trampled on. Women's rights were totally violated. Bin Laden and numerous Al Qaeda members settled in Afghanistan. On September 11, 2001, Al Qaeda carried out the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in the USA. As a result, the US was prompted to attack the Taliban government. The US wanted to introduce democracy in Afghanistan, safeguard human rights, abolish drug cultivation, introduce equality for women and men, and the freedom of expression. Mr. Hamid Karzai was appointed as interim president and he formed a government with the participation of the warlords. The new form of government was called the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. The government of Mr. Karzai was responsible for maintaining order and reconstruction in the country, for realizing democracy, for stopping drug cultivation, among other goals. The United States and the world community made several billion dollars available to the Afghan government to help achieve these goals.
The Afghan people had high expectations of Mr. Karzai's government. They thought democracy was coming and that human rights would be respected. On the contrary, Mr. Karzai, the Afghan Alibaba ruled with a group of 40 thieves who focused on lining their own pockets. They stole billions of dollars from the Treasury. Corruption was widespread. Land was illegally occupied, the constitution and human rights, especially women's rights, were trampled on.
Mr. Karzai held to power by twice falsifying elections.
In 2014, Mr. Ashraf Ghani and others ran in the presidential election. Subsequent run-off elections were held between Ghani and Abdullah. Extensive fraud marred both elections. There was a dispute between Mr. Ghani and Abdullah over the election result. The United States mediated between the two candidates, creating a so-called government of national unity with the participation of both.
The Afghan people were initially happy about this government of national unity. Several groups were involved in the government. Ministries, governors, embassies, and customs districts were split across multiple groups as if it were some kind of investment company or a trading company. The customs revenue was distributed among Mr. Ghani and several groups. Land was illegally occupied. Official posts were sold off for money. In the 2018 parliamentary elections, the parliamentary seats were sold for cash payments of up to $1 million. Parliament has become a criminal nest. Government contracts are awarded in exchange for bribes. Mafia gangs were founded under the names of tribal leaders who work for their interests alone. Many of these mafia gangs have worked with and supported terrorists to keep the war going. Corruption, nepotism, drug trafficking, violation of women's rights, violence against women, forced marriage of underage girls, child abuse, kidnapping the children of wealthy merchants to extort ransoms, and the murder of innocent civilians are all part of everyday life. Approx. 54% of the population suffer from malnutrition.
On September 28, 2019, Mr. Ghani ran again for the office of President against other candidates. The elections were once again subject to mass fraud. The candidates are still arguing about the election result. The previous elections have cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars.
Mr. Ghani is holding the reins of government hostage and is unwilling to resign. He is acting against the will and the right of 35 million people in Afghanistan. If he resigns, he will need to fear the consequences of his crimes. In the event that he should not voluntarily resign, then would be necessary to arrest him and his followers immediately and bring them to justice. His cabinet members could remain in office until further notice.
Looking back over the past 19 years shows that the goals set have not been achieved. There is still no democracy, no freedom, no respect for women's rights, no justice, and no end to drug cultivation.
Dear world, as can be seen, the attempts at democracy in Afghanistan have not led to the desired result because democracy does not work in Afghanistan. Instead, democracy has been turned into chaos. Afghanistan needs a ruler who can save the country from this crisis. That person could be named a sultan, king, shah, or emir. The form of government for this could be a sultanate, kingdom, or emirate. We believe that a sultanate like that in Oman would be a good form of government for Afghanistan. The introduction of a sultanate would be able to create a stable government in Afghanistan because Afghanistan consists of so many tribes and ethnic groups.
A sultan or king would treat all Afghan citizens equally, regardless of their tribe. Of course, all tribes and ethnic groups would have full respect for the Sultan because he would be the leader of the country. A sultan would serve the Afghan people. He would ensure that the country continues to develop, that government revenues flow into the treasury, that women’s rights are respected, that the Afghan people are able to live a life of joy and peace. A sultan would ensure good relations with our neighbours and other countries in the world and treat everyone with respect.
With republican forms of government, we have found that almost all presidents and their cabinet members have enriched themselves through corruption and stealing of funds from the state treasury to make themselves multimillionaires or even billionaires. This practice has set the example for the successor governments, which have also plundered the state coffers in the same way. Some politicians feel no shame and are trying to take over the government again.
As shown above, the last 47 years after the end of the monarchy have shown that republican government was the cause of most of Afghanistan's problems.
There are many governments in the world which are democracies on paper only, but, in reality, the people are being deceived.
We support the introduction of a sultanate form of government in Afghanistan. The Taliban want an emirate. The corrupt mafia gangs, on the other hand, want the republic in the current form to continue.
Best regards
Hayattullah Maiwand
1.Chairman of the FDPA