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CNN Live Sunday
Afghanistan Native Tells About Life in His Homeland
Aired September 30, 2001 - 15:19 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: For the people of Afghanistan, life has changed dramatically under the Taliban. Our next guest, Ahmad Shafi, if from northern Afghanistan -- that's near Tajikistan -- and he has a compelling story about what life is like in his homeland. He joins us now from Albuquerque, New Mexico. And thank you very much, sir, for being with us.
AHMAD SHAFI, NATIVE OF AFGHANISTAN: Thank you.
SAVIDGE: Let me start off by asking your first reaction to this talk that is being floated out there about the exiled king returning to Afghanistan. How would that go over with the people?
SHAFI: I think it will go very well because he's a well known figure and everybody -- starting from educated people, farmers -- everybody in Afghanistan they know that Zahir Shah, the former king, was -- used to be their king. And they like him. At the moment he is seen as the only symbol who can unify Afghanistan.
SAVIDGE: You know, you are a very young man and yet you have seen so much from your homeland there. Give us an idea of what life was like for you growing up in Afghanistan.
SHAFI: Well, life in Afghanistan is that the land if free but people are imprisoned. You can be simply thrown into jail for anything like for playing chess or trimming your beard. I mean, last -- in 1998 I was jailed because to the Taliban religious police I looked like I had trimmed my beard although I had not.
And so you don't have personal freedom. You always fear the somebody from the religious police will come and throw you into jail for nothing. And so there is no job, no economy at the moment. And so some people who joined the Taliban it's because they need to feed their kids and that's why there's no other alternative but to go to join the Taliban because at least they pay some -- a better salary than the -- somewhere else.
SAVIDGE: The Taliban have already said that there is a Jihad now against the United States. That those people would rise up against U.S. forces but what is the feeling on the street? What are people back in your homeland when you talk to them -- how do they feel?
SHAFI: Well, people have heard a lot about Jihad and all this stuff but let me tell you that people in Afghanistan -- they are feed up with war. They do not want war anymore. They have suffered a lot. They have been -- there has been war for 22 years.
What people want at the moment -- somebody who could unify Afghanistan like Zahir Shah, the former king. And I'm sure that people will come to get around him, you know, to work for peace because, you know, people have suffered a lot.
Everybody in Afghanistan have lost a member of his family or somebody, I mean, like a friend during the war. And they are feed up. They do not want war anymore. Everybody is trying to find a way to get rid of the present conflict.
SAVIDGE: You were in Kabul when the Taliban launched their attack there against the capitol city. What was that like and give us some personal insight if you could.
SHAFI: Well, it was September 19, 1996 and the Taliban -- early in 1996 they were pushed back from Kabul by (UNINTELLIGIBLE) forces, however, when they attacked again -- I mean, they did not -- they actually shelled Kabul like mujahadeen or the other rival factions roll ups used to do.
And they -- I remember that -- in one day the Taliban fired 700 rockets into a very small city like Kabul, which in that day only from a -- reports said that 50 people were killed only because of the Taliban's rockets.
SAVIDGE: What is it you would like people to know most about the people of Afghanistan and the nation itself?
SHAFI: The people of Afghanistan -- I want to tell the world that they should understand Afghans -- they are hijacked at the moment by the Taliban. They are held as hostages. And if there is going to be war civilians will be the front line like -- I mean -- as you may have heard of the reports, the Taliban -- they drag out young men and force them to go to war. They gave them two choice -- either die or go to war with the Taliban.
So the people should understand that Afghans -- they are not associated with terrorism at all. And what you see in Afghanistan at the moment is that a bunch of narrow-minded people -- fundamentalists, who are actually brainwashed and they do not know what are they doing.
And so it's really ridiculous that I hear sometimes Taliban say, "We have full control over Osama bin Laden," but the reality is something else. They do not have control over Osama bin Laden and actually Osama bin Laden is the one who controls everything in Taliban administration.
SAVIDGE: What would you say about U.S. military interventions specifically on the ground there and its success?
SHAFI: Well, I don't think it will be a good thing to send forces into Afghanistan because it gives a chance for the Taliban to urge Afghans -- to tell Afghans that, "Another invader has invaded your country and so you go to Holy War." But I think a good option is to bring the former king back to Afghanistan with support of other anti-Taliban forces. And so once the king is close to Afghanistan people will even from within the Taliban movement people will start going to king and so the Taliban will lose their grip on people and their commanders. And so this is -- and, you know, then the Taliban will not be able to do anything.
SAVIDGE: Ahmad Shafi, that you very much for telling us your personal stories. We will wish you well. Thank you.
SHAFI: You're welcome.
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