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Corruption and Weak Institutions Greater Threat to Afghanistan than Taliban, says Washington Post Reporter Pam Constable
| Pam Constable |
WASHINGTON, February 6, 2007 — Government corruption, not the Taliban, could be the greatest threat to Afghanistan. Afghans are increasingly alienated from a government they perceive as weak and corrupt at all levels, says Pamela Constable, former Kabul bureau chief for the Washington Post. Constable addressed the SAIS community and the spring 2007 IRP Fellows in a forum sponsored by the International Reporting Project.
She said that while the insurgency does pose massive obstacles to security and development, the country "is not divided against itself," and the insurgency "is not going to overthrow the government. This is not Iraq." But she stressed that Aghanistan's real weakness was lack of honest government.
"When the system is completely corrupt you can't even begin to try to build anything," Constable said. "You can't even start. If someone is abusing you, who do you call…Ghostbusters?" Decades of war have eroded the traditional tribal compacts that might have provided checks and balances, while the civil institutions meant to replace them haven't been built yet. Drug barons, Taliban insurgents and local thugs profit from the chaos, which becomes a cycle slowing development, spreading insecurity, and further alienating the people. "The security situation becomes the thing you have to address first, and the thing you can't address first," said Constable.
Click here to download or listen to audio of the event.
Copyright © 2007 International Reporting Project. All Rights Reserved.