Obama and Afghanistan

As for me, I mostly agree with The Atlantic's Andrew Sullivan. I give Obama his timeline and a troop surge, but after that if there's no real improvement it's time to go.

Right now, dithering around in Afghanistan with a half-assed effort is not working. We have two choices: pull out or increase support.

Human Rights Watch has reported on the correlation between the usage of airstrikes and an increase in civilian casualties.

Civilian deaths in Afghanistan from US and NATO airstrikes nearly tripled from 2006 to 2007, with recent deadly airstrikes exacerbating the problem and fuelling a public backlash, Human Rights Watch said in a new report released today. The report also condemns the Taliban’s use of “human shields” in violation of the laws of war.

The 43-page report, “‘Troops in Contact’: Airstrikes and Civilian Deaths in Afghanistan,” analyzes the use of airstrikes by US and NATO forces and resulting civilian casualties, particularly when used to make up for the lack of ground troops and during emergency situations. Human Rights Watch found few civilian deaths resulted from planned airstrikes, while almost all deaths occurred in unplanned airstrikes.

“Rapid response airstrikes have meant higher civilian casualties, while every bomb dropped in populated areas amplifies the chance of a mistake,” said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “Mistakes by the US and NATO have dramatically decreased public support for the Afghan government and the presence of international forces providing security to Afghans."

In other words, being spread too thin and forced to rely on airstrikes and drones is deadly. More boots on the ground could mean less civilian and military casualties.

I am also concerned about the safety and human rights of the Afghan women. If we pull out now and the Taliban regain control over this fragile new government, what happens to the women who have become advocates for their gender? Afghan schoolgirls have had acid thrown in their face for attending school. Under the Taliban women were not allowed to go to school. But under the American occupation the situation has dramatically improved for Afghan girls who want to get education.

From New York Times:

And yet if there is one unambiguously positive change that the American-led enterprise has brought it is the education of girls. In 2001, only a million Afghan children were enrolled in school, all of them boys. The education of girls was banned. Today, approximately 7 million Afghan children attend school, of which 2.6 million, or roughly a third, are girls.

Let's say we pull out now and the Taliban take over. Who do you think will be first in line for stoning, jail, and murder?

From The Daily Beast's "Don't Abandon Us Obama":

Pull out, get out, give up is not the way to solve Afghanistan’s problems,” Afghan parliamentarian Shukria Barakzai told The Daily Beast. She and several other women leaders say that while they are not convinced Afghanistan needs more American soldiers, there is no question the future of their country depends on those forces already there.

“We want the troops here,” said Huma Safi, a program manager with Women for Afghan Women, which runs women’s shelters and family counseling centers in three provinces of Afghanistan. “Women are in danger already; if the troops go, the people who will be most affected will be women and children.”

Aziza, the soccer-ball entrepreneur, echoes this concern.

“We could not be here if the troops were not here,” she said, referring to the growing number of Afghan businesswomen, educators, and activists who have taken on more visible roles in support of their communities since 2001. “We need troops here until we can sustain our own military.”

The State Department is working with the civilian population to rebuild an Afghan farming economy, while distancing itself from the unpopular poppy eradication program.

Supporting the Afghan economy is crucial because many young men are drawn to extremist groups like the Taliban because they are poor and unemployed.

From Associated Press:

According to a press release from the Institute for War and Peace Reporting, many of the new recruits turn to the Talban as a last resort to escape unemployment and crushing poverty.

For many of Afghanistan's youth, the only way out of poverty is through the Taliban or in the poppy and opium trade in the country's southern region. "I couldn't find a job anywhere," he said. "So I had to join the Taliban. They give me money for my family expenditures. If I left the Taliban, what else could I do?" said 19 year old Jaan Agha. "I couldn't find a job anywhere, so I had to join the Taliban. They give me money for my family expenditures. If I left the Taleban, what else could I do?

And for the record, for those Obama supporters who feel "betrayed" by his stance on Afghanistan. Here is a 2008 New York Times op-ed in which Obama lays out his plan to pull back from Iraq and focus on the conflict in Afghanistan.

What are your thoughts on Afghanistan?