David Miliband’s speech on Afghanistan marks an important moment in the downgrading of expectations for what kind of Afghanistan NATO will leave behind it.
It acknowledges that Afghanistan works for the most part on “sub-national government” and will do for the foreseeable future. In one intriguing paragraph, which bears the hallmarks of much mandarin crafting, Mr Miliband says:
“Our role should not be to prescribe exactly how those (ancient) traditions (of sub-national governance) evolve, or how the systems which reflect them are implemented … but to provide the resources without which none of this (stability) would be possible, and which will be far less expensive than trying to suppress the insurgency by conventional military means.”
Got that? I think it means that where a Taliban-sympathiser or some other menacing chief is running an area they can get on with it as long as they are not exporting global Jihad or destabilising the entire country.
I think it means issues like women’s rights in Afghanistan, once talked about quite a bit in speeches by the leaders of combatant countries, are beyond our reach in many parts of the country.
It will probably only enhance Hilary Clinton’s high opinion of David Miliband, expressed in her “Vogue” magazine interview:
“Well, if you saw him it would be a big crush. I mean, he is so vibrant, vital, attractive, smart. He’s really a good guy. And he’s so young!”
(Thanks to Alex Barker in the FT/Westminster blog for spotting this.)
Commentsoldest first
Jeez. Hillary Clinton is either a very accomplished liar or she sure has a weird sense of attractiveness in a man. Still, after decades of putting up with Bill, what can you expect.
Let Afghan women fight for their own rights if they want them, like EMily Pankhurst did. Don’t waste any more of my tax on that pointless exercise in a foreign country. My tax is supposed to pay for things like getting my broken tooth fixed on the NHS…
It really is up to the Afghan people as to how they treat their women in their own country.They have the caperbility of changing their society.Empires and dictatorships do not last forever.
As long as they do not try to bring their beliefs and ideologies to these isle and when here abide by our laws and customs.
As for David Milliband , didanyone notice he appeared to have marked his upper lip with pencil liner
It’s much harder for Afghan women to fight for their rights than it was for Pankhurst and co – each one has her own absolute master at home who can forbid her to go out of the house, and there is no tradition of political discussion in which women participate. The world was disgusted at the way S. Africa treated black people and did something about it. It’s about time the world showed its disgust for the way some cultures treat women (the other half of the human race) and did something about it. That said, the women’s rights issue is simply one of the later arguments produced by the govt to bolster up its case for staying in Afghanistan.
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