Afghan president is under siege as violence, joblessness persist - washingtonpost

KABUL — An ominous rumble of discontent is sweeping Afghanistan, driven by a mixture of anxiety, anger, frustration and political opportunism. 

In the past two months, an assortment of new opposition groups has emerged, some with noble-sounding names and reformist agendas, led by an improbable collection of tribal leaders, ethnic militia bosses, disaffected public appointees and young professionals. Even an old communist general has joined the fray with a new, pointedly non-leftist party called the “Homeland Movement.”

Their demands include individual grievances, and several of the more controversial leaders have grabbed most of the attention. But their broader message is remarkably similar: The government of President Ashraf Ghani has failed to protect the public and provide jobs. The president has overreached his executive powers and excluded diverse points of view. He must act now, produce meaningful reforms and legitimize his fractured, teetering government — or else. 

The object of this barrage is a cerebral, single-minded man of 68 who spends 18-hour days reading policy reports, holding team meetings, addressing conferences and huddling with aides, seemingly determined to power through the latest crisis as his troubled government nears three years in office. Ghani’s aides insist that the real impetus behind much of the opposition is a combination of anxiety among traditional leaders who are losing power in a modernizing state, and a broader opposition to reform from those who have long benefited from systemic public corruption.

“The old guard is desperate to stick to the status quo, with the entrenched patronage networks that always decided who got what. Now a new educated generation has emerged, and the president is empowering people on the basis of merit,” said one recent Ghani appointee, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “It is very risky for the president to take this stand,” he added, noting that many such leaders gained power through armed conflicts. “The old guard’s survival is at stake, and they know if they lose they will become irrelevant.” 

Ghani’s aides say that he is well aware of the trouble swirling outside his palace and in far-flung provinces but that he does not view it as a reason to panic or change course. He has responded directly to some demands for change, replacing the defense and interior ministers after devastating insurgent attacks, and appointing officials from ethnic minorities to important posts. He has also held televised public meetings, inviting groups to express their concerns and offering them explanations or solutions.

Meanwhile, the aides said, the president is determined to stay focused on the financial, justice and administrative reform agenda that has brought him kudos from Afghanistan’s foreign backers — which pay for 70 percent of the national budget — and from groups such as the International Monetary Fund. 

But most Afghans have seen little benefit from the reforms. Unemployment is close to 40 percent, and street corners are crammed with day laborers. High-profile efforts to prosecute corrupt officials have proceeded slowly, and powerful figures with murky fortunes have built mansions and shopping malls. Street crime and insurgency have infected daily life with the constant fear of violence; last year, more than 11,000 civilians were killed or injured in war-related incidents. 

Meanwhile, with Ghani and the government at their most unpopular point, there are predictions that the president may not survive until his term ends in just over two years. Some opponents have called for an interim government, others for a traditional gathering of elders, to determine what happens next. One group of former militia leaders has made vague threats to overrun the capital. - Read More

Afghan president is under siege as violence, joblessness persist