'Public Fear and Frustration' Rising in Afghanistan, CSIS Report Says

Afghanistan has (tragically) become the perfect example of why public opinion and public relationships need to be recognized and managed in attempts at post-conflict stabilization:

"Afghans See Marked Decline Since 2005," by Griff Witte - the Washington Post, p. A-11, 24 February 2007 (registration required)

Conditions in Afghanistan have deteriorated markedly since 2005, with rising violence, government corruption and misguided U.S. efforts contributing to growing unease among the population, according to a report released yesterday based in part on 1,000 interviews with ordinary Afghans.

Although there were bright spots -- a better overall economy and more rights for women -- the report's authors found diminishing security as the Taliban steps up its attacks, a discredited justice system and a severe lack of basic services such as electricity. The report, produced by the nonpartisan Center for Strategic and International Studies and funded in part by a grant from the U.S. Agency for International Development, also found that Afghans tend to be more negative in their outlook than official statistics or media accounts would suggest.

"Public fear and frustration are on the rise in Afghanistan. As a result, Afghans are beginning to disengage from national governing processes and lose confidence in their leadership," according to the report. "Dramatic changes are required in the coming weeks, or 2007 will become the breaking point."...

Among the report's recommendations are to shift the focus away from eradicating poppy fields and toward interdiction, to give local communities more control over aid money, and to abandon major military sweeps that inflict damage on civilians in favor of rapid-response forces that can protect Afghans in emergencies. "NATO and the United States' 'big army' military operations and emphasis on foot soldier 'kills' are doing more damage than good," the report said.

Lt. Col. Todd Vician, a Pentagon spokesman, said he could not comment on the report's recommendations because he had not seen them, but he said part of the reason the United States is committing more troops to Afghanistan is to improve response times. Britain said yesterday it would also be sending additional troops....

The report is available on the CSIS webpage. The link from their homepage wasn't working this morning; try this one instead: http://www.csis.org/media/csis/pubs/070223_breakingpoint.pdf.

Comments

[Trulyaler]

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[Lenno Cornish]

What Britain has forgotten there? The Empire had already lost there two wars... Ha-ha.