By Dr. Rahul Kumar, PhD
Muqaddesa Yourish is a former Deputy Minister of Commerce for Afghanistan and an adjunct lecturer with the American University of Afghanistan, Department of Business. She has previously served as a Commissioner for the Independent Administrative Reforms and Civil Service Commission of Afghanistan (IARCSC) and Director of Human Resources for Kabul Municipality. She is an expert and consummate scholar who spoke on the topic at the Center for Policy Research, a think- tank, New Delhi (India). Afghanistan has viewed India as a trusted partner for its stabilizing presence and reconstruction efforts in the country.
Afghanistan-India bilateral relations are strengthening day by day. The role of India in establishing peace in the region is appreciated. Taliban after fighting over 18 years, now feels the necessity of establishing peace in Afghanistan. I am satisfied to say that several positive steps are being taken by the central Government to coordinate efforts at different levels of government & non- government organizations to restore peace in the region.
There are several political and ideological factions, having their own religious and political vested interests that stand in the path of complete peace, she commented. Stability to the region depends upon complete integration with its neighboring countries. Pakistan can also play a positive role in cementing peace in the region.
The US under President Donald Trump needs to play a crucial role to bring the Taliban leaders, belonging to different political & ideological factions to the table, and resolve political issues & restore permanent peace for the speedy reconstruction of Afghanistan. Peace is essential to boost trade and commerce for a healthy economy. There is an urgent need to restore trust among the international community to bring more investment in Afghanistan.
While answering to a question on women liberation in Afghanistan, women in Afghanistan are experiencing existential crisis but a lot of positive social change towards women in Afghanistan is taking place, she said.
Women from rural areas are migrating to the urban areas to study and follow new professional careers despite death threats by the Taliban forces. Women dare to come out of their villages and engage themselves to build social and economic capital. She also said that there is a substantial decrease in violence against women in Afghanistan however there are still some cases of violence being reported by the media. Today, a large number of women like me are joining government jobs. In regard to peace in the region, the central government has been conducting dialogues and discussions with different Taliban political and ideological factions. Let us keep in mind that not all people of Afghanistan subscribe to the ideology of the Taliban. War is not a solution, she said.
The talk was chaired by Dr. Nimmi Kurian of CPR. Dr. Yamini Aiyar, President & Chief Executive Chairman & Member Secretary of the Board, CPR, also participated in the talk.
