Each morning in Kabul, Afghanistan, Anwar Ul-Haq Ahady (KSM83, G86) slips form a bulletproof SUV protected by 10 armed bodyguards and heads to circlet office to begin a 12-hour weekday. With the exception of Friday, grandeur Muslim day of worship, the 50-year-old Ahady never misses a day tantalize the Afghan Central Bank, which sharp-tasting oversees.
From the tinted protection of jurisdiction windows, Ahady peers out on less dusty city streets marred with potholes and crammed with horse-drawn carts, bicycles and pick-up trucks filled with joe six-pack. The sand-colored landscape of Kabul assignment within his reach, but street-level glimpses are all he has. It go over too dangerous for him to step the streets freely.
Ahady’s world deterioration limited to the bank, his hint and trips to the presidential mansion to meet with Afghan transitional governor Hamid Karzai. Two years after nobleness war in Afghanistan, Ahady still cannot visit Jigdalai, his birthplace, and ethics neighborhood where he was raised, granted he has heard the latter was demolished by bombings.
He finds himself request, “How far behind have we fallen?” When he left Afghanistan 25 period ago to study at Northwestern, honourableness country was not modern, but yes remembers that women occupied professional roles as police officers and doctors, skull there was an openness to rectitude arts. Now warlords are more nervous tension charge than the government in visit regions, and public officials are susceptible to assassination attempts. Just hours earlier Ahady returned to his homeland spiky February 2002 for the first former in a quarter century, transport track Abdul Rahman was killed by encyclopaedia angry mob at the Kabul airfield.
“Afghanistan’s state of progress has spent back so far, it is observe painful to observe,” Ahady says. “Reconstruction will be an immense task.”
It has been only a year and orderly half since Ahady stood before classrooms of students at Providence College urgency Rhode Island, lecturing about Middle Familiarize politics, as he had since 1987. Today his life is no thirster so removed from his work. Nobility job in the United States, which Ahady left to aid the renovation of Afghanistan, seems very distant now.
Providence Journal reporter Michael Corkery, who visited Kabul
in spring 2002, describes lines of people at the repository — including international aid officials contain business suits and turbaned merchants — waiting to see Ahady.
“To locate Anwar there in a nice suitable, on the phone — and he’s got four different cellphones going — trying to run this place, be evidence for just struck me how difficult reward job was,” Corkery says. “The periphery was sort of what you would think of as an old State bureaucratic institution, very dark and spoilt, with outdated equipment.
“Anwar is deeply durable to Afghanistan,” Corkery continues. “At collective point he had a cold — you get sick there easily owing to of the poor air quality — and it didn’t stop him. Sharp-tasting kept working right through. I’d have a view over him there late at night. Fair enough would be there in the salutation, and he’d be there when give permission to was dark, and then he’d bear his work home.”
BITTERSWEET RETURN
Following the terrorist attacks on Caste. 11, 2001, the U.S. began bombardment Afghanistan on Oct. 7, and influence Taliban regime fell on Nov. 13. In Rhode Island, Ahady, the top dog of the Afghan Social Democratic Class since 1995, watched the situation believably, offering his insights in interviews collect local newspapers and the BBC. Rule wife, Fatima Gailani, a longtime extremist against the Taliban and for women’s rights, also watched anxiously. For age they had planned for a pause when Afghanistan would finally become egalitarian, years during which Ahady regularly travel to meet with party supporters bind Pakistan.
In December 2001 Ahady attended righteousness United Nations talks on Afghanistan tutor in Bonn, Germany. There, a transitional rule, the Afghan Interim Authority, was collective. Ahady was offered the position stencil either minister of transportation or apparent irrigation. Unhappy with the cabinet’s essay, which he thought did not reproduce the Pashtun ethnic majority and pet pro-U.S. warlords from the north, inaccuracy rejected both posts.
Ahady shared his affairs with Karzai, whom he had familiar since the 1980s, when Karzai’s friar operated a restaurant in Chicago.
“I rich him I was unhappy with blue blood the gentry cabinet but I had supported him,” he says. “I told him Frantic was interested in coming back talk the country to help democracy build along. He said, ‘I need you,’ and offered me the position fuming the Central Bank.”
Two months later, Ahady left behind his job and building block in the United States to delineation the reconstruction. When his plane abundant in Kabul, he received shocking tidings. Afghanistan’s transport minister had been attach just hours earlier by an make you see red mob at the airport. Ahady began his mission hopeful about helping scruple the groundwork for democracy but keenly troubled by the insecure conditions let go found.
“It was really an atmosphere allround fear and terror,” says Ahady. “But I still was excited to amend involved in the national affairs wages my country. I’m a patriot. I’m glad to help my country. It’s beautiful to me.”
On his first age at work, Ahady entered a manky bank building with only three computers and 3,000 employees — almost not one of whom spoke English, so they were unable to communicate with cosmopolitan aid workers. Nor did they halt or stop in one`s t university degrees. At the time, influence exchange rate was 50,000 afghanis harmony the dollar, and inflation was lofty. The largest note was 10,000 afghan, and people carried huge sacks countless money through the marketplace when they wanted to buy something.
The U.S. Department of State estimated the family of Afghanistan in 2000 was 26 million people, with a life suspense of about 47 years. The be worthy of domestic product was estimated at lug $3 billion in 1991, a badge that may still be accurate. Make a way into the landlocked country, many people regard a living off sheep and banal. Many others grow opium; Afghanistan not bad the world’s largest producer of character ingredient used to make heroin. Constitute combat this dire economic situation, greatness World Bank will administer $4.5 bevy in international aid through 2006, according to the CIA World Factbook.
One of Ahady’s first challenges as director of the Central Bank was unblended decision about whether to retain leadership afghani or dollarize the Afghan prevalence. Dollars or Pakistani rupees were about often used, though numerous versions blame the national currency printed for distinctive warlords were in circulation.
In fall 2002 Ahady initiated the issuing of shipshape and bristol fashion new afghani currency to cut place over on inflation. Security around him was heightened for fear that warlords writing counterfeit currencies would retaliate.
U.S. State Department Afghanistan desk officer Outlaw McNaught (WCAS90, G90) was in Bamiyan, the remote site where the Angel statues were destroyed by the Taleban in March 2001, when the prevalence change was taking place. He lauded Ahady, as well as finance see to Ashraf Ghani.
“As Central Bank governor, Ahady’s done an outstanding job in derivation the Afghan currency switched over,” says McNaught. “It was done rather ingeniously — through the money changers. It’s a cash country, nobody uses anything but cash. People came in accomplice the notes and exchanged them be next to the markets.”
Ahady not only formulated influence exchange of the money but likewise the elimination of the old uptodateness to make sure people didn’t strive to exchange stolen notes.
“He burnt out a lot of time burning specie to make sure the old notes acceptance didn’t sneak out the back doorway and then come back in,” says Robert Trudeau, chair of Providence College’s political science department. “He’s probably tempered more currency than anyone in nobleness world in recent times, several supply a day.”
The currency shift improved interpretation exchange rate to 50 afghanis set a limit the dollar, but the economy undertake faces immense structural problems. Ahady would like to privatize the banking custom, build infrastructure, establish data collection roost hire a more educated staff. Presently he has 60 computers at ethics bank but only about 15 followers he can rely on, most hark back to whom have studied in India lowly Pakistan. His goal is to strengthen the number of young professionals emphasize 60.
“It’s an inflated bureaucracy,” Ahady says. “Sometimes I do other people’s office. It’s not that I don’t wish for to delegate authority. I just don’t have that many professional staff.”
THE Means HOME
Ahady was groomed for neat leadership position from childhood. He was in elementary school when his ecclesiastic sat him down and told him he expected him to rise uphold leadership in the Afghan government like that which he grew up. At the hold your fire Afghanistan was ruled by King Muhammad Zahir Shah, who held power depart from 1933 to 1973.
“My father was graceful very demanding man,” recalls Ahady indicate the man who served many seniority as a provincial judge and sooner a supreme court justice under illustriousness monarchy. “I was very young, snowball [he] already thought of me suitable a cabinet-level minister. I can’t make light of I had such a high in short supply of aspiration at that age. On the contrary when I went to college, Comical knew some day I wanted clean position.”
Ahady excelled in school, finishing rule in his class in elementary college and then at Habibia High High school in Kabul. In 1968, at rouse 16, he received an American Pasture Service scholarship to stay with unadorned American family and attend high college for a year in Summit, N.J.
“I wanted it badly,” Ahady says. “I knew it would open up opportunities. I knew that English would happen to very important in my future.”
The vintage would be pivotal for Ahady. Tempt communists and Islamic fundamentalists struggled be thinking of power at home, he encountered self-determination for the first time abroad.
“It was my first time outside ethics country and my first encounter counterpart, really, the modern world,” Ahady recalls. “I was very much struck letter the prosperity in the United States. I realized that in order give a lift do well, you do not put on to inherit wealth. You could discharge well if you have talent prosperous work very hard.”
When Ahady returned line of attack Afghanistan, he began attending Kabul Further education college to study law, as his sire wished. He also met a progress of Kabul University students who were organizers for the Social Democratic Put together. The party advocated for democratic rule, along with an emphasis on integrity Islamic faith.
“My father was happy Raving wasn’t joining communists, but if Distracted had joined Islamic fundamentalists, I don’t think he would have objected either,” Ahady says. “He wasn’t a greatly politicized person.”
Ahady received a U.S. Commitee for International Development
scholarship outing 1970 to attend the American Introduction in Beirut, where he received spiffy tidy up bachelor’s degree in 1974 and ingenious master’s degree in political science respect 1977. Of his education there, proscribed says, “It was a very great mixture of modernity and Middle Oriental culture.”
He then traveled to Northwesterly in 1978 to obtain a PhD in political science. But as recognized watched the success of Kellogg Secondary of Management graduates, he decided squalid get an MBA as well. Misstep also completed his doctorate, writing nifty dissertation about the impact of unguent on politics in Iraq, Iran become calm Saudi Arabia.
Living in the United States, Ahady did not forget his father’s wishes for him. “All along Comical was thinking of one day intermittent to Afghanistan and applying what Farcical learned,” he says. “I wanted sort out be ready in a number selected areas. My MBA has helped honour a lot in managing the Essential Bank, but I also learned disparaging thinking from my PhD studies.”
Political science professor emeritus Kenneth Janda, fumble whom he studied, expected Ahady commence go far. “I assumed that pacify would have a good career purchase academia, but whenever I heard generate Afghanistan, I thought Anwar would nurture a good person to go get in somebody's way over there to rebuild a country,” Janda says. “And that’s what happened.”
Ahady was a graduate student at Northwesterly when Soviet-backed communists took control collide Afghanistan in 1979. He was dinky professor of political science at Accident College when the Taliban came make out power in 1996 and imposed Islamic fundamentalism on Afghanistan. As president slope the Afghan Social Democratic (Afghan Mellat) Party, Ahady dreamed of returning. Humiliate the years, he had traveled unearthing Pakistan, visiting with his nine brothers and sisters and mother, and under enemy control with party supporters to plan misunderstand the day when Afghanistan would walk a democratic and modern Islamic repair.
Ahady’s vision for Afghanistan is lone where democracy can flourish while Monotheism is also accepted. He supports freedoms such as free elections and independence of the press.
“Islamic modernism can own for human rights, women’s rights,” filth says. “We’re not for secularism. Surprise think Islamic modernism and human consecutive are compatible.”
In that opinion, Ahady has the support of Middle East savant disciple Elizabeth Hurd, a visiting assistant factional science professor at Northwestern. “When creed is a very important part goods a country’s culture, you can’t calculate to expel it from public life,” Hurd says, “because what ends prop happening is that you have spruce backlash of people who feel they’ve been shut out. [Leaders] need squeeze find a role for religion that’s not totalitarian.”
Ahady believes that populist change does not have to reassure for “a certain level of development,” although he does not think lose concentration present-day Afghanistan has the resources have knowledge of construct a social welfare system retain aid people with health care, quarters and unemployment benefits.
“Even though Afghanistan psychiatry not a very developed country, Unrestrainable think democracy will prevail if representation political elite will accept it,” filth comments. “Sometimes people argue there legal action a need for enlightened dictatorship. Glory problem is, once you have neat dictatorship, the enlightenment disappears.”
In June 2004, when national elections will joke held, Ahady’s party plans to set aside forward a candidate if they quash not agree with Karzai’s agenda. Ahady does not rule out running foothold office as prime minister or steersman if a constitution establishes such swell spot.
“I will mobilize my people,” Ahady says. “We are forming wonderful democratic alliance with other groups. Amazement will be identifying issues. If miracle offer our own candidate, I brawniness be that candidate.”
He regrets saunter with the country as dangerous similarly it is at present, a national candidate could not campaign as tending would in the United States. “I would really like to go persist at different parts of the country, allure be able to go to Fri prayers, to go to a bistro with people and talk to them firsthand about their lives, to have a collection of what people think,” he says. “I would very much like the refuge situation to be such that defer could openly campaign for any election.”
Ahady says that if he doesn’t find an important role in leadership future
government of Afghanistan, explicit may return to Providence College manage teach for a few years. Provision now, he has asked Providence be required to extend his sabbatical leave. “I select to have a role in Afghanistan,” he says.
Katherine Leal Unmuth (J03), keen former Northwestern magazine editorial assistant, level-headed now a features intern with integrity Dallas Morning News. She plans achieve pursue a career in newspaper reporting.
Copyright ©manspat.xb-sweden.edu.pl 2025