CSS 2013 Solved Current Affairs Past Papers | The Current Socio-Political and Security Situation in Afghanistan
The following question of CSS Current Affairs 2013 is solved by Sir Ammar Hashmi, the best Current Affairs Coach, on the guided pattern of Sir Syed Kazim Ali, which he taught to his students, scoring the highest marks in compulsory subjects for years. This solved past paper question is uploaded to help aspirants understand how to crack a topic or question, write relevantly, what coherence is, and how to include and connect ideas, opinions, and suggestions to score the maximum.
Question Breakdown
This question has two main parts: first, the discussion of the Current Socio-Political and Security Situation in Afghanistan, and second, the implications of the sociopolitical condition of Afghanistan on the region.
Outline
1- Introduction
2- A bird’s eye view of the current political climate of Afghanistan
3- Deciphering the sociopolitical condition of Afghanistan
- ✓Political deadlock
- ✓Economic constraints
- ✓Social dilemmas
4- The security condition of Afghanistan
5- Implications for regional countries
- ✓Security challenges
- ✓Compromised regional integration
- ✓Trade disruption
6- Critical analysis
7- Conclusion
Introduction
Afghanistan has been the center of global and regional political discourses for the last few decades. Historically, the country’s geostrategic location has been leveraged as a buffer zone to balance power dynamics in the region. However, the exit of the United States (US) from Afghanistan due to the varying global political landscape has left the fate of the war-torn country in the hands of a non-elected force: the Taliban. In 2021, the fall of Kabul and the revival of the Taliban drastically altered the country’s sociopolitical, economic, and security situation. For instance, curbing political activities as a result of the abolition of democracy, human rights abuses, and dissolved departments of civil rights protection have pushed the country into a crisis state. In addition, regional countries have been experiencing the brunt of theocratic government in the form of security challenges in the form of a rise in terrorism. Similarly, political isolation on the international stage has disrupted regional trade and integration. Therefore, global powers and regional stakeholders like China, India, and Pakistan should play a positive role in the political reformation of Afghanistan to mitigate multifaceted crises.
A bird’s eye view at the current political climate of Afghanistan
The establishment of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) with the return of the Taliban has forged an unprecedented political crisis in the country. The sole political hegemony of the ruling group has abolished the country’s constitution. Restrictions on democratic activities and political gatherings have undermined the right to freedom of speech. Similarly, issues like the absence of the rule of law, the dismissal of judges, the exclusion of women from the political sphere, and the dissolution of public institutions like the Department of Political Parties in the Ministry of Justices have further ignited the country’s political crisis.
Deciphering the sociopolitical condition of Afghanistan
- Political deadlock
Afghanistan has been experiencing political isolation on the international stage since the fall of Kabul in 2021. Yet, no country has recognized the interim government of the Taliban. Besides political deadlock at the global level, domestically, the country has been vulnerable to a repressive and exclusively Taliban-dominated political regime. The country’s 2004 constitution has been replaced with the Taliban version of Sharia Law. Similarly, democratic norms have been under threat in the form of media censorship, undermined civil rights, and mistreatment of political dissents. In addition, traditional Jirgas and councils have enforced significant influence over public institutions due to poor governance.
- Economic constraints
The return of the Taliban regime, followed by international sanctions in terms of frozen foreign reserves, has crippled the wings of Afghanistan’s economy. To illustrate, restrictions on the country’s banking sector, lost access to international banking, and meagre foreign investment have endangered the country’s functional economy. In addition, the Taliban ban on Opium production in 2022 has further intensified the country’s economic crisis. According to the International Rescue Committee (IRC) 2023 report, 97% of Afghans are at risk of poverty, and more than 50% rely on humanitarian aid. Thus, the country’s economy depends on taxation and domestic trade.Besides, the interim regime spent more than 50% of revenue generation on military and security abilities, compromising human development and stressing the country’s economy.
- Social dilemmas
The political crisis as a result of the harsh policies of the Taliban has fostered multifaceted social dilemmas. For instance, the lack of a robust education sector due to institutional underdevelopment and infrastructure issues has a major role in the underprivileged condition of human development. Additionally, restrictions on women’s participation in social activities and a ban on women’s enrolment in higher education and access to jobs decipher the jeopardized state of Afghan society. According to the International Labor Organization, there has been a significant decrease in the women’s labour force due to a ban on women’s employment. Moreover, minorities like the Hazara community have been vulnerable to the Taliban’s repression. Their inadequate representation at local Jirgas and Shuras has left them at a structural disadvantage.
The security condition of Afghanistan
Besides sociopolitical issues, Afghanistan has been vulnerable to security challenges. While there has been significant improvement in the local peace process, insurgent groups like ISIS-Khurasan and the National Resistant Front (NRF) still pose a major security threat. Additionally, the Taliban’s hard-handed tactics like arbitrary detention, extra-judicial killing, and collective punishment of dissents have further alienated the security crisis by provoking ethnoreligious groups to attack public facilities. Further, the existence of notorious terrorist organizations like Al-Qaida and the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) raises security concerns for the future of Afghanistan.
Implications for regional countries
The prime location of Afghanistan as a gateway to Central Asia and being a key strategic player has significant implications for regional countries in terms of security, trade, and regional integration.
- Security challenges
Afghanistan has been the point of concern in the regional peace process for the last few decades. Importantly, the establishment of IEA has raised security concerns for the neighboring countries. For sure, the existence of terrorist organizations like Al-Qaida and TTP in Afghanistan poses a significant threat to regional peace. Thus, there has been an increase in pressure on regional countries to secure borders and prevent infiltration. However, Pakistan has been vulnerable to extremism and terrorist activities due to its long border with Afghanistan. In 2023, Pakistan experienced 1203 terrorist attacks. The country has repeatedly shown concerns regarding the presence of notorious elements in Afghanistan that are involved in terrorist activities inside Pakistan.
- Compromised regional integration
The exit of the US from Afghanistan has left a void space for regional powers to exercise their influence over the country. Thus, regional politics has undergone new dynamics, compromising regional integration. For instance, China and Russia have been seeking to secure their national interests in the country to balance the US influence in the region. Similarly, India and Pakistan have been confronted with maintaining significant authority over the new regime. As a result, regional integration has been at the bay of regional power politics.
- Trade disruption
Afghanistan, being a landlocked country, is pivotal in regional trade. For instance, the country has a large trade potential in terms of utilizing Pakistani seaports and barter trade with the tribal belt. However, the political isolation and security challenges that arose with the establishment of the Taliban regime have significantly impacted regional trade. According to the Afghan Chamber of Commerce, bilateral trade between Afghanistan and Pakistan has decreased by 60%, reflecting mistrust between both countries. Therefore, Afghanistan has to leverage the Chahbahar port of Iran for imports, which is a comparatively more expensive route than Pakistan.
Critical analysis
Critically saying, political rehabilitation and the peace process in Afghanistan have significant advantages for the region. From a historical perspective, the rigid and exclusively male-dominated Taliban regime could result in fragmentation within the theocracy, which will worsen the crises. Therefore, the interim government should exercise flexibility concerning the political inclusion of women and pro-democratic groups. In addition, besides humanitarian aid, regional players should endeavor for human development in Afghanistan to ensure social harmony and regional stability.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, Afghanistan has been experiencing sociopolitical turmoil since the collapse of the democratic government in 2021. The repressive policies adopted by the Taliban have devastating implications for the country, like human rights abuse, social fragmentation, and extremism. The institutional crisis and bad governance have severely affected the justice mechanism. In addition, regional integration has been compromised because of security challenges due to notorious groups like the ISIS-K and the TTP. Therefore, it is pertinent for regional powers to exert their influence over the country for political and social reformation of Afghanistan.
CSS Solved Past Papers’ Essays
Looking for the last ten years of CSS and PMS Solved Essays and want to know how Sir Kazim’s students write and score the highest marks in the essays’ papers? Then, click on the CSS Solved Essays to start reading them.
CSS Solved Essays
CSS Solved General Science & Ability Past Papers
Want to read the last ten years’ General Science & Ability Solved Past Papers to learn how to attempt them and to score high? Let’s click on the link below to read them all freely. All past papers have been solved by Pakistan’s top CSS GSA coach having the highest score of their students.
General Science & Ability Solved Past Papers
