The Lost Sons of Afghanistan (con.)

Erik Gauger

Meanwhile, Massoud crept out of Afghanistan into Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan, where he flew to France to speak to an assembly of European Union legislators about the growing humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, the needs of the United Front, and his belief in a broad-based democratic Government, independent of his own front, which would be elected and representative of the people of Afghanistan.

"I believe the United Front can establish peace," said Pierre "It represents all the ethnic groups of the country including the majority Pashtuns, as demonstrated recently by the delegation which visited the EU Parliament."

I asked Pierre how he became interested in the United Front.

"In 1998, I was following a film project called, Massoud the Afghan by Christophe de Ponfilly," he said. "I wanted to know more about the country, their resistance, and in particular about Ahmed Shah Massoud. At that time, there was not one mention in the world about the resistance (against the Taliban). I modestly decided to help. Since the Taliban hid (everything into) obscurity, my site had to be something that was open to everybody, full of documentation, accessible to all. Eventually, a lot of people wanted to participate in the project. My site grew and now some 30 administrators who work from London, Paris, Brussels, Kabul and the Islamic world help to edit it and have full editing capacity."

I asked Pierre what he thought about the future of Afgha.com.

"We would like to open a German, a Spanish and a Dari (northern Persian dialect) version of the site, but we lack the people. We would like to enlarge our communication network, and maintain a group of Afghan journalists locally. But that requires a lot of time and money."

By the time the snow had melted in Afghanistan's northern provinces this year, the Taliban had launched a series of major assaults on the United Front, pushing them further into the Northern valleys of the Hindu Kush, swallowing up land. With waning interest from the outside and only limited supplies coming from Tajikistan, the Front was losing ground. But in August, they made advancements, killing hundreds of Bin Laden's white-clothed militia, and retaking some of the important towns near the border. Days later, a bomb went off in Ahmed Shah Massoud's office. Moroccan fundamentalists, posing as journalists, had blown a suicide bomb from their video camera.

Just hours later, seven thousand were killed in a suicide attack on the United States which sent shock-waves of economic catastrophe around the world.

As the world began pointing fingers at Afghanistan, Massoud died of spinal cord injuries and severe gashes in his arms, legs and face. The United Front was thought to have lost the war right then, for Massoud was considered one of the greatest military intellects in modern history, and irreplaceable to a loosely-strung coalition. But the United Front blasted missiles into Taliban military installations near Kabul. For two weeks they fired on the Taliban, broadening their control of Afghanistan by as much as twenty-percent of the entire country. Russia announced they would support the United Front. Shortly thereafter, other countries began to offer support to the coalition which they had recognized all along. Ultimately, the United States announced its full support for the United Front, using the evidence of Massoud's death as evidence to the world of the Taliban's role in attacks on America's greatest city.

I ask Pierre if he thought that it would be considered an infringement of the Afghan's independent spirit if the U.S. and U.N. would try to support the United Front.

"This is a delicate question," he said. "The Afghan's sense of self-determination stems from the fact that they never have been conquered. They always fought to be independent from outside powers, and they have always managed. The U.S. knows this, and in my opinion, they fear a new Vietnam. Should the conflict escalate, should the Americans invade Afghanistan, one could fear the worse."

At Massoud's funeral, his 13 year old son declared his father a martyr for Afghanistan, and vowed vengeance. Today, if the world acts within reason and allows the Afghan's their own self-determination, Massoud's dream of an independent, moderate nation may come true.

"A lot of these Taliban were former Mujahidin," Huvishka Mustamandy added. "We need to work from the inside, assisting the Pashtuns. Even though I'm against war, I am against the Taliban because of their oppression of women, and giving Islam a bad name -- they are demented warmongers."

He says that before continued invasions from the outside, Afghanistan was a "nation of elaborate mosques, beautiful architecture, well-paved roads connecting every village." When Huvishka's mother passed away, she was developing a temporary Afghan museum in Switzerland to hold and display the relics until Afghanistan ended its civil wars. She was recognized as a great fighter for Afghanistan's cultural heritage. Zahir Shah, the deposed king, called Huvishka to offer condolensces.

"My dad had this watch from Zahir Shah, with an engraved dedication to him -- they were hunting buddies. The king had great respect for my parents."

UNESCO, the United Nations branch which fights to save the environmental and cultural keyposts of the world, offered Huvishka a gold Kushan statue. "I'm going to put it on consignment at the Getty Museum. It's important for the world to see it."

Recently, the United Front asked king Zahir Shah to return to Afghanistan to help lead a country into a new democratic state and soon after, the United States and the United Nations backed the move. NATO has backed the formation of an Afghan-led independent state, which will be led with the support of king Zahir.

Finally, it seems, the world has recognized Afghanistan's recognized king. In coming days and years, perhaps the plundered heritage of Afghanistan will have a home.

"A thousand years down the line, they'll ask, who were the Afghan people?" Huvishka says. The fight to preserve the cultural heritage waged by the lost sons of Afghanistan is vital in the wake of a nation in transition. These sons, spread across the world and fighting from afar, are fighting for an identity. We sometimes say that we stand on the shoulders of giants."

Afghanistan's deep archaeological history as the center of vast empires, varied ethnicities and proud histories is essential for a country shelled, minefielded, starved and ripped of its pastures. The movement to bring Afghanistan's looted archeological treasures back to the country continues to this day.

** The Pacific-Asian Museum, which supports the International Committee for the Salvation of the Cultural Heritage of Afghanistan, is located in Pasadena, California. UNESCO seeks to protect the finest examples of cultural and environmental heritage in the world. An up-to-date listing is available here.

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