Kabul at the moment is a mixture of unfounded optimism by many Afghans, pesimism by internationals, rocket attacks, international parties and cold beer by the pool. There is lots of speculaation about what will happen with the run up to the elections but Afghanistan will be as unpredictable as ever.Have a glance at some of the articles I have attached to get a better feel of what is going on here.
Heard a whoosh of a rocket the other night as it passed my house. They are very inaccurate unless fired from the back of a truck. They are usually placed on the ground with a fuse connected to an old battery and when the battery becomes flat they fire. This is between 5 to 12 hours after the perpetrators have left the area so it is very difficult to catch anyone. Many people think that the security forces are responsible for some rockets to justify their presence and salary. Afghans are blasé about it as most have experienced nightly trips to the bunker as the rockets hit Kabul after the fall of the Russians when the various factions did their best to destroy Kabul. Life is going on as normal in Kabul. Markets are busy, lots of new construction, roads full of traffic and there is no sense of danger on the streets. Some internationals are planning to go on holiday over the elections in October but most will stay. Evacuation policies are supposed to be in place but are not well planned or thought out. The UN does not even know where all its staff are living in Kabul. IOM, who I am working for, plan to evacuate to Pakistan if necessary. As the road heading to Pakistan is the one that has seen the most attacks in Kabul so far does not seem a good idea especially in a big white land cruiser which says shoot me. Plenty of bars and restaurants making a lot of money in Kabul catering to the international market. Some offer more than just food and drink. Most of the girls are Thai or Chinese. UN people sit by the pool in the green shady garden of a UN Guest House sipping cold beer and talking a mixture of the security situation and gossip. If this is surreal in Kabul then some of the new bars and restaurants are unbelieveable.
Work is getting more and more all consuming with the rush to get out proposals before deadlines after which they will be stopped. This could mean a remote village getting a water supply or not. I am also trying to get mine clearance on all the sites before we start construction and also ensuring that the haste does not mean that buildings collapse as a hospital (not ours) did last week killing 12 and injuring many more.
The elections are still set for 9th October which everyone except the US government thinks is far too soon. The blurring of aid and military has meant that NGOs are feeling very vulnerable and more are likely to leave soon. There will be more violence. The only question is how much. The US Embassy will have it’s helicopters ready.
Work is getting more and more all consuming with the rush to get out proposals before deadlines after which they will be stopped. This could mean a remote village getting a water supply or not. I am also trying to get mine clearance on all the sites before we start construction and also ensuring that the haste does not mean that buildings collapse as a hospital (not ours) did last week killing 12 and injuring many more.
The elections are still set for 9th October which everyone except the US government thinks is far too soon. The blurring of aid and military has meant that NGOs are feeling very vulnerable and more are likely to leave soon. There will be more violence. The only question is how much. The US Embassy will have it’s helicopters ready.