International Environmental Awareness

By Dr. Shubhanker Banerjee

Now it is also stated that there are few international level organisations or institutions such as Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) which have been reinventing the wheel for years, telling us actually what we already know.

Therefore, environmental activists are keen to keep the credibility of these organisations for which it is necessary to steer clear of all sorts of controversies. For instance, global warming causes the sea level to rise, how will it effect Bangladesh? It is clear that we have to assess such problems and accordingly study their impacts.

It must be clarified that presently the science of environment is not just limited to atmospherics science. In fact, atmospheric science is only a part of its management. So, we require to specially focus on energy choices, the kind of clean technologies that we need to imply various aspects such as public administration, oceanology, forest management, health science, species of disease carrying, general awareness of the mass, global educational standard etc. But still this field of environment is quite dominated by atmospherics-experts and hence as its consequence, other areas of crucial importance have been neglected.

Therefore, it is urgently required to include other functional experts and qualified people of different subjects to enable the science of environment to become more wide field. The atmospheric scientists must not only dominate this field. On the other hand, atmospheric scientists also come forward with broad minded attitudes towards the global problems relating to environment.

Every country of the entire world must play a responsible role towards change of climate. Each and every people of the world must know about differentiated responsibility in the change of climate. But the developed countries, (United States in particular), should do more responsible role than developing nations like India, as their socio-economic responsibilities are much greater considering their economic, scientific and technological maturity in comparison to other under-developed countries.

Since Rio convention, the reaction of the auto fuels industry to developments is really a bit of a mixed type. For instance, Bill Ford of Ford Motor has opined that this company has to change, become more environment-friendly if it does not want to go the way of the tobacco industry. Similarly, other companies are ready to change but on the other hand, there are also few other companies who are totally resistant to change.

Actually, all global civil societies have to be stir itself more. The international environmental organizations must disseminate all the findings more actively. For instance, the IPCC gets inputs from more than 1,000 scientists throughout the world. The global community must know about such findings, particularly as per top-class research findings of the IPCC.

But the question must be raised whether any real-change is yet observed due to all the conferences after the Rio meet? The answer to this question is very simple that no such changes have happened as per expectation, specially in terms of actual action.

However, on the ground of perceptions, there has been a clear change which has been observed during last decade. It is now internationally accepted that poverty is everyone’s problem in the modern global society. Besides, there are several companies who are quite conscious of their responsibilities to the general people and the society on the whole, just after Rio meet. But still, the conditions are not satisfactory with the over all action.

The view of TERT (Tata Energy Research Institute) are simply different from those of Supreme Court. The Supreme Court of India has already ordered in favour on CNG (Compressed Natural Gas), whereas views of environmentalist and energy scientists quite differ from the verdict of the Supreme Court. These experts, unlike others, favour "Ultra Low Sulphur Diesel (ULSD) which is the preferred option all over the European Countries. In fact ULSD is considered more cleaner than CNG. Then, there must be a legitimate question raised before this point, "Why is CNG being spoken of as the only option?"

In fact, over the last six to seven years, there have been so many new developments. After the Euro II engine and the advent of the particular trap, ULSD has an edge over CNG. Then, another question. Also can be raised, "why the preference is given to CNG knowing about all of above factors?"

Actually, many people acted on old information. Usually, they took a position and did not want to resile from it. Then, ego is also a matter of concern. For instance, some people may say, we are taking money from Tatas, so we must do accordingly for their interest. But it is not so.

It is hard truth that a real environmentalist must not care for any economic or financial profits, they should not run after profit motive, but just make effective efforts to save the environment and as well as "Mother Nature". Here, for instance, certain CNG Bus and three wheeler manufacturers are making a killing, charging much more than for diesel vehicles. A true environmental-activist must also counter all of these extra profit-making efforts in the name of environment. The national level committees and organisations must be competent enough to tackle all such situations.

It may be concluded lastly that legal experts administrators and policy makers should always consult dedicated environmentalists before making any sophisticated decision and take them in confidence of the matter. Only a single committee or organisation can not be termed as fully competent and fountainhead of environmental wisdom. For instance, if it is thought, essential that all citizens must only breathe air as pure as it is in Himalays, will the concerned authorities be able to pipe it down for them?

Therefore, feasibility study must be done and safety standard must be also considered before making any solid decision or drawing some strong step to protect our Mother Nature so that environmental wisdom can be attained throughout the entire world. The environment awareness is required not only at local level also at international level.

Inside Afghanistan

By Sreedhar

Since the beginning of 2002, the Taliban-al-Qaeda have, by a series of actions, demonstrated that they are a still a potent force, not only in Afghanistan but also in neighbouring Pakistan and other places. These include; killing of Daniel Pearl, a journalist of Jewish-Christian origin working with Wall Street Journal in Karachi; killing of 11 French engineers, working in Pakistan on a submarine project in Karachi ; blowing up of a church in Islamabad where some US diplomats were offering their Sunday prayers; bomb blast near the US Consulate in Karachi, a plot hatched to pump poisonous gas fumes into the US Embassy in Italy; suspected culprit for making dirty bombs being arrested in the US; assassination of two ministers in the interim Government of Hamid Karzai in Kabul in broad daylight.

Except in the Daniel Pearl murder case, in all the others, in Pakistan and Afghanistan, the culprits are yet to traced by the authorities concerned.

In addition to these random attacks on Western targets, the Taliban-al-Qaeda cadres are also offering resistance to the US forces in the mountainous region in southern Afghanistan. The early March 2002 surprise attack on a US helicopter, killing six American soldiers, is one incident, which has been reported extensively in the media. The people visiting Kabul and its surrounding areas also mentioned similar stray incidents.

At another level, new arms and ammunition are still reaching the Taliban-al-Qaeda fighters. In fact, the US Defence Secretary in an interview to the Washington Times disclosed that in Afghanistan: ''We have recently (May-June 2002) discovered some new stuff that is not old and it is modern. It is expensive, it is well done'', he said without disclosing where the equipment was found. He said it included ''25 backpacks, all well done with the right equipment and modern stuff and professionally done.''

In another interview to DNN, he observed that he was amazed at the quantity of weapons that have been accumulated in Afghanistan throughout its long history of warfare. ''Literally you cannot imagine the hundreds of things, armoured vehicles and rockets, everything under the sun. Surface-to-air missiles. It must be from 20 different countries,'' he said. In his assessment, the Taliban al-Qaeda forces remained probably in one-third of 32 provinces in Afghanistan.

The Taliban-al-Qaeda rule was over in Afghanistan by November 2001, when Kabul was taken over by the US assisted anti-Taliban forces. The US and Afghan forces are hounding their leaders and cadres round the clock, but there are still a considerable number of hardcore Taliban in the southern provinces with large quantities of arms and ammunition, including Stinger missiles that may pose a threat to new rulers in Kabul.

The US forces stationed at Kandahar and the new Afghan administration in these provinces are well aware of their presence. The US, through the Karzai Government, is continuing its efforts to win over the tribal elders who were staunch supporters of the Taliban during their six-year rule.

Pakistani media reports say that some Taliban have simply switched their allegiance from Mullah Omar to Mullah Naqib's nominee, Corps Commander Khan Mohammed. Mullah Naqib, a Corps Commander during the days of the mujahideen government, extended his full support to the Taliban when they rose to power and developed a close relationship with Mullah Omar.

Mullah Naqib is the man who brokered the deal between Hamid Karzai and Omar before the latter disappeared from Kandahar with hundreds of his men. However, Mullah Naqib was handed over control of Kandahar along with over 3,000 Taliban fighters, hundreds of vehicles and all the military hardware of the cantonment.

The Governor of Kandahar, Mohammad Shafiq Sherzai, alias Gul Agha, whose forces succeeded in capturing towns and strategic points from Takht Pul to Kandahar airport in the wake of intense US bombing, was critical of this deal and opposed the handing over of Kandahar to his one-time arch-rival, Mullah Naqib. There was also a severe clash between Mullah Naqib and Sherzai's men when the former forcibly entered the city and captured the Governor's house.

Later, Hamid Karzai, as leader of the interim Government, brought about reconciliation between the two. Under the settlement, Sherzai was accepted as Governor, while the office of Corps Commander, the number two slot, was given to Mullah Naqibullah who nominated his brother-in-law, Khan Mohammad, to the post. Since then there has been tension between the Governor and his second-in-command. Both men are uneducated, but Sherzai communicates with the Americans through his two English speaking cousins, Engineer Yousaf Pashtun and Khalid Pashtun.

There are reports that in Ghazni alone, north of Kandahar, there are hundreds of vehicles and tanks, besides hundreds of Taliban leaders and fighters under the protection of tribal elders. An equal number are present in the Baghran mountains to the north in Helmand province where American and Afghan forces tried in vain to track down Mullah Omar and his men.

In January 2002, Rais Abdul Wahid, a powerful warlord in Baghran, a Tora Bora-like mountainous area, agreed to cooperate in the search in the wake of threats by US forces to bombard the area. The search met with no success and some people believe Rais may have delayed it to give Mullah Omar enough time to get away.

Many Taliban have now resumed their religious studies in Afghanistan and Pakistan or resumed their duties as peshimams or muezzins in the mosques in both countries. Some have gone back to their villages and are biding their time. Some of them roam the streets of Kandahar in the same dress and turban while some have changed their garb.

''The Taliban exist everywhere. They cannot be separated from Pashtun culture. It is not necessary that they rise under the same name, but they could launch another movement on the same lines,'' said Talib Qari Noorduddin, who recently got the job of peshimam in the city of Kandahar. Hundreds of people, many of whom were Taliban, protested in front of the Governor's house against the Government's decision to cut off food and water to the Arab fighters entrenched in Mir Wais Hospital in January-February 2002.

When Governor Gul Agha invited citizens' suggestions regarding the Government's day-to-day affairs, very few people showed up. Later, in order to mobilize public opinion for holding a Loya Jirga, the Government arranged public meetings and repeatedly requested the people to attend them, but its pleas went unheeded,as not more than 5,000 people in one meeting 3,000 of whom were primary school children, showed up. Khalid Pushtun, chief adviser to Governor Sherzai, had claimed a day earlier that he expected at least 20,000 people to attend the meeting and demonstrate their support for Government policies and the current political process.

In Kandahar, many believe that the law and order established by the Taliban will be difficult for the warlords to dismantle, even with US support, and that is one reason why public support is not forthcoming.

There are clear difference between the two local forces, one loyal to Governor Sherzai and the other to Corps Commander Khan Mohammad in Kandahar. Khan Mohammad's men were deployed at the Mir Wais Hospital, guarding the armed Arab fighters who had demanded safe passage. When the Americans decided to conduct a commando operation against the Arabs, they asked these soldiers to leave and then used Governor Sherzai's forces to launch an attack against the Arabs. This type of visible tussle between warlords is hindering the US efforts to win over tribal leaders with all means at its command.

Haji Bashar Noorzai is one of the leaders who surrendered along with Taliban vehicles and around 1,200 weapons of all types in return for assurance of amnesty. Noorzai hosted a lunch for Governor Sherzai and a senior US military official at Maywant, 40 kilometers west of Kandahar city. Bashar, one of the biggest opium tycoons of Afghanistan, was one of the two tribal leaders of the province of Mullah Omar before his departure.

Americans are said to have rewarded Bashar in cash for changing sides and expected him to help in the hunt for Osama, Mullah Omar and other Taliban leaders. Another important tribal warlord, Mullah Salam Rocketti in Zabul surrendered on the same conditions. Pir Ismail Gillani, a spiritual leader in Kandahar, played the main role in brokering this deal.

There are visible differences between the Kandahar and Kabul Governments, as the former criticizes Hamid Karzai for not exerting effective control over the province. Herat Governor Tooran Ismail has been accused for receiving arms and ammunition from neighbouring Iran and developing friendly relations with its Governments without the consent of Kabul.

Hamid Karzai, too, lacks clout and influence among the tribal elders. He has yet to consolidate his position. He has also been accused of trying to clear the path to power for his brothers and uncles in the upcoming set-up in Kandahar by exploiting his close relationship with ex-monarch Zahir Shah.