ABSTRACT

Ethnic and tribal loyalties in Afghanistan provided the lethal cocktail for the violent conflict that engulfed the country following the collapse of the Soviet backed government in 1992. The ensuing fighting between mujahideen groups paved the way for the tectonic social and political shifts, which continue to shape events today. What accounts for the emergence of ethnicity, as the main cause of conflict in Afghanistan? What moved people to respond with such fervour and intensity to calls for ethnic solidarity? This book attempts to make sense of ethnicity’s decisive role in Afghanistan through a comprehensive exploration of its nature and perception. Based on new data, generated through interviews, field notes and participant observations, Sharma maps the increased role of ethnicity in Afghan national politics. Key social, political and historical processes that facilitated its emergence as the pre-dominant fault-line of conflict are explored, moving away from grand political and military narrative to instead engage with zones of conflict as social spaces. This book will be of interest to students and scholars working in politics, ethnic studies and security studies.

chapter 1|12 pages

Introduction

chapter 2|34 pages

Nation and ethnicity in Afghanistan

chapter 3|15 pages

From ideology to identity

Framing the ethno-political turn in the Afghan conflict (1992–1996)

chapter 4|62 pages

Historical drivers of the Afghan conflict

Role of the nationalizing state, national minorities and external actors

chapter 5|26 pages

Afghanistan under Mujahideen rule (1992–1996)

Ethnicization of the conflict

chapter 6|6 pages

Conclusion