Targeting Peacemakers in Afghanistan: Can the Afghans turn Tragedy into Victory for the Rule of Law?

Targeting Peacemakers in Afghanistan: Can the Afghans turn Tragedy into Victory for the Rule of Law? 

I had intended to close out the week by talking about the meaning of “community” and why it matters to rule of law developmental approaches, but my ideas were overtaken by yesterday’s events.  To summarize, three American medical personnel were killed outside of the hospital in Kabul where they were educating and assisting Afghans in general surgery, and child and maternal health.  http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/three-americans-slain-cure-hospital-kabul-n88376.

The story was breaking news when it was first reported, but by this morning, it was hard to find.  I had first seen it on NBC so I started there.  But I had to work my way through the human interest reporting from the local affiliate where one of the doctors was from to find the main story.  To see the Washington Post reporting, I had to type “Afghanistan” into the search engine because I could not find the story by clicking through any of the usual links.  I never did find it on cnn.com.  But enough about my internet woes.

The bottom line is that attacks on medical personnel, teachers, journalists, and other assorted aid workers have a huge impact on public perceptions about the rule of law in Afghanistan.  There are the obvious conclusions that everyone who works in conflict stabilization and counterinsurgency draws –attacks like these demonstrate that the government is not fully in control; they undermine public confidence and freedom of movement; they scare away international donors and foreign aid; they represent the conflict of ideas between factions and power structures, etc., etc.  All of these are important points and important discussions.  I get that.

There is a more human and less tangible dimension to the problem, however, and it is the one that always hits me hardest when I’m in an unstable environment working with people who are putting everything on the line to restore the rule of law.  These types of attacks are attacks on the peacemakers – and specifically the ones who serve as role models for ordinary people in extraordinary situations.  If governance is going to succeed, you need so-called “ordinary” people to buy into the possibility that rule of law is possible.  Why else would they try to play by the rules?  Role models, like the doctors who were killed yesterday, or Kimberly Motley, the high profile American female lawyer who has been litigating cases in the Afghan Court system since 2008 are really important; unlike many who are happy to comment from the sidelines of the green zone, these people get right in there with their Afghan counterparts.  Their participation and commitment demonstrates that Afghan systems can work.

If you think it’s difficult to measure the impact of that one person -- one peacemaker – can have, just stop for a moment and consider the web of relationships that are involved.  Knowing how things work in Kabul, I can make an educated guess that the Chicago doctor who was killed yesterday had daily influence on the following:  hospital security personal and his personal protection team; drivers, expediters and translators; hospital administrators; civil servants in the Ministry of Health and the nascent health care infrastructure of Afghanistan; medical students; fellow Afghan medical professionals; patients; and of course, patients’ families – which can be pretty extended in Afghanistan.  When you think about it in these terms, this one guy was an example of hope, progress and eventual normality to hundreds of people every single day he was there.  His presence and persistence said: “You can do this; you can build this; you will come through this difficult time and things will get better if you just stay the course and don’t give up.”

So what should happen next?  Is there a way to turn tragedy to triumph for the rule of law?  Being a glass-half-full kind of gal, I would say yes.  The Afghan government can, if it is committed to the rule of law, demonstrate clearly and unequivocally that attacks on peacemakers will not be tolerated.  This is a fairly straightforward criminal case (to the extent that murder cases are ever straightforward) so it presents an opportunity for the government to show that its criminal justice system can work.  To do so, the case needs to be treated as a murder, and not be allowed to be hijacked by the politics and jurisdictional minefields of insurgency. 

The international community should quietly, but forcefully put its support behind the Afghan criminal investigation, prosecution, and hopefully, incarceration.  The Minister of Interior needs to ensure that key personnel, to include the prosecutor and judges assigned to the case, are protected throughout.  The rights of the Afghan security guard who was arrested for the crime should be vigorously protected by the Afghan defense bar, and the Afghan government should publicize its compliance with its own constitutional protections.  

Afghan media reporting during the entire investigative and judicial process should also be protected and incentivized.   I still remember attending the first public criminal trial in Kuz Kunar District, in Eastern Afghanistan in 2011.  The actual case was a only minor stabbing that arose out of a dispute at the local bazaar, but 14 Afghan media outlets filmed the entire proceeding live and later re-broadcast it across the country to great impact.  That same kind of attention should be lavished on this incident and the message of national intolerance for these types of crimes should be clear.  I want to point out also that all of my recommendations are Afghan tasks.  This is not merely “putting an Afghan face” on a course of action.  It means that we as outsiders are firmly behind the Afghans’ own decisions and supportive of the Afghan's own activities.

Targeting peacemakers is a standard tactic when someone it trying to take down a government or weaken its influence and control.  Key to restoring trust, confidence, and hope, and neutralizing the impact, is how that government responds.  Out of this terrible tragedy, an opportunity exists for the government of Afghanistan to demonstrate that accountability matters, and peacemakers do as well.    Let’s hope it rises to the occasion. And in the meantime remember, in honor of those who gave all: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for theirs is the kingdom of God.”