Jan Mohammad, Governor of Uruzgan Province, has known little but war throughout his life. A man with one eye, uneducated, yet wise from years of conflict against the Russians and the Taliban. His militia is everywhere, and when we arrive in a military convoy from the U.S. military base in Tarin Kowt, we are immediately surrounded by ANA (Afghan National Army) soldiers and para-militaries. Men from miles around have come to see him. They sit outside eating lunch and drinking tea, waiting, always waiting, for Jan Mohammad to hear their requests. They are the survivors of a war that won’t quite go away….of violence that can’t quite be stopped.
Today, Jan Mohammad lets them wait. He presides over lunch with us on the second floor of his office. “I would rather fight Taliban than be the Governor,” he says unapologetically. Still, he understands his responsibility to the people in one of the poorest provinces, in one of the poorest countries on earth. “We are glad you have come to Tarin Kowt,” he says to me in his native Pashto. “We need to have a Chamber of Commerce so that we can create economic opportunities”. Businessmen from throughout the province sit at the table. They eat quietly, almost timidly, as if afraid to be in the Governor’s presence.
Earlier, however, they were not as timid as they excitedly talked with Afghanistan International Chamber of Commerce board member Mahmood Karzai and me about the possibility of creating a Chamber of Commerce. “Just tell us how,” said one man. “We are ready to start now,” said another. Another man, whose face bore the quiet sadness created by a life of hardship, said, “We need so much. We have no electricity, poor roads, and few schools. Can a Chamber of Commerce help us”? For more than two hours, we discussed in basic terms the meaning, organization, programs and impact of Chambers of Commerce. Our military escorts looked on graciously but warily. They have hosted foreigners before that made big promises only to disappoint the local population. “This makes our job even harder,” said one military officer. “They leave and we get blamed when things don’t happen”.
This was not a day for promises, though. We listened to the businessmen, asked questions and explained that CIPE and AICC wanted to assist them in achieving their goals. “We are here today not to make promises but rather to help you help yourselves,” I said, not wanting to sound trite. “Creating a Chamber of Commerce is a first step but there are many more that must be taken before you achieve your goals”, added Mahmood Karzai. Governor Jan Mohammad sat quietly for a time and then spoke rapidly and loudly in Pashto. He and Mahmood talked for some minutes before he turned to me and said, “The Governor wants this to happen. He believes it will be a great benefit for Tarin Kowt”.
It is hours later and night has fallen on Tarin Kowt. I am writing this from a barracks room at the Provincial Reconstruction Team headquarters, two miles and two hundred years away from the village. As I reflect on the last two days of meetings, I am overwhelmed by the sense of responsibility we have. CIPE doesn’t manufacture hope but it encourages it. Today, there was hope on the faces of the businessmen in Tarin Kowt. Tomorrow, they return to their small shops in the dust by the side of the village’s main street. Governor Jan Mohammad will return to his compound and men will again wait outside for a chance to see him. Life will go on as it has for decades….or will it? These were the killing fields once and in some ways they still are. Yet the small act of forming a Chamber of Commerce has planted a seed that may grow in the hearts and minds of the people. In this place where life is cheap and dying is easy, there are forty men that are ready to change their futures and that of their community. I’ve been in Afghanistan for going on three years and there are days when it is hard to stay. Today was not one of them. When I leave Tarin Kowt tomorrow I know I will return because hope grows in the killing fields.
Published Date: February 09, 2006