TOI Plus Exclusive: ‘Taliban did not know of Zawahiri’s presence in Kabul’

Doha-based Suhail Shaheen has become the face of the Taliban. Known to call up anchors in the midst of live television programmes, Shaheen takes tough questions and is patient with aggressive journalists. He is also the head of the militia’s political office and is Afghanistan’s permanent representative (designate) in the United Nations. In an interview with Harinder Baweja, Shaheen discusses the situation of women in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, the recent killing of al-Qaida leader Ayman al Zawahari in Kabul and the terror groups operating on its soil.
It is a year since the Taliban took over the reins in Afghanistan. What would you count as your achievements given that people are going hungry, women almost pushed out of public life and reports also coming in of Afghans selling their organs to survive.
Our achievements, as compared to the past, include a sense of security all over the country. About 200-300 Afghans were being killed daily from both sides previously due to fighting, but now that has ended.
Corruption was rampant in all echelons of the former regime but now that’s not the case. Our internal revenues have doubled almost 200%. For the first time, the government was able to present a budget based on internal revenues and allocate a portion for development projects.
It is a fact that we inherited poverty from the former Kabul administration and the sanctions which we are facing now have added to the sufferings of people but the responsibility rests with those who had a role in slapping the sanctions.

Why are girls still not allowed in class rooms beyond Grade 6? Why should Afghanistan’s girls not have a right to education?
Private secondary schools for girls are open all over the country but opening public schools is pending until further notice from the leadership. However, public and private universities are open for both male and female students numbering 450,000. Worth mentioning, we have some technical problems as well because we are building everything from scratch. Assistance from the international community is needed in this regard. For the record, I would like to say, we are not against girls education in general, provided they observe wearing hijab.
But why has the leadership not been able to decide on education for girls in public schools in an entire year?
We are a country which has just come out of the morass of war. We are not a match to a country which has not seen war for the last four decades. Still girls are receiving education in my country as explained above but efforts are underway to reach the level of any other country. However, it will take time.

Some Indian diplomats have returned to its embassy in Kabul and there seems to be some movement forward but India says it wants ‘humanitarian engagement’ for now and that should not be mistaken for recognition. What assurances have you given India?
We are committed to providing a safe environment to the routine functioning of embassies and to diplomatic activities of embassies of all countries based in Kabul. This includes India.
How does the Taliban view Kashmir and the changes to its special status under Article 370?
Kashmir is an issue between Pakistan and India. We hope they resolve it through peaceful means.
India, and other countries, are worried about the fact that al-Qaida leader Ayman al Zawahari was killed in a recent strike in the capital city of Kabul. In the past, Indian assets have been attacked by foreign terrorists. Doesn’t Zawahari’s killing in Kabul mean that Afghanistan was allowing its soil to be used by terror groups? It is also against the Doha agreement
We are fully committed to the Doha Agreement. Our leadership was not aware of the presence of Ayman Zawahiri in Kabul. Thirdly, it is just a claim now. IEA is investigating the claim and will share the findings with all. No one is above the law.
You say the leadership was not aware of Zawahiri’s presence in Kabul. Is that not a huge intelligence failure? It is like Pakistan saying it was not aware of Osama bin Laden’s presence in Abbottabad.
Let’s put it this way: tens of incidents did occur in India in the past but the Indian government was not aware until they happened. It doesn’t mean they were not committed to prevent them. The core question – is our policy to not allow anyone to use our soil against others, in place or not? Yes, it is in place and we are determinedly adhering to it. This is of significance for all.

From including women in the workforce to getting girls into school, Taliban remain in denial over key issues.
Would you call Zawahiri and bin Laden terrorists?
There is no single definition of terrorism in the world. However, based on Doha Agreement, we will not allow anyone to use the soil of Afghanistan against any other country. That is our commitment.
The Haqqani group — banned by the US — has targeted Indians and Indian assets in Afghanistan. Your Interior minister, Sirajuddin Haqqani now says he wants better relations with India but can India take him for his word?
There was occupation in our country and we were fighting against the invaders. The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has never targeted Indians because of them being Indians. Now we are an independent country and we want to have positive relations with India and other countries. Secondly, there is no separate entity titled “Haqqani group” as portrayed by the media. The IEA has a sole leadership and unity in its hierarchy.

The Taliban promised a general amnesty but extra-judicial killings of former security and government officials continue. Why are people being picked up and killed?
This is a part of malicious propagandas against us. We declared general amnesty and so far nobody has been targeted because they worked for the previous regime. Our leadership has set up a commission to facilitate return of officials of the former regime to the country, assuring them that they can lead a normal and secured life.
Former President Hamid Karzai has appealed to the Taliban to break away from Pakistan’s influence. Does the Taliban want to?
We have de facto diplomatic relations with several countries including regional countries.
We establish relations on the basis of our national interests and values. We are an independent country and reiterate for our internal and external critics that we take no dictation from anyone regarding framing our policies.
As a woman journalist myself, I must ask you this: why are Afghan women journalists losing their jobs?
There is no restriction on female journalists from the government. However, because of deteriorating economic situation many media outlets have shut down their channels. Freezing of Afghanistan assets has direct impact on journalists and media workers as well because banking system is not functioning normally. So it should be clear that the reason behind Afghan women journalists losing their job is economic, rather than any other factor.
As the government enters its second year, what can Afghans look forward to in terms of food and social security?
The deteriorating economic situation of Afghanistan is a man-made humanitarian crisis. Afghanistan was receiving billions of dollars in humanitarian and military aid every year from the international community. US was spending around one billion dollars a week in Afghanistan on war but is not ready to unfreeze the reserves of Afghanistan Bank to improve the wellbeing of people. The current government is trying its best to manage the economic situation but it is also a test for the international community, to turn their words into action by providing humanitarian and development assistance to the Afghan people.