NEW eBOOK
Afghanistan: An Approach to Issues of
Society, Religion, Power and Conflict
A dose of analysis, portions
of history, a few slices of real life, a zest of socio-psychology, a little
grain of unconventional thinking, and that should do it for the particular
formula of this work that uses an original approach towards understanding
Afghanistan at a perilous time of its history.
Afghanistan and Afghans are
not just a challenge for the outsiders - the invaders of fortune and the
“well-wishers” - but also for the Afghans and their leaders. How many Afghan
kings and presidents have fallen because they did not achieve that delicate
balance, that illusive point of equilibrium that would allow them to last and
leave power without being killed or
ejected?
Clearly, a country entrapped
in a situation of conflict for more than three decades, where the Government is
plagued with corruption, where two types of insurgencies are thriving, where the
security is somewhat managed by 150, 000 foreign troops, where more than a
thousand NGOs and scores of international organizations are attempting to fill
the vacuum of a ghostly Administration, where elections are rigged, where
opiates are the main income, etc., has a problem – and it is a euphemistic way
to put it.
In this book, Assem Akram
attempts to better understand how and why Afghanistan has gone through so many
traumas in its recent past. Looking back at roughly a hundred years – starting
with King Amanullah’s enthronisation in 1919 - in a comparative, analytical and
chronologically flexible way, he tries to understand what ingredients have
allowed Afghanistan to function at times normally, and at others to be shaken by
conflict and instability. What are the elements and the vectors that have
worked, and how could a certain delicate balance be re-established to allow
Afghanistan to get back on track and function?
Because we are dealing with
human materiel, to comprehend Afghanistan’s wows and be better prepared
mentally, contextually and even behaviourally, Assem Akram shares in the second
part of his book a number of what he calls“contextualized accounts,” where
individuals, society and history mix. The author believes that this unique
combination has the ability to help the reader have a richer and more nuanced
approach to Afghans and Afghanistan - both with their real or apparent
simplicities, complexities and contradictions.
Specs
Title: Afghanistan: An Approach to Issues of Society, Religion, Power and Conflict
eBook, 340 pages, $9.90. Available
at amazon.com and via Kindle apps for Mac, PC, and mobile
devices.
Classification: Afghanistan; Afghan War; Conflict Resolution;
History; Society; Current Affairs; Middle-East; Central Asia; South Asia.
ISBN-10: 0971078122
ISBN-13: 978-0-9710781-2-3
of history, a few slices of real life, a zest of socio-psychology, a little
grain of unconventional thinking, and that should do it for the particular
formula of this work that uses an original approach towards understanding
Afghanistan at a perilous time of its history.
Afghanistan and Afghans are
not just a challenge for the outsiders - the invaders of fortune and the
“well-wishers” - but also for the Afghans and their leaders. How many Afghan
kings and presidents have fallen because they did not achieve that delicate
balance, that illusive point of equilibrium that would allow them to last and
leave power without being killed or
ejected?
Clearly, a country entrapped
in a situation of conflict for more than three decades, where the Government is
plagued with corruption, where two types of insurgencies are thriving, where the
security is somewhat managed by 150, 000 foreign troops, where more than a
thousand NGOs and scores of international organizations are attempting to fill
the vacuum of a ghostly Administration, where elections are rigged, where
opiates are the main income, etc., has a problem – and it is a euphemistic way
to put it.
In this book, Assem Akram
attempts to better understand how and why Afghanistan has gone through so many
traumas in its recent past. Looking back at roughly a hundred years – starting
with King Amanullah’s enthronisation in 1919 - in a comparative, analytical and
chronologically flexible way, he tries to understand what ingredients have
allowed Afghanistan to function at times normally, and at others to be shaken by
conflict and instability. What are the elements and the vectors that have
worked, and how could a certain delicate balance be re-established to allow
Afghanistan to get back on track and function?
Because we are dealing with
human materiel, to comprehend Afghanistan’s wows and be better prepared
mentally, contextually and even behaviourally, Assem Akram shares in the second
part of his book a number of what he calls“contextualized accounts,” where
individuals, society and history mix. The author believes that this unique
combination has the ability to help the reader have a richer and more nuanced
approach to Afghans and Afghanistan - both with their real or apparent
simplicities, complexities and contradictions.
Specs
Title: Afghanistan: An Approach to Issues of Society, Religion, Power and Conflict
eBook, 340 pages, $9.90. Available
at amazon.com and via Kindle apps for Mac, PC, and mobile
devices.
Classification: Afghanistan; Afghan War; Conflict Resolution;
History; Society; Current Affairs; Middle-East; Central Asia; South Asia.
ISBN-10: 0971078122
ISBN-13: 978-0-9710781-2-3