In a developing country like Afghanistan, where citizens are desperate to express themselves and define their country for the future, civil society plays a vital role in giving people a voice and a say in how Afghanistan will be governed. Civil society is the completely voluntary involvement of citizens in social organizations and institutions for the purpose of demonstrating collective, shared interest in an issue or movement. This is especially important for the people of Afghanistan, who have struggled under various oppressive regimes and deserve a forum for their concerns and hopes for their country.
Primary Bilateral Aid Partners:
- The USAID program, the Initiative to Promote Afghan Civil Society. This program has been working to promote the rights of nonprofits working in Afghanistan, increasing the capacity of local citizens to participate in civil society, and educating the public on how to make sure their voices are heard in their communities. They have especially worked on advocacy programs, education programs, and women’s rights initiatives, and offer grants to nonprofits and other organizations that work toward strengthening civil society in the local arena.
- The United States Institute for Peace (USIP). USIP has done research and convened panels discussing the vital need for strong civil society in Afghanistan
, and therefore we would like to involve them in helping to support the budding civil society groups in Afghanistan. We would like to have them lead discussions, forums, and informational sessions in communities throughout Afghanistan informing the public on how to become involved in their government and economy and how to make their voices and concerns heard through civil society groups.
Civil Society: Strengthening Citizen Action
- Because we view free and fair elections as paramount in our development plan, civil society needs to be active in organizing and sponsoring elections, registering eligible voters, and encouraging voter turnout at legitimate elections. Civil society will be instrumental in this and a good portion of our funding for civil society will go towards supporting groups that help with voter registration and safety at polling stations.
- While health and health care is an important issue warranting its own sector of our development program, civil society plays a role in health by advocating for equality and justice in the health system as well as promoting health as a public responsibility the World Health Organization’s Civil Society Initiative will work with programs, lectures, educational forums, and other important health-related initiatives.
- Women are a vital part of any society, and especially in post-conflict societies women are an important aspect of any successful peace treaty or post-conflict evelopment plan. Unfortunately, women in Afghanistan have not always enjoyed some of the freedoms that women in the west sometimes take for granted. However, our development program aims to increase the inclusion of women in all aspect of society. For this particular sector this especially includes empowering women to access their human rights to the fullest and use their unique voice to contribute to their local communities.
- To some extent, for as long as the American military will be involved in our development program, they will be enlisted to help with certain aspects of civil society, most importantly those groups that are based in providing community security. We will encourage the military (and later the Muslim International Peacekeeping Force) to work with local community groups to inform and engage civilians in reclaiming the safety of their area with collective surveillance. The military will model these suggestions after the idea of “neighborhood watch groups” that are found in many American housing developments; without guns and weapons, Afghan civilians will be encouraged to protect their homes and neighbors by promoting solidarity against unwelcome or suspicious intrusion.
There is no way to rebuild civil society without engaging the groups and organizations that already exist in Afghanistan. Thankfully, there is a burgeoning civil society culture growing in Afghanistan; we need only encourage and support what already exists and maintain an environment to increase citizen involvement. With our development program we have to work within the context of how Afghan citizens view themselves and their communities. One Afghanistan-based partner in this endeavor will be the Afghan NGOs Coordination Bureau (ANCB), which works to “promote best practices in NGO management…conducts workshops on NGO management, democratic values and practices” and “covers NGOs and civil society news and featuring informative articles and editorials about democratic transition and the role of civil society.” Working in conjunction with groups like the ANCB and organizations that already function to provide certain services to citizens is the best way to understand what Afghanistan needs and how we can improve local capacities.
Civil society is growing a base in Afghanistan, especially in the realm of women’s rights and social services. We will work with organizations like:
- Women and Youth for Peace and Development Organization,
- Training Human Rights Association for Afghan Women,
- Social Services for Afghan Women Association,
- Legal and Cultural Services for Afghan Women and Children,
- Afghan Women’s Network, and the
- Revolutionary Association for Women in Afghanistan.
These are all groups that emerged to fill a growing need for women’s representation in Afghan society; this is the prime example of the strength of civil society to provide support for citizen action.
Our program will also aim to strengthen the independent journalism and media organizations that already exist in Afghanistan, which work to promote freedom of the press and transparency in government and public issues. Existing organizations like the Afghan Media Resource Center and the Saba Media Organization are models for the type of free press outlets that should be commonplace in Afghanistan; with the help of our development program they will be helpful in promoting the free press in Afghanistan.
Another important local partner will be those organizations dealing with religious civil society. Because religion is such an important aspect of Afghan life but also a source of contention as far as practice and implementation of religious doctrine is concerned, it is vitally important to have these issues and ideas expressed in a constructive manner. Therefore we will work closely with the Cooperation for Peace and Unity, which has been working to mend long-standing conflict between different ethnic and religious groups in contentious provincial areas; with their lead we will replicate this in other areas of Afghanistan where there are clashes between different lifestyles and religious interpretations.
Citizen Action Exchange Program:
In order to support and sustain a strong civil society, new ideas and new methodologies for encouraging citizen involvement will need to be introduced and constantly refreshed. To do this, we propose a program specific to the civil society sector that involved an exchange-style program much like the Marshall Plan from post-World War II development ideology. For this, we will select from a pool of Afghan citizen leaders who apply to transfer with an up-and-coming civil society member in the United States. For example, a member of an environmental advocacy organization in the United States will exchange places for two months with an Afghan leader, who will learn from the methods of American civil society and bring back new ideas and new
knowledge about how to stimulate civil society involvement.
knowledge about how to stimulate civil society involvement.
Basically, in summary:
Our mission with Civil Society in Afghanistan is to strengthen what already exists, encourage new ideas and greater participation, and to create an environment where it is safe for Afghan citizens to express their hopes and dreams for the future of their country through public outlets and involvement with civil society organizations, especially in areas related to:
• Women’s issues
• Elections and voter involvement
• Media and free press
• Education and empowerment
• Health and public responsibility
