Afghanistan—from primitive to modern
Rapid climb from the past
EDITOR'S NOTE: The writer has just returned to London form a tour of Asia.
By CHARLES SMITH
LONDON (UPI) - Twenty years ago it would have been true to describe Afghanistan as one of the most primitive nations in Asia.
Today, the country is no longer isolated or backward-looking. It has started to modernize itself at a pace which rivals that of almost any other Asian nation.
Its own natural resources, in a country of high mountains and forbidding deserts, are still practically as limited as ever. But one thing that is not lacking in Afghanistan today is outside help.
Strategic position
Afghanistan's strategic location on the southern frontier of Russia has given it a privileged position amongst recipients of overseas aid. The Russians themselves are believed to have given or loaned the Afghans over $600 million since the start of Afghanistan's first five-year development plan 12 years ago. The United States, anxious to keep Soviet influence within bounds, has provided somewhere near $300 million and other Western nations, including West Germany and Britain, have done their share.
The result has been that Afghanistan has been able to finance roughly three-quarters of its development expenditure from outside sources during the past decade. And the development that has taken place has been spectacular. The
physical appearance of the country has been transformed since the late 1950's by the roads, airports, dams and irrigation schemes that Soviet and American help made possible. The only question is-how far has modernization penetrated beneath the surface?
It is certainly true that a great deal remains to be done. Food production has just recently begun to increase as a result of the ambitious development schemes of the first two five-year plans.
Foreign debts mounting
Industrialization is minimal and the country is very far indeed from being able to pay its way internationally. Afghanistan's exports, led by karakul furs, dried fruits and carpets, at the moment pay for about half its imports. Meanwhile, the burden of paying the foreign debt, which was small until a year or two ago, is now mounting at a disconcerting rate.
None of this need matter too much, provided the United States and Russia continue to be interested in the strategic and political possibilities of Afghanistan, and it is certain that both nations will continue to be closely involved in the country.
But the nature and degree of their interest may change as Afghanistan begins to evolve along political lines of its own choosing. The traditional political system of Afghanistan combines a strong central monarchy, with a clearly developed tribal system in the provinces.
The kings who have successfully held the country together for the past 200 years, have included a number of able men and a few remarkable ones. They have almost without exception dominated the governments of their day and this is as true for the present ruler, King Zahir Shan, as for most of his forebearers. But in the past eight years, after a reign of over three decades, King Zahir has begun a peaceful revolution in his country's political system.
He has introduced a new constitution which bans members of the royal family from political activity and turns the king himself into a strictly constitutional monarch. In order to fill the vacuum thus created, there are plans for the creation of political parties.
The stage which has now been
Indian papers on the increase
NEW DELHI (UPI) — Despite the fact that India is still 70 per cent illiterate, the number of newspapers and periodicals has risen steadily since 1947.
The number of daily newspapers rose from 300 to 525 and periodicals now total more than 7,300. The combined circulation of daily newspapers and periodicals is 22 million.
reached in the process of constitutional reform is that both houses of the Afghan parliament have approved the statute under which parties are to be established. The measure only awaits the royal signature. If all goes well, it should be signed into law some time during the coming summer, allowing time for parties to be established well before the elections at the end of the year.
Doubts persist
In the meantime, however, some underlying doubts persist about the possible effects of the party system in a country where tribal and religious differences still run deep.
That Afghanistan should take the plunge into fully-fledged
--parliamentary democracy, despite the inevitable risks involved, is the conviction of most Western observers of the country including those from the United States.
Apr. 16 1969 KANSAN 19
What is less clear is how the Russians view the situation.
However, it is highly unlikely that Soviet interest in Afghanistan is based on the hope of an eventual Communist takeover in the country.
There have been some signs in the recent past of Soviet attempts to indoctrinate Afghan technological trainees in the Soviet Union and it is no secret that Moscow would like to convince Kabul that there is no inherent contradiction between the doctrines of Islam and those of communism.
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