Adil Khan is a central leader and member Central Committee
of Sazman-e-Inqlabi Kargaran-e-Afghanistan (Afghan Labour Revolutionary Organisation-ALRO).
Adil has been active in Afghan socialist movement for last 21 years. All
his family has been active in this movement and has offered great scarifices.
One of Adil s brothers was hanged .He himself has served a nine-year jail
term and has been short injured.
Farooq Sulehria interviewed Adil Khan in November 2000
for Weekly Workers Struggle (WS). Adil spoke at length on the history
of Afghan left.
The events following September 11 have generated a wide
interest across the world in Afghanistan. This interview gives an insight
into the Afghan left movement. Excerpts.
WS: First of all, could you please narrate a little bit about the
history of Afghan left?
Adil: The left movement in Afghanistan started building up in early
1960s. The Afghan left was, from its beginning, divided into two camps i.e.
pro-Mascow and the Maoists. The Peoples Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA)
represented pro-Masco trend while Sazmanan-e-Jawnan-e-Mutraqi (Progressive
Youth Organisation) held Maoist ideology and believed in armed struggle.
Noor Muhammad Tarakai, Sulman Laiq, Babrak Karmal and Noor Ahmad Noor
were the leading PDPA leaders. They would get help as well as advice from
Masco. The PDPA believed in forming a government through electoral process.
In 1968, the PDPA split into two factions following differences between Tarakai
and Babrak Karmal. Both factions became famous following their respective
organs i.e. Parcham (Flag) and Khalaq (People). The same year Peoples Youth
Organisation launched a paper called Shoala-i-javaid (Forever Flame) but
it was banned after its 11th publication. The members of Progressive Youth
Organisation became famous as Sholai following their paper s name. Similarly
Parcham and Khalaq members were known as Parchami and Khalaqi.
Shoala-i-javaid propagated the ideas of armed struggle and was very
vocal against feudalism. In 1079, a faction led by Engineer Usman split from
the Shoalais. The other faction led by Dr Faiz Ahmad formed Sazman-e-Rahai
Afghanistan (Afghan Labour Organisation-ALO).
The ALO sent a big chunk of its urbanised cadre to countryside in order
to organise peasantry but this urbanised cadre couldn t withstand the hardships
of countryside life and returned to the cities. This policy did not prove
a success rather it led to a split. This split organised itself as Ittehad-e-Rah-e-Communist
(Communist Path Alliance-CPA). The Communist Path Alliance also launched
a paper called Akhgar (Iskra in Russian).
In 1978, the PDPA formed a government following an army coup led by
PDPA members.
WS: Would you like to narrate something about Afghan revolution?
Adil: In 1973 when Daud Shah with Soviet Russian support dethroned
Zahir Shah, the PDPA welcomed it. Two of the PDPA leaders, Faiz Muhammad
and Hassan Sharq, became ministers in Daud s cabinet Both were KGB agents.
Daud was very close to Moscow and was famous as Red Prince. In 1977, Daud
toured Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Pakistan and Europe. Following his tour, he allied
himself with the USA and was no more a friend of Moscow. On April 22, 1978
a Parchami leader Akbar was murdered. This murder was a conspiracy. There
was a big protest in Kabul against this murder. Tarakai, Hafiz Ullah Amin
and Babrak Karmal were jailed for leading this demonstration. The PDPA members
inside armed forces decided to go for a coup and led by Aslam Watanyar, Afghan
army attacked the Royal Palace. Daud along his family was killed in the bloody
coup. Aslam Watanyar made Ailan-e-Inqlab (Announcement of Revolution) while
Hafizullah Amin addressed the nation. All these events are still fresh in
my memory.
WS: How did your party react to the PDPA government?
Adil: A debate was initiated inside ALO on the question of lending
support to PDPA government. But ALO rather decided to launch an armed struggle
.Not only ALO but other left groups decided so as well. ALO formed an alliance
with nationalist parties and launched an armed struggle.
In 1978, ALO went through another split led by Majeed Kalaqani. Kalaqani
raised the slogan that *Soviet Russia s enemy is our friend . He also had
differences over the question of people s war and guerrilla war, party membership.
He was arrested along with Mir Fakharud Din, Aziz Rasul Jurat, and Engineer
Nadir Ali in 1980.All was hanged. His faction, however, is still active.
The ALO decided to launch an insurrection on August 5, 1979. This insurrection
was led by ALO at the head of a ten-party alliance. The failure owed to inexperience
and imamturity. Despite taking over radio station and few army cantonments,
the attempt to take over the government met a failure. The PDPA government
initiated a campaign of terror against our party. Hundreds of party workers
were hanged. Thousands were sent to jail. Me myself along with my three brothers
was arrested. I was not active then politically. I was arrested because of
my brothers. Following the insurrection, whatever forces were left, these
forces were re-organised in independent areas . Work among the students
was also re-organised. Fortnightly Front and Gul-e-Surkh (Red Flower) were
launched while a paper called Siam-e-Aqrab was launched from Germany. But
since that insurrection till today, it has been a period of extreme hardships
and miseries. The PDPA targeted us as well as the fundamentalists left no
stone unturned to eliminate us. Our 12 thousand comrades have been either
killed or kidnapped by the fundamentalists. Some of the comrades are still
missing.
WS: These comrades were killed and kidnapped by the fundamentalists
in Afghanistan or in Afghan immigrant s camps in Pakistan.
Adil: Both in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Dr Faiz was kidnapped and martyred
in Pakistan by the group led by Gulbadin Hikmatyar. It's a long list of comrades
who were killed, kidnapped and went missing. We have compiled a list in the
form of a book that lists ten thousand comrades who were killed or went missing.
While if comrades killed by the PDPA government is included in this list
then the number reaches a figure of 23 thousand.
WS: Was nt it a mistake not to support the Afghan revolution?
Adil: Not at all. We did not approve of the strategy of a coup. We
don t believe in that even today. A revolution without mass support can never
succeed. Also the PDPA after forming its government never made an endeavour
for left unity. Rather it launched a campaign of terror against other left
groups. For the PDPA government, Enemy Number One was not the fundamentalists
but we Shoalais. The PDPA government bombed the villages. They annoyed
the masses. The reforms were imposed from above through state apparatus without
a change in the mass consciousness. Babrak-Tarakai differences were another
reason behind the degeneration of PDPA government. Initially, Tarakai posted
Babrak Karmal and Dr Najib and other important Parcham leaders as ambassadors
to other countries. The PDPA control was taken over by Khalaq faction led
by Tarakai.Tarakai was known as Superman and Lenin II. But the Khalaq faction
itself became factionalised. Tarakai on his way home from Havana via Moscow
was arrested by Hafizullah Amin group and was secretly murdered. Hafiz also
could not stay in power more than three months. The state repression reached
its peak under Hafiz. On December 27 came the soviet armies. I can still
remember these scenes. These scenes flash before my eyes like a movie. The
Parcham members were congratulating each other .in Kabul one could see soviet
soldiers all over the town. Hafiz was murdered along his family. Babrak was
put in his place with a full support from Moscow. A new era of terror was
unleashed. Perhaps even Stalin s period was not so repressive as was this.
The Pul Charkhi prison in Kabul had 70 thousand prisoners. Dr Najib was heading
the secret service these days. In case a Shoal was arrested, Najib himself
investigated him. Our comrade, Engineer Faiz was tortured to death by Dr
Najib himself. He was jumping over Faiz stomach till he died. It was
a bad time for Khalaqis as well but they were not killed but sent to jail.
But we were given no concession. Arrest meant death.
WS: But why the resistance to the PDPA government was not led by ALO
but it was taken over by the fundamentalists despite it was ALO that launched
it?
Adil: Initially it was led by us. We attracted the masses.Gulbadin
Hikmatyar and Daud Siaf were in Pakistan since Daud days because they were
facing a treason case. When soviet armies came to Afghanistan the CIA decided
to settle score. They started organising and patronising the fundamentalists.
They were given both money and guns. While we were targeted both by the PDPA
government and the fundamentalists.
WS: Why the Afghan revolution was not able to sink its roots despite
radical reforms?
Adil: The PDPA government abolished the feudalism. It introduced education
reforms. Art was promoted through film and television. Selling of women for
marriage was banned. But the question is unless the mass consciousness is
changed; a revolution can not succeed. We must realise that 95 per cent of
Afghans are illiterate while 85 per cent of the population lives in the countryside.
Religion is a big influence. The feudalism is still present in its most crude
form. When land reforms were introduced, feudal lords and mullahs (Muslim
priests) declared it contrary to Islam saying that the feudal lords were
blessed with the land by Allah and the government was not authorised by the
Islamic teachings to deprive them of their land. The peasants refused to
take the land. They thought it contrary to Islam.
In 1987, Dr Najib replaced Babrak Karmal. He celebrated the return
of soviet forces a s the Day of Deliverence . Took many initiatives
to please the masses. The PDPA was renamed as Hizb-e-Watan (Motherland Party).
Afghanistan was renamed as Democratic Afghanistan. But it was too late.
WS: How is Hizb-e-Watan these days?
Adil: All the Hizb ministers were corrupt. The were hated by the masses.
Their ideological degeneration can be gauged from the fact that recently
their central leader Salman Laiq declared that we were not communists neither
we are even now.
WS: When was your party formed?
Adil: We are a split from ALO. The new leadership that took over the
party in 1986 after Dr Faiz refused to follow the line set by Dr Faiz. Differences
arose over the question of tactics. In 1990, we gave a notice to the party
leadership. But it was in vain. In 1996 we finally split from them.
WS: Where does your party have most of its basis?
Adil: In Afghan camps in Pakistan but also in Afghan areas where Taliban
do not hold control. I cannot reveal details owing to the risk to the lives
of our comrade.
WS: What sort of difficulties your party is facing these days?
Adil: We don t have any party office, no full-timer. The party has
to take care of the families of martyred comrades. At the minutes, party
is taking care of 45 such families. The party is trying to organise its newspaper.
Recently we published one issue.
WS: What is the immediate solution to Afghan crisis?
Adil: First of all, we want democracy so that we have freedom of expression.