Understanding the historical role of central governance in Afghanistan
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Authors
Marcelo, Abraham B.
Subjects
Advisors
Russell, James
Khan, Feroz
Date of Issue
2010-12
Date
Publisher
Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School
Language
Abstract
Three of the most iconic rulers of Afghanistan are Ahmad Khan Durrani, Abdur Rahman, and Mohammad Zahir Shah. The efforts of Ahmad Khan Durrani and Abdur Rahman were focused on building an Afghan nation and development of a central government authority that possessed some capacity to rule over the Afghan territories. Neither ruler sought to politically include the Afghan population in the affairs of the state beyond the cooperation of the tribal leaders who possessed the ability to commit or withdraw the manpower and resources of their tribes, which were necessary to militarily sustain their respective regimes. It was not until the reign of Mohammad Zahir Shah that central government in Afghanistan attempted to politically include the Afghan population in state affairs. However, this was only accomplished on a limited basis. The international community and President Hamid Karzai have been attempting to implement 220 years of nation-building and central governance development in Afghanistan over the past nine years. If successful, these efforts would create a government and a state that has never before existed in Afghanistan's history. This thesis argues that current efforts should be informed and mindful of the experiences of these three iconic rulers.
Type
Thesis
Description
Series/Report No
Department
Security Studies
Organization
Naval Postgraduate School (U.S.)
Identifiers
NPS Report Number
Sponsors
Funder
Format
xii, 67 p. ;
Citation
Distribution Statement
Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.
Rights
This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.