Military

DATE=10/15/01

TYPE=BACKGROUND REPORT

NUMBER=5-50317

TITLE=AFGHAN KING

DATELINE=PESHAWAR

BYLINE=JIM TEEPLE

VOICED AT=

CONTENT=

INTRO: Afghanistan's exiled King Zahir Shah -- who turned 87 Sunday --

has sent a delegation of his supporters to Islamabad to meet Pakistani

officials. The former king has emerged as a key figure when discussions

turn to a post-Taleban future for Afghanistan. To find out why,

V-O-A's Jim Teeple visited Peshawar, in northern Pakistan, where

many Afghan exiles say their aging monarch could be a unifying force among

Afghanistan's long-divided factions.

TEXT: For more than 20 years, Afghan exiles have made Peshawar their

home. The city is a hotbed of exile politics and intrigue -- never more

so than now. Exile leaders who moved away have returned.

One of them is Abdul Haq -- once one of the most feared mujahedin or

rebel commanders fighting the Soviet Army. Mr. Haq was wounded

many times and lost his leg in combat. The Dubai-based businessman left Peshawar

years ago, disgusted by the infighting among former colleagues and the

violence that engulfed Afghanistan in the early 1990's.

Now, Abdul Haq is back in Peshawar, with a plan to unite Afghanistan's

warring factions. He says he is talking to old mujahedin commanders

and even Taleban commanders who, he says, have lost faith with their

leaders. Abdul Haq says Afghanistan's long conflict can end if the

country's warring factions unite under the banner of King Zahir Shah.

// HAQ ACTUALITY //

Some of the Taleban commanders are tired and fed up with their own

system they know their system failed. They are looking for changes.

Put them together with some tribes and bring changes to Kabul. Bring

the king back to Afghanistan and finish this war, once and for all.

// END ACTUALITY //

King Zahir Shah was ousted from power and left Afghanistan in 1973. He

has never returned.

// OPT // Abdul Haq says the king's non-involvement in Afghan

politics over the past quarter-century means Afghans see him as a

better alternative than anyone else to unite their disparate political

factions.

// OPTIONAL HAQ ACTUALITY //

Of course, there will always be disagreements. I do not think there is

anything wrong with this type of constructive disagreement. The point

is that what the king is doing is creating leadership which gives a

chance for the majority of the people to come together. But you will

never have 100 percent agreement of support on these things.

// END OPTIONAL ACTUALITY //

Taleban leaders in Afghanistan have ridiculed the idea of a role for

King Zahir Shah as a peacemaker. Some exile leaders have voiced

concerns about the king's long absence from politics. Pir Sayed Ishaq

Gailani is another former prominent mujahedin leader, who now heads a

Peshawar-based coalition called the Council for Peace and Unity of

Afghanistan. Mr. Gailani says King Zahir Shah has not been as

uninvolved in Afghan politics as many believe.

// GAILANI ACTUALITY //

This is not true. (non-involvement) He has always had an interest and

an involvement in Afghanistan's case. Also, from time to time he voiced

the concerns of the people of Afghanistan.

// END ACTUALITY //

Most Afghan exile political leaders in Peshawar say they want to

see King Zahir Shah play a role in bringing peace to their country. Many ordinary Afghans say they, too, believe the king can help. However,

many -- like 23-year-old Ramatullah -- say ordinary Afghans will not support

the king, if he is seen as being a pawn of a foreign power like the

United States.

// RAMATULLAH ACTUALITY //

Young people at this time like the king. Our fathers and grandfathers

told us the government was very good in Afghanistan before in the past

so now we also like the king. The problem is if he comes with United

States forces.

// END ACTUALITY //

Ramatullah, who is unemployed, says he would like nothing better than

to return to his home near Jalalabad, in eastern Afghanistan, and help

re-build his country. Ramatullah says he would like Afghanistan to be

like it was before he was born, when King Zahir Shah ruled. However, he

says he knows that will never happen. Now, he says the best King Zahir

Shah can do is to use his remaining days to try and bring Afghanistan's

warring factions together so ordinary Afghans, like himself, can

return home. (Signed)

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