TALES FROM THE FRONTIER: Down the dusty trail (Afghanistan)

The Nation

Don Pathan was the only Thai journalist present in Afghanistan last year when the US declared war on the Taleban. In the first of the four-part series, he recounts the events as they took place.

It was early morning when the phone rang. "Come down please and bring your passport with you," said the receptionist at a hotel in Almaty, Kazakhstan. It wasn't a request.

Already pissed off at the fact we'd been kicked off a flight to Dushanbe the day before, after the Kazakh immigration officers let a bunch of Tajiks take our seats, my travelling companions and I weren't too thrilled at the idea of being woken up and ordered around.

"Why are you still here?" asked the policewomen. "Your visa expired yesterday."

"Excuse me but who are you and what is this all about?" my travelling companion snapped back at the officer, still dazed and confused at this bit of reality in a former Soviet republic.

After a lengthy discussion the two officers concluded that this was a "special circumstance" and that our visas would be extended until the end of the week.

Welcome to Central Asia we thought, where governments - perhaps a little more than in other parts of the world - were freaking out at the developments in neighbouring Afghanistan. Foreigners coming and going were heavily screened, especially citizens of nearby countries bordering Afghanistan.

Indeed, the hunt for Osama bin Laden and the destruction of his Al Queda terrorist network and their hosts the Taliban, was about to start and the whole world was told by the US President George W Bush: "Either you're with us, or you're with them". 

These former Soviet republics that in the previous decades served as the gateway for Russian troops are all too familiar with the bitter experience of the Afghan. For ten years, from 1979-89, Moscow had used this region to enter and exit the country. They were devastated by the resistance put up by the mujahidin against their occupation and the experience continues to haunt the Russian people until today.

Finally, five days later, my two travelling companions and I were on a Russian-built plane to Tajikistan's capital Dushanbe, where we would spend the next four days making our final preparation before crossing into northern Afghanistan. A final test-run on our satellite phones was carried out together with our computer laptop as we wait for our over-priced visa from the Islamic Government of Afghanistan - the official name of the UN-recognised Northern Alliance that was forced out of Kabul in 1996 by the Taliban - to be processed.

Our aim was to go as far south as possible, about 35 km north of Kabul where Northern Alliance forces were facing off with Taliban soldiers along the frontline in the Shomali Plain. We hoped to cross the border before the Americans started their air war.

Besides a long list of journalists ahead of us trying to get on one of the few Afghan helicopters, things had got worse following a heavy dust storm that had enveloped Dushanbe, thus dashing any hope of us crossing the border any time soon. 

Shortly after midnight on October 6, we threw our belongings into a four-wheel drive and headed for the Afghan border five hours away. Any crossing would have to be done before the sun came up to avoid incoming Taliban artillery fire - just two hilltops away.

But getting in by land would not be easy, with or without the Taliban watching. Getting past armed Russian troops manning the Tajik-Afghan border was even more difficult. Even if you make it past the guards, and the barbed wire that seems to stretch endlessly along the Tajik border, there is an icy cold river to cross before reaching the Afghan side.

The Russians were there at the invitation of the Tajik government to serve as a buffer between the Taliban and the Northern Alliance. The latter, until recently, had been pushed back to this corner of the war-torn country that accounts for about 10 per cent of Afghanistan. 

True to their reputation, the Russian border guards would not budge. We were told to go back to Dushanbe and consult with the Foreign Ministry. But going back to the Tajik's capital meant we would have to wait in a long queue for a seat on one of the few Afghan choppers. There had not been a single flight for the past week and with the dust storm, known locally as the "Afghan wind", showing no sign of dying down, we decided that returning to the Tajik capital would be our last option.

According to our guide, there was a Tajik military installation about 10 kilometres down the road. But the ride would not be cheap, he warned. He was right. For US$250 per head, the Tajik pilots had no qualms whatsoever about flying us in - along with hundreds of arms and supplies for Afghan fighters. 

It was one of the most expensive ride in my life. Fifteen minutes later, we were met by hundreds of curious looking people who called themselves "mujahiddin".

Shortly after our arrival we were greeted by the Alliance's deputy defence minister General Barialay Khan, who displayed typical Afghan hospitality by treating us to a big feast and putting us up for the night at his residence. It would be almost two months before I would dine in such fashion again.

Unlike other tough-talking, battlefield commanders that I had ran into during my six weeks stay, Barialay come across as a visionary; cultured and very charismatic. He spoke with great conviction about the Afghan people as a whole and their ability to overcome the bitter differences in spite of two decades of fighting between various warring factions.

The fabric of Afghan society that held the various ethnic groups together for centuries, said Barialay, had not been totally destroyed by the Taliban - or any other conflict in 23 years of fighting. The role of the tribal leaders, village elders, religious scholars - all of whom have played a significant role in keeping the society in tact throughout Afghan history - will resurface once the Taliban is ousted, and resume their rightful duty as the unifying factor.

Judging from what has been talking place in recent days with the swearing in of the new interim government, and the political sacrifice made by the stronger Northern Alliance, things appear to be moving in the right direction.

Barialay is convinced that the soul of Afghanistan has not been destroyed beyond repair. Developments in recent weeks show that the war-torn country is moving towards reconciliation. The power to forgive, it seems, is as much an Afghan trait, as is the will to fight. And with the end of the Taliban rule and the destruction of the al Queda network, two decades of bloodshed is quickly coming to an end.

Can it last? 

Hard talk for Thai-Burmese

Don Pathan
The Nation

When they really needed it the most, it wasn't there. But after two years of putting it off, the Thai-Burma Joint Commission is now back on track.

Chaired by the respective foreign ministers of the two countries, the Thai-Burma JC is the highest level of institutionalised working relationship between the two governments.

The meeting in Phuket from January 7-9 is expected to discuss a wide range of issues, from the repatriation of refugees to joint anti-narcotics efforts, as well as economic cooperation. The JC mechanism is being revived at a time when bilateral ties between the two countries appear to be improving. But dig deeper, say Thai army and government officials, and you will find hard feelings and deep-rooted suspicion are still very much alive. It will take more than just a few official visits and handshakes to close this extraordinarily complex chapter in Thai-Burmese history, they say.

For the past eight years following a short-lived honeymoon started by a visit by then Army chief General Chavalit Yongchaiyudh to Rangoon after the takeover by Burmese generals in 1988, Thai-Burmese relations have been characterised by mutual criticism and violence along the border.

One of these incidents took place almost a year ago when day-long cross-border shelling resulted in the death of scores of people from both sides. The shelling, which brought bilateral ties to its lowest ebb, was followed by months of stand-offs between the two armed forces, some of whom were positioned just metres apart. The clashes broke out shortly after Thaksin Shinawatra was sworn in as the new prime minister.

A war of words between the two sides then continued for some time, with respective commanders accusing their counterparts of taking kickbacks from drug dealers. The rhetoric began to die down following Thaksin's visit to Rangoon in June. The trip was billed as a fence-mending trip during which an olive branch was extended to the Burmese. Thus begun a cooling off period.

Today, in spite of the absence of rhetoric, Bangkok-based diplomats, Thai government officials and army commanders insist tension remains. The same old problems - Burmese refugees, anti-Rangoon insurgents and drug trafficking along the border - continue to sour relations between the two countries. Nevertheless, the Thaksin government is convinced it can make things better. 

Since Thai Rak Thai first hit the campaign trail, those surrounding Thaksin have gone to great lengths to spell out the party's philosophy in dealing with Burma and other neighbouring countries.

Thailand's interest, they say, is best served by strengthened economic cooperation with its neighbours. By increasing business and trade with Burma, Bangkok will be able to move toward normalising relations with Rangoon. Other problems such as illegal migration and drug trafficking could then be dealt with through the proper channels.

It sounded good, especially to those waiting to cash in on short-term gains from improved Thai-Burmese relations. But for others, particularly drug officials and military personnel on the frontlines, it was wishful thinking.

During the Chuan Leekpai administration, Thai-Burmese relations experienced a number of hiccups. Thailand took up issues that annoyed not only Burma, but other Asean members as well. But for a regional grouping with no political will to tackle sensitive issues, Asean tends to react testily to any mention of subjects such as human rights or transnational security problems. That is exacerbated when a member is singled out as the source of the problems.

And so when Thailand broke ranks with Asean by not voting against a resolution from the International Labour Organisation to condemn Burma's practice of forced labour, things began to get nasty.

Regarding drugs, the previous administration also made it clear Rangoon must be accountable for the illicit activities of the United Wa State Army, which over the years has expanded its operations and control along the Chinese border to areas adjacent to Thailand's northern provinces. Thousands of ethnic Wa and Chinese have been transported in flatbed trucks to Burma's border with China and relocated to UWSA-controlled areas adjacent to Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai.

For the Thai security apparatus, the UWSA, which operates somewhat independently of Rangoon, has essentially became a scapegoat. But at the same time, the 20,000-strong Wa army has became a pawn in Rangoon's dealings with Thailand.

Border checkpoints leading to UWSA-controlled areas just kilometres away from the border were shut, and over 1,000 Thai nationals working in construction were ordered back home. But with this increased security along the Golden Triangle area, methamphetamines from the UWSA's labs trickled in elsewhere - along the banks of the Mekong River in Northeast Thailand and at various spots stretching from Tak province all the way down to the coastal town of Ranong.

However, the Thaksin government has decided to engaged the Wa through a tripartite dialogue with Rangoon. There is talk of a Bt20 million crop-substitution project financed by Thai taxpayers in Wa-controlled areas near the border.

But the move has irked Thailand's frontline commanders who, according to military sources, have a plan of their own - to penetrate the UWSA and plant a disruptive seed inside the organisation. It is a long shot but worth a try, they say.

But with the talks with the Wa off the ground, Thailand has effectively freed Rangoon of any burden for the illicit activities of the UWSA. "They can just say it's between you and the Wa now," said one senior officer who spoke on condition of anonymity