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Afghanistan Alternative #2: Development Aid
By maudeaster on 2010-04-08 11:30:54
Last week I wrote about what I call Alternative #1 to the continuing American war in Afghanistan - US support for political
negotiations between the Afghan government, insurgent groups and neighboring countries. Today, I want to talk about a
needed companion action, Alternative #2 — shifting US resources from military action to development assistance for Afghan-
led projects which combat the country’s desperate poverty and war-destroyed society. In the coming weeks, Congress will be
debating a request for $33 billion supplemental funding for the Afghan war. Women Against War’s Afghanistan Project has a
totally different vision of how that money could stabilize Afghanistan. For example, we look at the cost of keeping one US
soldier there, $1 million, and see those funds instead supporting irrigation projects for 100 villages. Twenty-five percent of
Afghan children die of preventable diseases such dysentery from unsafe water before they turn five. We look at the cost of
the war so far and see the 250,000 schools that it could have built in a country in which ongoing security will depend on a
better educated population. . To set an example for what the US government should be doing in Afghanistan, Women
Against War has embarked on a Capital District community effort to raise funds for a well for the very poor Afghan village
of Mir Taqi Shah, south of Kabul. There are 120 families of 30-50 people per family living with no clean water, health clinic
or school for their children. As a first step, at the villagers’ request, we are raising $10,000 for a well that will provide crop
irrigation and safe drinking water. One of our members, Connie Frisbee Houde, a local photo-journalist with previous
experience in Afghanistan, will be traveling to Mir Taqi Shah this year to talk with the villagers and learn how the new well
is affecting their lives. She will be taking photos and messages from students, church members and other contributors. If you
would like to contribute, you may send a tax- deductible donation to: Afghan Well Project, 22 Elm St, Albany, NY 12202.
Please make your check payable to the Afghan Women’s Fund. For more information, contact: info@WomenA gainst War.org
. Then, please write your Congressperson — Tonko or Murphy — saying you contributed to this well, and that you are asking
them to join you in supporting American dollars for development rather than a continuing war.
