Cultural Context: Hazara versus PashtunThe social hierarchy that places
ethnic Pashtun above Hazaras started when in 1890, Abd al-Rahman, emir of Kabul
(Afghanistan's capital) centralized governance of the country. Haraza tribes
resisted against the militarized centralization, and al-Rahman retaliated with “opperssion
and violence toward the Shii Hazaras (Facts on File, Inc. 284).” Many Hazaras
escaped to neighboring countries to avoid the oppressive rule of the Pashtuns,
while those Hazaras who remained were heavily taxed, religiously persecuted and
even enslaved.
When Amanullah Khan succeeded the throne in 1919, Afghanistan was able to gain independence from Britain and introduced a more democratic constitution. This meant equality for all Afghans, Pashtun or Hazara. However, such laws had difficulty overturning Hazara marginalization. During the Soviet-Afghan War, “the Soviet invasion and civil war ironically gave an opportunity for the Hazaras to organize politically (Clammer 45).” The control of Afghanistan by the Taliban maintained the oppression of the Hazara, as their Shii religion went against the Sunni Taliban. Over a century of marginalization and oppression has maintained the divide between Pashtun and Hazara as a result, and the resurgence of Taliban activity in Afghanistan makes change difficult to achieve. |
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