Afghanistan Times
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By Farhad Naibkhel-KABUL: As Kabul succeeded to hold the first round of peace talks with the Taliban representatives in Murree, Pakistan, a local association the other day prodded the government to engage all Afghans from different levels in the ongoing peace process aimed at removing hurdles and challenges in the war-hit country.
In a gathering, founder of Afghanistan Rescue High Council, Sayid Akbar Agha, told mediamen that the process will not achieve its goal and will not end with the expected results until all Afghans take part in it in a bid to wash away all problems in the country.
He said that lasting peace will not be ensured if Afghans role – from ordinary Afghans to educated level – was overlooked in the peace talks. “Ordinary Afghans, religious scholars, civil society activists, tribal elders and educated level in the society can play vital role in the peace process, especially in trust building between the government and the Taliban,” he said.
“Both sides – the Afghan government and the Taliban – have lost trust on each other; therefore, it is the Afghans’ responsibility to rebuilt this trust and convince the insurgents to lay down arms and stop shedding Afghans’ blood in the war-weary country,” he noted.
He went on to say that – after trust building – another important issue in the peace talks is ceasefire which has highest importance for the Afghan nation. “Afghans are able to help the process reach a better achievement if they were not ignored by the government,” he highlighted.
According to him, there are a number of problems in the two sides – the Afghan government and the Taliban – that need practical steps to be resolved.
On the same occasion, Ahmad Shah Ahmadzai, a Jihadi leader, called on the nation to be united in order to put an end to blood shedding, suggesting that logical ways should be sought to overcome war and conflicts in Afghanistan.
Participants of the event urged the government to support and empower Afghans’ role in the peace talks and engage people from all levels in the society.
