Pashtun / Pashtunwali / Pashtunistan (catch all)

[thomasruttigAAN]

try this one, just published. but read the disclaimer (in the intro) that this about pashtunwali's ideal version: http://www.aan-afghanistan.org/index.asp?id=1567

[Jedburgh]

....There is a small hip-pocket guide book (actually just a small booklet/smart card) put out, if I remember correctly by the Marine Corps Intelligence Activity which I found to be functional and practical. It deals specifically with Pashtunwali, and is fairly accurate. I believe it was produced in concert with the Center for Advanced Operational Culture and Language (CAOCL). I will have to dig out my copy in order to figure out the title, but the boys in the S-2 shop should be able to get dozens easily....

I think you're referring to the CAOCL pub Afghanistan: Operational Culture for Deploying Personnel, published back in May '09.

...The second one that is relevant is the Afghanistan Micro Mission Guide.

That is also an excellent, concise reference - second the recommendation.

There's also an AWG smart-card type product, their Tactical Pocket Reference: Afghan Key Leader Engagement. And then there's a publicly available CALL pub, Afghan Culture: Observations, Insights, and Lessons, published last Sep and the TRADOC Culture Center's Afghanistan Smart Book, updated this Jan. And of course there's always the DLIFLC Cultural Awareness and Area Studies webpage

Aside from the references, etc., there are a couple of existing briefs floating around out there that you could simply download and update for your needs. One is also from the MCIA, Afghan Cultural Awareness, original dated 3 Jun 10; the other is by LCDR Tauseef Badar of the 3rd Marine Air Wing, Afghanistan for Dummies, original dated 4 Mar 10. PM or e-mail me if you need assistance in finding these.

[jcustis]

Ridicule as a Tool for IO/PSYOPS in Afghanistan

I would separate this article above for a more deliberate review at the upper levels of the chain of command, but there are some concepts that go a long way towards explaining why Afghan men do what they do.

It is pretty lame that even though I am required to use my CAC card to get to a sharepoint portal page that appears to support Afghanistan mission prep training, it is very thin on resources, and the ones I did find came after significant digging. Not intuitive at all.

I was able to find your mention

Afghanistan: Operational Culture for Deploying Personnel, published back in May '09.

Ted, but that is not the booklet I remember. It is specifically about using Pashtunwali offensively, and that may even be the title. I looked in my deployer bag, and I think I left that one behind for my replacement, since he had never seen it.

Granitestate, like I said before, the S-2 section should be able to get it for you. I just cannot provide the title or publication number at this point. Look for anything titled: Operational Pashtunwali, and with a front cover pic of Afghan elders sitting and looking over their shoulder at the photog. I think I remember it to be spiral bound as opposed to a fold-out like most culture cards. It will have a section that mentions specific Pashto Pashtunwali terms and expressions, and makes liberal mention of the concept of shame, how men use subtle teasing to bring breakers of the code back into line, and the lengths a Pashtun male will go to in order to restore honor. It is an excellent tool because it will help the Marines understand that lying, when set in the Afghan context of shame and honor, has a totally different significance than what we in the West hold.

Additionally, I had the blog page bookmarked after all:

Chai and the Pashtunwali

[Jedburgh]

....I was able to find your mention Ted, but that is not the booklet I remember. It is specifically about using Pashtunwali offensively, and that may even be the title....

There's one that fits that description, but its not a CAOCL or MCIA product - it was published by the NPS Program for Culture and Conflict Studies in June '09 (and is one of the references in the IO article you linked), Understanding Afghan Culture: Operational Pashtunwali:

U.S. personnel hear a lot about Pashtunwali. Most soldiers know from their training that the word means "the way of the Pashtun" people, and that it is a set of social values that determine how a Pashtun man will react and make decisions. Often lacking from training however is the operational linkage: How do you factor Pashtunwali into the planning process? And how do you use it on the street on a patrol? This short article is intended to provide guidance on how Pashtunwali can be translated into operational use.

In military terms, for planning purposes, Pashtunwali could be split into two types of operational use: "defensive Pashtunwali" and "offensive Pashtunwali."

• "Defensive Pashtunwali" could be described as a form of force protection. It means observing certain rules of behavior that will avoid angering the local men to the point where they want to set an IED or mortar your FOB to get some payback for being dishonored or insulted. In other words, avoiding negatives outcomes.

• "Offensive Pashtunwali" is going a step farther, and using these cultural principles proactively to achieve positive outcomes. The enemy is using Pashtunwali every day against us in effective ways -- but it is a two-edged sword, and we can use it, too.

There's also another MCIA product that may be useful, also from June '09, Cultural Islam in Afghanistan: How the Unique Practices of Afghan Islam Affect the Insurgency Battle:

...Afghan cultural Islam conflicts with the fundamentalist Islamic movements that influence the current insurgency. Knowing and exploiting these differences can be beneficial to counteracting insurgent IO campaigns and to discouraging local Afghans from identifying with insurgent groups vying for control of the population.

[jcustis]

Once again, you are dead spot-on jedburgh. That is the product for sure.

Granite_State, go to this page: http://www.nps.edu/Programs/CCS/index.html

The CCS Occasional Paper Series seeks to further the education and discussion of issues pertaining to culture and conflict in South and Central Asia. CCS disseminates scholarly essays on an ongoing basis that attempt to contribute to the creation of a more stable environment in Afghanistan. These papers identify and discuss contemporary and interdisciplinary issues that affect U.S. national security interests including politics, economics, ethnographic intelligence, culture, geostrategic interests, national and local development methods, regional and cooperative security, terrorism, and tribal relations. CCS papers are written by faculty and staff members of the Naval Postgraduate School, alumni, and guest contributors.

The CCS Occasional Paper series can be emailed to appropriate .mil email addresses. To receive a copy of any or all of our occasional papers, please contact us at ccsinfo@nps.edu or you may contact Professor Thomas H. Johnson directly at: thjohnso@nps.edu. Our papers include:

• Operational Pashtunwali: This paper on "“Operational Pashtunwali” is a slight departure from our previous CCS papers. In response to innumerable requests, we have created a tactical product specifically for squad leaders, platoon sergeants, platoon leaders and company commanders that explains the culture of the Afghan south and how to use it in tactical operations. We hope this paper answers the requests, by explaining how the “code” of the Pashtun people can be used both for force protection and as an offensive force multiplier.

And do the footwork to see if the command can request hard copies already bound. Messing around with electronic copies will work as a stop-gap until the products arrive, but the Marines need to booklets. I happened to stumble on the copy I wound up using. I think I came into owning it because Highlander 6 picked up a copy at one of the cultural training sessions he attended at the Division-level before the deploy.

There's also an AWG smart-card type product, their Tactical Pocket Reference: Afghan Key Leader Engagement.

This is also a good piece of gear. I drafted the battalion's KLE SOP with this product in front of me.

Again, this is just my personal commentary, but it's a shame that a product as simple as this could not be highlighted by the right people, to the people who need it. We've got plenty of experts telling us how important it is to use the appropriate greeting and buzzword, but that isn't operationalized to make us more combat effective. The single most important tool I used during the deployment came into my possession through random chance. I don't think we are getting the return on the investment that the cultural gurus tell us that we are.

[Fmr11A]

I doubt any one of these is exactly what you are looking for, but you can excerpt from them, as necessary.

Afghanistan Research Reachback Center, My Cousin’s Enemy is My Friend: A Study of Pashtun “Tribes” in Afghanistan, TRADOC G2 Human Terrain System 5 – 24 (United States Army 2009) available online.

Thomas Barfield, Weapons of the not so Weak in Afghanistan: Pashtun Agrarian Structure and Tribal Organization for Times of War & Peace, Yale University (February 23, 2007) available online.

Antonio Giustozzi and Noor Ullah, "Tribes" and Warlords in Southern Afghanistan, 1980-2005, Crisis States Research Center, Working Paper No. 7 (London School of Economics, September 2006) available online.

Bernt Glatzer, The Pashtun Tribal System in Georg Pfeffer, Deepak Kumar Behera, Contemporary Society Tribal Studies, Volume 5, The Concept of Tribal Society 265 (Concept Publishing Company 2002) available online.

Olivier Roy, Afghanistan: Internal Dynamics and Socio-Economic Dynamics and Groupings, 4 WRITENET Paper No. 14/2002 (March 2003), available online.

Susanne Schmeidl and Masood Karokhail, The Role of Non-State Actors in "Community-Based Policing' - And Exploration of the Arbakai (Tribal Police) in South-Eastern Afghanistan, 30 Contemporary Security Policy 318 available online.

[Jedburgh]

....And do the footwork to see if the command can request hard copies already bound. Messing around with electronic copies will work as a stop-gap until the products arrive, but the Marines need to booklets. ...

Well, I believe someone has taken a look at this discussion thread - CAOCL just uploaded the pdf booklet version of that NPS CCS paper this morning on their CAC-access website.

[blueblood]

Sorry for going offtopic but I found the title "Ghosts of Alexander" mildly amusing because as a race Pukhtoons didn't exists back then. Alexander fought Hindu King Puru (Porus) before the advent of Islam. According to the North Indian folklores, Alexander didn't defeated Porus but got injured during the battle and left along with his Army, thus war remained inconclusive. Some Indian historians too believe that since the Western historians at that time were Hellicentric, the actual report never found it's true place and the Western version became the only version.

[jcustis]

Bonus...

That's the way it's supposed to work, when this community can support other communities in their quest to get better and remain relevant. I like that.

ETA: Unfortunately, it is farily un-intuitive to be able to get to the document. Granite_State, I emailed you a copy of the link that should take you directly to the shareport portal and the link to allow access to the .pdf file.

[carl]

The people know you are going to goof it up regardless, and they are very forgiving. Being able to show you are doing what you do in good faith, can listen well, and are sincere, are the most desirable traits I think come into play.

These are very wise words. The same thing works in Africa for civilians too. If falls under the rubric of being a gentleman I guess.

The author flipped Pashtunwali on him in a way, and said something to the effect of, "why do you ask me to compromise my honor as a soldier by asking for me to release these men? I am only doing my duty as I know how to do it. If this man is innocent, then the rule of law will prevail, but I am not responsible for the law. The Afghan people are responsible for the law, and I am here to simply help the security forces enforce it."

This worked in Africa too sometimes when fending off bribe solicitations, sort an honorable man approach. Being a gentleman again, people respect that.

[82redleg]

A couple of links that might be of use:

http://aan-afghanistan.com/index.asp?id=1567

http://www.usip.org/files/file/clash_two_goods.pdf

[davidbfpo]

A book review by SWC contributor Hamid Hussain of The Pashtun Question by Abubakar Siddique:

The Pashtun Question is a timely arrival in view of winding down of U.S. and NATO mission in Afghanistan. Abubakar Siddique is well qualified to tackle the Pashtun question. He is a Pashtun from the tribal territory of South Waziristan and spent his early childhood there. He is anthropologist by training and in his career as journalist he covered Pakistan’s tribal areas as well as Afghanistan. He spent lot of time in the field and familiar with major actors in Pashtun lands on both sides of the Durand Line; boundary separating Pakistan and Afghanistan.
This book is a good resource for general reader as it provides the background of the genesis of conflict on both sides of the Durand Line with detailed analysis of civil war in Afghanistan. For experts, it condenses the thirty year long civil war in less than three hundred pages. Book also provides details of rise of extremism in the region that is now plaguing a large swath of territory and impeding the political and economic progress both in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The book’s format is in chronological order of events that provides a very readable historical narrative. Abubakar provides some details about conflict in Waziristan based on his own and other available resources. This segment could have been expanded especially the process of dismantling of tribal structure in a very short period of time. Physical elimination and flight of traditional tribal elders, destruction of traditional instruments of stability in a tribal society and entrenchment of extremist elements in tribal lands needs further exploration. However, coverage of this subject is extremely dangerous and it is very difficult to engage people in serious discussion even those who have fled their lands in tribal territory to cities (this is based on my own visits to the region and interactions with Pashtuns from diverse backgrounds). Many tribal leaders have been assassinated even in major cities of Peshawar, Rawalpindi and Karachi. I was reminded of this fact when few years ago, I was reviewing some old colonial era files at Peshawar archives. I was going through the file of a tribal elder of Mohmand tribe spanning his life in first half of twentieth century. One of the officer working in the archives was also from Mohmand tribal agency and he told me that the son of this tribal elder fled to Peshawar after militants took control of the area. He was shot dead near his house in Peshawar.

In writing about an ethnic group, the narratives of a native and outsider provide unique perspectives. An outsider can be more objective in his analysis of the group as he is not part of the intra-group rivalries. However, he can easily miss the insight of the group due to language and cultural barriers. This is the case of most of the work done about Pashtuns in English language by British military and civil administrators. A native can bring the insight in view of being the member of the group but he can also downplay the inherent weaknesses of the group and tend to blame everything bad to outside forces. There is very limited scholarly material published by Pashtun authors. Abubakar’s work is a welcome addition and being a Pashtun, he is able to bring mirror in the room to highlight the weaknesses of Pashtun society. He skillfully analyzes how Pashtun groups in Afghanistan and Pakistan used outside sources for power struggles in their lands. Armed conflict is a painful event but it has its own rules. No matter what outside forces want, it was Pashtun who happily blew up electricity pylon on Jalalabad-Kabul highway for a handout of $100 in 1980s and 1990s and today ideological indoctrination from an extremist Arab and hand out from a rich Arab living in luxury in his own country, he is beheading his own people and blowing up schools. He is responsible for his acts and must be held accountable for destroying the present and future of his own people.

The author argues in the book that rise of extremism and violence in Pashtun lands is due to failure of nation states of Afghanistan and Pakistan. This is not unique to Pashtun areas and violence emerges from some kind of failure of the state and society. This rule is equally applicable to the carnage of two world wars where belligerents were developed countries as well as violence in failing states of Africa. Pushtuns have also been beneficiaries where they ruled Afghanistan as royalists, communists and Islamists and in case of Pakistan were able to get more than fair share in civil and military bureaucracies as well as economic sphere. The author addresses the important question of how to extricate the Pashtun society in Afghanistan and Pakistan from the violent cycles by resolving existing border disagreements, adhering to principle of non-interference and political and economic progress of both countries.

The Pashtun Question is a must read for those engaged in Afghanistan and Pakistan. More importantly, it should be read by Pakistanis and Afghanis especially Pashtuns. This will help jump start a discussion among Pushtuns about their future. Th author should seriously consider translation of the book into Urdu and Pashtu to make it available to a wider audience in the region.

Available from London based Hurst & Co:http://www.hurstpublishers.com/book/...htun-question/ or via Amazon:http://www.amazon.com/Pashtun-Questi...shtun+Question

[davidbfpo]

Welcome aboard.

Alas the Forum Search function is not working nowadays.

However I know we had stuff so took the long route. TRy these threads, assuming you have not found them:

1. http://council.smallwarsjournal.com/...or-(catch-all)
2. http://council.smallwarsjournal.com/...41-Pashtunwali
3. One of them points to this PDF (20 pgs) http://www.afghanistan-analysts.net/...wali-FINAL.pdf
4. http://council.smallwarsjournal.com/...r-Pashtunistan
5. Mike Martin has two books, the first being reviewed by moi in Post 120 via:http://council.smallwarsjournal.com/...ing-2014/page6 and a more general book:http://council.smallwarsjournal.com/...ghlight=martin
6. Have you looked at Carter Malkasian's book, also on Helmand? Which has comments in Posts 56, 57, 58 & 68 via:http://council.smallwarsjournal.com/...ing-2013/page4
7. Finally try this NGO website, even if it covers the FATA, not Afghanistan:http://www.understandingfata.org/about-u-fata.php

[davidbfpo]

I have merged four threads here and changed the title to Pashtun / Pashtunwali / Pashtunistan (catch all).

Alas the search function no longer works well.

[davidbfpo]

A topical update from National Interest. It is sub-titled:

The resurgent Taliban are driven only partly by religion. They are motivated equally, if not more, by the search for Pashtun dignity and revenge.

Link:https://nationalinterest.org/feature/taliban-and-changing-nature-pashtun-nationalism-41182?