The Evolution and Growth of Communism in Afghanistan by Fazal ur Rahim Marwat
The beginning of the 20th century in the world politics saw a major shift in the way that vast numbers of people lived, as a result of changes in politics, ideology, economics, society, and culture. Afghanistan also experienced the same due to breakdown of British influences and as well as relation with Bolshevik Russia. Third Anglo-Afghan war in May 1919 gave impetus to these gestures of friendship between Afghanistan and the Bolsheviks. Through Bolshevik Revolution the ebb and flow in the relations between Afghanistan and the Bolshevik Russia during the years 1917 to 1929 was the natural corollary of internal political changes as well as global political developments. Soviet Union maintained double standards, one side through treaties, agreements, trade, loans, assistance and propaganda continued to increase its influence inside Afghanistan and other side the issues such like in August 1924 Communist International issued instructions to Tashkent that a new propaganda base in northern Afghanistan means efforts to Sovietize the former Tsarist Empire in Central Asia. In the chapter “Afghanistan and the Bolshevik Revolution” generally focused on positive and as well as negative policy Soviet implemented in Afghanistan. The strength of communism and Bolshevism in Afghanistan and its neighbors was mainly intellectual and confined to the educated class. Most of the reports of the Bolshevik revolution reached in Afghanistan through the censored press of British India, Central Asian publications as well as through individual travelers and merchants from Central Asia.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, the territory of Afghanistan was occupied by a loose confederation of disparate Pashtun, Tajik and Hazara tribes and principalities. The emir in Kabul was little more than the chief of one of them and many tribal leaders, rather than paying tribute to him received payments from him, allegedly for the guarding the frontiers. Since the 1860 control of Afghanistan had been the main prize in” the Great Game” played between the British and Russians empire. The Bolshevik Revolution changed the terms of Russian and British relations with Afghanistan and as well as the Russian revolution and the defeat of Great Britain have opened clear and solid paths where the social and religious problems of the Muslims are concerned. On June 29, 1918, Lenin wrote, “the British imperialists having brought Afghanistan completely under their sway, long ago created a base for extending their colonial possessions, strangling nations and attacking Soviet Russia”. In the Afghanistan Bolshevism-Leninism wave of idealism and hope on the basis of streams of nationalism, Pan-Islamism and Pan-Afghanism but sometimes supported and it sometimes opposed it. Through these streams Afghan wanted to achieve two goals; first, peace, unity, stability at home and second, Muslim’s support against British imperialism. For the first time in Afghanistan’s history, a movement for constitutionalism, independence and liberal reforms in secular from was launched. Though it was a movement of a small group of educated elite along with nationalist elements of the urban centre yet it reflected the growing Afghan national consciousness on either side of the Durand line. It was perhaps the first time when Amanullah and his young Afghan colleagues succeeded in uniting the Ulema and other conservative elements for a common goal independence from the British.
The success of the Bolshevik revolution gave a new dimension to the modernist enlighteners the young Khivans, and the young Bukharan’s movements in Khokhand, Khiva and Bukhara for modernization and reforms. New Bolshevik regime emerged as a ‘friend’ of the oppressed, enslaved masses of Asia and the enemy of the Imperialism and Colonialism and as such it naturally attracted anti- British young Turks, Indian Ghadrists and revolutionaries, the Central Asian jadidists(modernist) and the young Afghans.
The October revolution brought to power a government which, unlike the Tsarist Empire proclaimed its respect for Afghan independence and the faithfully pro-British emir of Afghanistan (since 1901) Habibullah Khan was assassinated under mysterious circumstances in February 1919. The new emir Amanullah Khan (1919-29) was associated with an enlightened and reformist minded group of intellectuals in the young Afghan movement. Amanullah adopted a program of radical reforms (which eventually resulted in a traditionalist revolt that drove him from power in 1929), declared Afghanistan independent country, denounced existing treaties with Britain, opened negotiation Soviet Russia and declared a ‘Holly War’ calling on Indian Muslims to rise against British rule. Many of them interpreted the October revolution’s ideas according to their own concepts, purely from anti-imperialist and general democratic positions rather than from the class ones.
Some negative aspects are also founded between Bolshevik Russia and Afghanistan. The prospect for friendly relations between Kabul and Moscow were soon clouded and overshadowed by their different attitudes and persecutions of the developments in the Soviet Central Asia. When the promises of ‘self-determination’ to the Central Asian Muslims were reinterpreted and not fulfilled by the Bolshevik authorities the former raised the standard of revolt against the latter.
Major tensions developed in the Soviet-Afghan friendship largely as a result of Russian efforts to Sovietize the former Tsarist Empire in Central Asia and of Amanullah’s ambition to incorporate part of it into a confederation of Islamic states in Central Asia. The Soviet-Afghan rivalry in Turkistan was intensified by the Basmachi (uprising the Muslim communities against the Soviet rule) rebellion which Amanullah sought to win over to his Pan-Islamic movement. Here Pan-Islamist and Young Afghans concept which had come through the Bolshevik revolution and in the case of Central Asian Muslims all of these ideas applied by the Amanullah. Besides also factor was involved for notion of support because this area (Khiva and Burkhara) was geo-strategic and economic importance for the Afghanistan were also some of the major factors which contributed to his pro-Turkic and pro-Basmachi Central Asian policy. Between 1919 and 1922 Amanullah continued to pursue the Pan-Islamic cause and supported both the anti-Bolshevik Basmachi resistance movement of the Central Asian Muslims and the anti-British Khilaft and Hijrat movements in India. He also established strong ties with Iran and Turkey and gained much popularity as the champion of Islamic cause both at home and abroad.