Pakistani Rosie the Riveter and Women Activism Through the Ages

When the world war 2 started many men recruited into army divisions to boost up the war efforts. By February 1942, American civilian automobile factories only made weapons and military vehicles. Automobile manufacturers such as General Motors and Chrysler used their experience with mass production to quickly build tanks. A large human resource went overseas to fight world war 2 and went on military attachments. This created a huge crisis of labor and hence American government had to woo females though print advertisements to come and take up so called "manly" jobs at garages, plumbing, law enforcement, emergency services, medical nurses, firefighting and all the other jobs that were associated or dominated by men in those times. Women would do predominantly home based jobs and chores as housewives. It was decided to run an ad campaign with a symbolic figure named Rosie the Riveter who is willing to do everything for the sake of motherland "America". Initially, ads projected Rosie as greasy, dusty and in dirty clothes doing tough jobs and her outlook wasn't all too fancy. Women responded with protests and didn't like the idea of a dirty Rosie. So the government changed their strategy by introducing a new Rosie with  elegant make up, dresses and beautiful looks, which were fancy and stylish. This was a huge hit and it became a symbol of women empowerment in USA and also across the globe in the coming ages. People attach women activism, strength and equality with her persona. Attached are some of the Rosie pictures from those times and how the perspective changed and also Rosie from Pakistan pictured as none other than Malala, who signifies the strength and empowerment of women through education. So association with Rosie is a symbolic statement in these posters. Feminists also adopted the symbolism in their artistic depiction of freedom from the shackles of subjugation. Also many sarcastic quotes from across the globe and also in subcontinent floated recently which have comic value and also some rebellious notions attached. There are many different perspective with this legendary persona " Rosie the Riveter"

Capacity Building of Afghan Youth: How Can Pakistan Help? ( My Opinion for " The Asian Telegraph" )

 

Afghanistan has endured an upheaval of immense magnitude in the past three decades. The disintegration of the republic in the recent past has exacerbated the already tense situation and made ripples in Afghan society and the wider region. Afghanistan is on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe. The biggest casualty of the events has been the youth of Afghanistan, who had to relocate to neighboring countries in search of better life and future. The biggest chunk of Afghan refugees went to Pakistan and many are still stuck. As a responsible neighboring country, it is incumbent on Pakistan to help these youth in distress. It will cultivate the spirit of goodwill and contribute to the foreign policy objectives of reaching out to the people of Afghanistan. In this regard, Pakistan can enable the capacity building of Afghan youth.

According to the former National Statistics and Information Authority (NSIA) of Afghanistan, the estimated population of Afghanistan is 38.93 million. Women comprise almost half of (49%) of the population. The institutions of tertiary, middle, secondary, and higher education are struggling to grapple with the immense challenge to cater to the requirements of logistics and trained staff. The emphasis of the Taliban government to segregate on the basis of gender has created peculiar problems for the education sector in Afghanistan. To better cope with the situation, Pakistan can lend its hand to train the staff, give logistic and advisory support to the authorities in Afghanistan. The assistance to the Afghan people must be channeled through educational collaborations and other pertinent sectors. Allama Iqbal Scholarship for higher education has greatly benefited in capacity building of Afghan youth, especially women. Scholarships for female students to study in Pakistan must be enhanced.

Another avenue for possible cooperation can be in sports diplomacy. Sports inculcate a spirit of teamwork, playing by the rules and competition in a positive way. Afghanistan, though war-stricken, has a huge potential in sports. Youth are the main pillars of these extracurricular activities. Last year, a video conference was conducted by Pak Afghan Youth Forum that gathered athletes from both countries. They belonged to diverse categories of sports such as Cricket, Taekwando, Squash, and Football. The discourse revolved around mutual cooperation to train and assist the athletes on a reciprocal basis. Pakistan can assist Afghanistan in providing training and infrastructure for cricket and squash. Conversely, Afghanistan has a vibrant Taekwando and Football culture. Matches can be conducted between the local teams to give a message of harmony among two countries and harbor sports diplomacy in its true spirit.

Food and culinary diplomacy is a developing arena of exchanges between diverse cultures. In the case of Afghanistan and Pakistan, both have cultural affinities. Afghan food is widely popular in Pakistan. Many young Afghan entrepreneurs have successfully ventured into this arena. “Afghani Burger” and “Mantu” are a favorite savory for the people of Pakistan. There is a famous restaurant named “Kabul restaurant” in F7 Markaz Islamabad, filled with Pakistani food lovers. Pakistan must enhance its cultural ties with the neighboring country through unconventional cooperation. Encouraging food businesses owned by Afghans in Pakistan and also exporting the delicious restaurant chains to Afghanistan in cooperation with Afghan entrepreneurs is another such avenue of a win-win situation. Afghan youth will greatly benefit from job opportunities while it will also bring normalcy and employment to the war-torn country.

Youth-led initiatives always bring creative ideas to the fore. Pak-Afghan Youth Dialogue is a major confidence-building initiative of the Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) under its Afghan Studies Center (ASC) program to provide a platform for the youth of Pakistan and Afghanistan to interact on issues of bilateral concerns, exchange ideas, and become messengers of peace and cooperation beyond boundaries. Plethoras of events were organized by Pak Afghan Youth Dialogue under the auspices of the Center for Research and Strategic Studies (CRSS), which was attended by dignitaries from the government of Pakistan. It engaged the youth of Afghanistan and Pakistan to discuss the problems pertaining to youth in both countries. Participants enthusiastically gave several suggestions in order to enhance the cooperation between both countries. Such youth-led initiatives should be encouraged on the state level and more of such activities should be planned. It will give the youth of both countries a stake in how their countries should run their policies, especially pertaining to youth affairs.

Afghanistan is Pakistan’s western neighbor and giving back to the young community in Afghanistan is a fantastic way to uplift the spirits of the people in distress. It will have immense social capital while negative perceptions about both countries could be eliminated. People to people ties can the antidote to harboring a new era of cooperation between both countries. A vibrant and strong Afghanistan is in Pakistan’s best interest. Strengthening the social ties with the youth of Afghanistan, who are the backbone of the country, is an exceptional way to achieve this objective.

Link to the article: https://www.theasiantelegraph.net/capacity-building-of-afghan-youth-how-can-pakistan-help/

Elon Musk: The Visionary Entrepreneur and Thinker of 21st Century

 

Elon Musk, the founder and CEO of Tesla and Spacex, is a South African immigrant who chose USA, the land of opportunities, as a destination for realizing his dreams of making an imprint on the globe. He started with a software company in 1995 and later became the founder of Paypal. Later on, due to problems with the board members, he was ousted from the very same company he helped conceiving. He went on to buy the shares of the company in bidding due to his sentimental values attached to it. Later on, he ventured into aerospace industry and launched his aerospace company Spacex. This man had to undergo rebuke and many administrative obstacles from the industry such as NASA legends Neil Armstrong and Eugene Cernan for his ambitious dreams to make reusable rockets and land humans on Mars. Elon Musk teared up in an interview when anchor asked him that your hero Euegene Cernan remarked in a congress testimony that: “Now is the time to overrule this administration’s (government at the time) pledge to mediocrity, a direct snide on Elon Musk and Spacex. He never bogged down from such statements and came true on his promises when his rockets successfully landed back with a successful recovery. Currently, Spacex is the leader in aerospace industry and eyeing to catapult 100 metric tons of cargo in space which will enable the humanity to pursue its dreams of landing on mars till 2030. He also launched satellite constellations (star link) which will enable high speed and non disrupting internet facility to areas as far as Antarctica at a phenomenally less premium than its competitors. Elon Musk has launched Tesla which is a clean electric vehicle technology that lessens our dependability on hydrocarbons centric vehicles. The company has shown 300 percent growth in the last five years. He is also funding his brother’s venture to grow sustainable vertical growth agriculture that can guarantee food security in the face of booming population. He also has an ambitious project called “Neuralink” to implant chips in differently abled humans in order to give them the means to live their lives as normal humans with excessive capabilities like better memory and eyes. It can revolutionize the health industry and can enable patients of strokes with another opportunity to live healthy. In order to achieve all this and better concentrate, he has shifted to specially-made minimalistic house which is the cheapest home for a billionaire on this planet.

Due to Elon Musk’s visionary thinking, he may surpass Einstein and Newton in terms of the utility he promises to give to the mankind. Landing humans on mars may enable new avenues for interplanetary research. The search for life on other planets will give clues on the origin of life in the universe. He is pushing the limits of humanity. Through Tesla, he is helping the world cope with global warming and giving sustainable alternative technologies rather than expensive and climate enemy hydrocarbons. With NeuraLink, a new hope has emerged to enable the crippled people with better life. It is not about whether he will achieve all these ambitious ventures but the promise and excitement he brings by going the other way and disrupting the conventional thinking.   

Once Steve Jobs remarked about the disruptors of technology in a Stanford graduation ceremony, an institute from where he had to drop out, that:

"Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignoring them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people, who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do."

The above comments suits Elon Musk’s persona and achievements in letter and spirit.

 Content Analysis of Problematic Pakistani Drama Serials

 

  

Introduction

Drama serials are a favorite pass time for many Pakistanis. In the subcontinent, Pakistan is famous for its realistic content and variety of ingredients. In the neighboring India, the focus is mainly on glamour, which has not gone too well with the viewers who look out for authentic content. The drama serials are a potent way to convey subliminal messages. Due to its massive reach and following, the dramatic content needs to be gender responsible. In this study we have identified certain scenes which can be categorized as gender sensitive or inappropriate. The purpose is to add more discussion on the responsible depiction of females in Pakistani drama serials.

Drama List

Below mentioned drama serials have been selected for various problematic scenes. We will discuss it later. These drama serials are:

•        Bashar momin
•        Thora sa haq Sabaat
•        Bedardi
•        Jalan
•       Meray Pass Tum Ho
•         Raz-e-ulfat
•       Bikrey Moti
•         Bulbulay
•         Udari
•          Chupke Chupke
•          Deewangi
•          Jhooti
•         Ghalati

Critical Analysis

We have made problematic categories and included brief commentary as to why the projection of such content should be responsible. These are:

Normalizing Violence: The scenes portraying violence against women is being shown with gruesome details.  We have witnessed women being slapped in various scenes in drama serial “Sabaat” and “Thora Sa Haq”. Such scenes are deplorable because it normalizes violence against woman. No matter what the circumstances, it is not befitting to hit the women.

Still from Drama Serial Sabaat

Similarly, in drama serial “Deewangi”, a husband is shown to have beaten his pregnant wife. This problematic scene could have been moderated or avoided.

Drama Serial “Deewangi”

In drama serial “Mere Pass Tum Ho”, wife of a leading character Shahwar Ahmad slaps her husband’s mistress but continues to live with her husband despite him cheating on her and even forgives her later on. This portrayal is extremely regressive and enables the notion that woman is the only culprit in this situation. In other words the plot is “hypocritical” and solidifies “dual standards” prevalent in society. The man gets away with slight inconvenience but at the end everything is endured by the woman. In a cinematic or dramatic art, such scripts give a misleading impression about men not being held accountable.

Aiza Khan the lead protagonist in Mere Pass Tum Ho (Left) and Thora Sa Haq (right)

Stereotyping: The notion of painting everything with the same brush is somewhat closer to the depiction of formula dramas being made in Pakistan. By formula dramas, I mean to say the typical characterization of the roles. A Clichéd depiction of daughter in law and mother in law infighting (Saas and bahu kay jhagray) as well as the toxic relationships with sister of the groom (Nand) is stereotyped. In addition, I always felt it personally that the role of father’s sister (Phuppo) is stereotyped as being too intrusive in the affairs of the brother’s family. Such stereotyping can be seen in comedy as well as serious drama serials. The drama serial “Chupke Chupke“is one such example of stereotyping such relations in a humorous way.  Drama serial “Balaa” is a drama with a serious undertone but same formula.

Posters of Drama serial “Balaa” and Sitcom “Chupke Chupke”

In addition, certain roles portray the characters in a very clichéd manner. Proper research is missing when characterizing roles of social classes. We see that certain roles are shown to be egregious such as the portrayal of a woman from village in dirty clothes or speaking a very crude language. Certainly an image of illiteracy and other traits are being magnified unnecessarily when it comes to the portrayal of a village girl in the drama serial “Udaari”.

Drama Serial “Udaari” and the stereotypical portrayal of a village woman

In a rather stark contrast, the women from cities are shown as socially mobile ultra modern, headstrong and empowered character that does not conform to cultural norms of the society. In drama serial “Cheekh” we can see one such character being portrayed by saba qamar. It is pertinent to say that the message of the drama was very bold and relevant which needs to be appreciated but intricacy and attention to details is missing while portraying certain scenes which could have been mitigated.

Drama Serial “Cheekh” and the stereotypical portrayal of upward mobile independent woman

Toxic Masculinity: There is no denying the fact that our Pakistani society has a patriarchal outlook. The toxic masculinity is condoned in some cases. In others, it is attributed to “virility” and “true manhood”. In this case, woman is always used as a means to achieve such an outcome. In Pakistani dramas, validation of the toxic masculine culture is also reflected. For example in drama “Bashar Momin”, a toxic person has been shown to simply force a girl into marriage. The plot is weak. It has been portrayed that the girl starts to love her tormentor after some time. This concept is problematic on so many levels and has eerily similar traits of “Stockholm syndrome” where a hostage falls in love with its abuser or kidnapper.

Stills from Drama Serial Bashar Momin

Showing Suicide Scenes: In my opinion, dramas can serve many purposes. It includes entertainment, awareness, elicit religious and patriotic fervor. However, one subtly dangerous aspect of dramas is the portrayal of suicide scenes. The victim is shown as being so depressed that it resorts to suicide. The scene is vividly portrayed in some dramas. A depressed person or someone with anxieties may be motivated to replicate it. For example, the dramas “Bedardi” and “Jalan” have such scenes where the victims resort to suicide. This action is tacitly normalized to create a sympathetic feeling for the victim. In reality, there is no turning back from death. Hence the dramas should be socially responsible.

Poster and still of Drama Serial “Bedardi”

Still from the Drama serial “Jalan” portraying depressed and heartbroken wife committing suicide

Problematic Dialogues: Recently, Pakistan’s biggest blockbuster drama serial “Mere Pass Tum Ho” was filled with misogynistic portrayal of females. However, one such dialogue created a big uproar where a husband utters the dialogue “Do Takay Ki Aurat” to his wife, which simply means “a woman not worth a dime”. The question is that who gave the licensing authority to the man to weigh the worth of a woman, no matter what her downside was. This scene went viral and many people expressed sheer happiness because the storyline suggested husband to be blameless and the woman as a schemer and a cheater. However, portrayal of such scenes diminishes the integrity of woman. In the age of social media, such indecent words became the buzz of the country and many males used it to disgrace females either through social media or in person. This dialogue clearly did not age well.

Drama Serial Mere Pass Tum Ho’s problematic Dialogues

Portrayal of an infertile woman:  Infertility is nothing to be ashamed. It is a medical condition. The use of the word “Baanjh” repeatedly in the drama “Ghalati” is in a bad taste and revitalizes the concept of infertility as taboo. In the drama, it is only associated with the female deficiency however, in reality, males can also be deficient with the reproduction capability. To be fair neither should be shamed for something they don’t have control over.

Drama Serial “Ghalati” where the word Baanjh is used unnecessarily to stigmatize infertility

Alcohol: The portrayal of drugs and alcohol in drama serials has picked up steam over the last few years. Drama serials are shown on national television which allows every age bracket individual to have an access to it. This includes kids too. Therefore, unnecessary portrayal or consumption of the alcohol can be minimized or altogether eliminated due to its obvious adverse effects on the society. In drama serial “Raz-e-Ulfat”, we can find such scenes in abundance.

Drama Serial Raaz-e-Ulfat’s scenes depicting alcoholic women

Compromised Marriage: In drama serial “Bikrey Moti”, two gender sensitive problematic notions are portrayed with less subtlety. This includes showing violence on a wife in gruesome details. To top it all, the wife dies due to his gender based violence. However, the story does not end here. The husband then marries his former wife’s sister because he had kids from former wife and needed someone to look after them. In a shocking development, the girl begins to like him. Hence, he starts to change his ways. However, the fact that portrayal of violence on his first wife and her death succeeded by marrying to his sister is an abhorrent portrayal of compromised marriage and its normalization in this case.

Picture from Drama Serial “Bikhrey Moti”

Trans-phobia: Transsexual community has faced various societal, legal and cultural complexities in Pakistan. They are the most vulnerable community. In some cases, the parents forfeit them after knowing about their sexual and genital orientation. Hence they are being punished for a fault which is really not theirs to own. In this context, some comedy dramas are involved in the crude denigration and portrayal of the transsexual community. The insult is generally directed by means of gestures and expressions as well as mimicking their style of speaking. They are portrayed as dancers. Their movements are accorded with nonsensical laughter. One should view them with an eye of humanity and show empathy towards the embattled community. Many of them are possibly undergoing intense trauma and mental depression. In drama serial “Bulbulay”, such scenes were shown in a humorous way but in reality, these are regressive scenes which have the capability to hurt the sentiments of transsexual community.

Popular comedy drama serial “Bulbulay”

Problematic plot: In drama serial “Jhooti”, a character named nirma is shown as a compulsive liar. It is also depicted that she is waiting for her father’s death so that she can claim her inherited property. The scene where she is shown commenting on the possible death of her father is in a bad taste and not funny at all. However it is not closely related to a gender issue but the attribution of female character to this scene makes it relevant. Such kind of scenes can be easily avoided.

 

Way Forward / Suggestions

1. Certain amount of gender sensitivity needs to be displayed by the drama producers and directors while the writer should also be cognizant of these facts in advance.
2.  Showing violence leads to encouragement of the gender based violence. Such scenes need not to be shown in greater details cinematically. Due care needs to be accorded to the social ills of the content being shown.
3. The actors must also take a stand (especially female) so that violent scenes are not normalized in the drama scripts. Slapping a girl or woman is highly regressive and must never be condoned even though she is on the wrong end.
4. Dialogues denigrating the status of women need to be completely abolished from all the future scripts.
5. Showing alcohol and drug consumption is strictly prohibited on channels which are being watched nationally. Pakistan electric media regulatory authority must take note of it without compromising the freedom of expression through artistic media.
6. Suicide scenes and the grim details can easily be avoided. The youth and naïve minds are easily influenced with such portrayals.
7. Stereotyping of the female roles can be rather eliminated going into the future. Developing dynamic and bold portrayals of characters such as Kashaf (Zindagi Gulzar Hai), Dr Sameera (Ruswai) and Mannat (Cheekh) is the need of the hour.

Conclusion

In the light of the above discussion, we come to know that Pakistani drama industry is an important pillar of the performing art. We have put some light on the problematic drama serials due to its regressive portrayal of women. We come to a conclusion that due care needs to be undertaken in order to show gender sensitive content. It has many aspects attached to it and any misleading portrayal will lead to a negative consequence in the society. The regulatory bodies shall play a proactive role in the interest of the public without compromising the freedom of speech and portrayal of performing arts. The producers and directors should also fulfill the social responsibility and lead the messages which are morally and legally desirable.

Group Leader

Mr.Muhammad Furqan Khattak

                                                                 Assistant Members

                                                                  Maryam Khan 

                                                                  Laraib Rahim  

                                                                  Shafiq Ahmad

This is  a "Final Group Report of Gender and Conflict" at Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Peshawar. I am thankful to my group members for making it possible.

The Taliban Phenomena: A Commentary

Taliban representatives are pictured during the second day of the Intra-Afghan Peace Conference talks in Doha, Qatar, on July 8. KARIM JAAFAR/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Inside Taliban's War Narrative

• Ideology: Why the Taliban (TB) keep replenishing their support with more and more fighters even when they met with huge losses in previous years. According to TB sources, they consider it a holy war. Hence, when a brother gets killed, the other brother proudly takes his place and continue the legacy. Additionally, the TB condemns the current Kabul administration as puppets who work on the orders of the US to impose western Ideals in Afghanistan.
• Decentralized: TB has been a decentralized force after the US attacked Afghanistan in 2001. For example, the central leadership has given a certain amount of autonomy to the local commanders to use the resources in their area of control as to form a shadow government under TB movement's banner. 
• Financing the War: The Taliban fighters do not get regular salaries and often have second jobs. This trend is particularly prevalent amongst the strongholds of TB. However, they are entitled to the war booties. In essence, a strong financial and religious motivation is at the display. Interestingly, there is also a paradoxical interplay of drug trafficking revenues (chiefly opium) to fund their war even though the movement is intrinsically an austere brand of Islamic ideology. Other sources of funding are taxes on goods and traffic, donation drives from middle eastern donors. 
• Posturing on Kabul Administration: It is understood that the Taliban have been fighting against the system which they perceive as an imposition on the cultural, national, and Islamic conscience of Afghanistan. Therefore, the current Afghan administration in Kabul is unacceptable to them.
• Current Fighting Under the Shadow of Peace: One other reason for brutal fighting against the Afghan government could be to intimidate them into giving a larger pie in the future dispensation of an Afghan settlement.
• Why they Stopped Fighting the US? Taliban are often accused of hypocrisy as they keep fighting the Afghan government by killing fellow Afghans but stopped attacking the US. However, the Taliban have been quoted recently by a well known international newspaper as saying that we are giving the Americans a face-saving safe passage " so they dust off their buttocks and depart". Therefore, the Afghan government is not facilitated with such leniency.

Taliban fighters drive on a road in the Khogiani district of Nangarhar province, Afghanistan, on Dec. 11, 2019. LORENZO TUGNOLI/THE WASHINGTON POST

Recruitment Centers

• Mosques and Seminaries: Taliban go to mosques with "Islah and Dawat" manifesto to woo the recruits amongst its ranks.
• Friends and Relatives: The Taliban rank and file work to enlist their friends and relatives, another source of steady fighter supply stream.
• Refugees: The Afghan refugee diaspora in Pakistan is another area where various reports allege the Afghan Taliban to be recruited to fight the Afghan government.
• Social Media: Taliban use social media to deadly use with propaganda videos filled with footage from the alleged catastrophes inflicted by the NATO/ANDSF and Taliban war preparation exercises. it gives powerful optics and entices the young fighters into the fantasies of involved in a heroic religious and national movement on the "right side of the history".
• Comparative Appeal: TB has pitched the idea of leading a pious struggle where its leadership is the most loyal to the cause and country. They cite Mawlawi Haibatullah as an inspiration who sent his son on a suicide bombing mission while the Afghan leaders have their families studying in western countries. Hence, it is powerfully projected that the current leaders of Kabul administration do not have stakes in Afghanistan which is the reason why they are not the best ones to lead the nation. Portrayal of the conflicting narratives such as these are one of the reasons why Taliban ranks and files are growing at a tremendous pace.
• Social Services: Taliban local commanders help give social service delivery to the community such as health, education, and providing arbitration in disputes as a means of cheap and fast justice delivery system. In some areas where TB holds strong, the Afghan government and donors struck an inconvenient but effective deal to pay for the provided social services from the former's pocket. This is deemed as a progressive posture by some quarters and perhaps one of the key support bases for the Taliban movement in rural areas. Though it is pertinent to state that TB still does not allow girls education above 6th standards which is a big turn off for the international donors' agencies.

Getty Images

How the Taliban Movement Grew after 2001

• 9-11 Attacks Followed by the Invasion of Afghanistan: In the aftermath of the 9-11 attacks, the US invaded Afghanistan with full force and toppled the Taliban government in Kabul for failing to extradite Osama Bin Laden, a prime actor in the unfortunate terror attacks. Taliban movement was in disarray and it is said that most of them went back to their homes feeling low and lost. Most of their leaders crossed into Pakistan or ended up in Guantanamo Bay prison. 
• Re-assembly in Safe Havens: Some Afghan and western intellects believe that the Taliban leadership re-assembled itself and coordinated cross border attacks on Afghan soil targetting key Afghan and American officials, citizens, and soldiers. In effect, they used the same textbook as against the Soviet Union but this time against their old underwriter, the US.
• Corruption of Kabul Administration: The Afghan government's corruption was a big turn off to the Afghan public who expected better and effective administration this time around. The public again looked in the direction of TB. TB used it to gain support and sympathy by revitalizing its support base in rural areas.
• The Obama-era Surge in Troops: In 2009, the Obama Administration senses serious issues in Afghanistan, nominated its decorated diplomat, Richard Holbrooke to Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Besides, the troops' level surged to 100,000. Also, Afghan forces reached a staggering 300,000 figure. Police forces were separately trained to be ready to take over from the US. Local militias were supported by the US. All these actions further cemented TB's narrative that the Afghan state will be a puppet who can not say no to its masters. 
• Taliban Penetration Among ANDSF Ranks: Taliban also penetrated the ANDSF ranks as it has the highest desertion rates. Also, these newly recruited soldiers from ANDSF has carried out multiple deadly attacks on Afghan and US forces. 
• Differences Between Kabul and Washington Emerge: Near the end of Obama's first tenure as President, the differences between the Afghan government and the US came out in the open. Hamid Karzai, then President of Afghanistan, was not favored by the Washington establishment for various reasons ranging from incompetency, corruption, and deliberately ignoring his ignominious brother's (Ahmad Wali Karzai) drug trafficking business. Such differences have crept into the Armed forces and possibly undermined the unity of purpose.
• Haqqani Network: One of the factors of the Taliban insurgency was the Haqqani network. Its assimilation in TB made them a formidable force. The movement got deadlier and sophisticated in its attacks.
• Mulla Baradar & Peace Talks: Mulla Baradar (MB) is considered as a moderate amongst Islamist for his diplomatic approach. He spent ten years in a Pakistani prison and was released on the request of the Afghan government previously. He leads the Afghan negotiations with the Americans. Ironically, half the table of Taliban negotiators spent prison time in Guantanamo prison.
• Litmus Test: In the early days of negotiations with Americans, the litmus test of MB's authority over low-level field commanders came in the ceasefire of 2018 for a week. It was independently verified that reduction in violence amounted to 80-85 percent. This lent great credibility to the TB negotiators in Doha. 
• Taliban Interests Converge with Washington on ISIS: The Taliban movement also struck a binary chord with Washington by squeezing the turf on IS in Afghanistan. 
• Al-Qaeda: The US also pushed TB to declare the AlQaeda (AQ) as a terrorist entity but TB were reluctant on this topic. However, they did promise never to let anyone use their soil against US national security. This was considered as a clandestine declaration on disbanding its association with AQ. 
• Obstacles for Peace in Future Afghanistan: Some problems can probably let the country slip down the same path of civil war as followed up in the '90s if the Taliban ranks fail to show any discipline by dis-obeying the central leadership. It is said that the Taliban younger generation hardly share any history of anti-soviet struggle (the ranks were Mujahideen in those days and TB phenomena followed later) against old guards. A balancing act will be required to assemble all of them into one unit. However, TB leadership dismisses any such assertions as baseless and insists that TB has a robust disciplinary council that punishes the dissidents.
• Ghosts of the Past: Some of the leaders from the Northern Alliance and Kabul Administration are unofficially persona non grata (such as Uzbek warlord General Dostum who oversaw TB massacre at Dasht-e-leli) in TB lexicon. In future dispensation or compromise with TB, the conflict may quickly arise when both see eyeball to eyeball across the table running the same country which was once contested amongst them. Hence, the ghosts of the past may haunt the future too.

Sources: 

1. Mujib Mashal NYT
2. Our Man: Richard Holbrooke and the End of the American Century by George Packer
3. NYT (https://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/14/opinion/14tue2.html)
4. National Geographics Documentary (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGplN5BzhG0)