A year ago, he managed the evacuation of French citizens and their auxiliaries in Kabul. David Martinon, French ambassador to Afghanistan, returned this Monday on BFMTV to the situation in the country, in the hands of the Taliban. The diplomat, dispossessed of his embassy and now working from Paris, made special mention of this first anniversary of the Islamist group’s return to power.
“As expected, the Taliban have not changed. As expected, the concept of ‘moderate Taliban’ does not make sense,” said David Martinon on our antenna.
“They are not the best rulers there are”
The ambassador spoke of a “catastrophic” human rights situation, as several women demonstrated on Saturday in the streets of Kabul to protest against the restrictions placed on them, before being violently dispersed.
“They are denied their most fundamental rights, they no longer have the right to education, they can no longer leave their homes without a ‘mahram’, that is, a chaperone,” he explains on BFMTV.
Along with this, the economic situation is not much better. Liquidity crisis, bad harvests due to the drought… “The Taliban are not the best rulers that exist,” ironically our guest.
“The Taliban unquestionably have the ability to make themselves obeyed, but it is a stability that is not necessarily lasting,” said the ambassador, referring in particular to the opposition represented by Daesh but also to the “foci of rebellion” in Afghan territory.
A fragile “stability”
In addition, the management of the country is done without taking into consideration all the ethnic groups of the country. “If they don’t understand that their governance needs to evolve, this stability won’t be long-lasting”, considers David Martinon again. Still, the Taliban currently control the country and France has no choice but to maintain “a channel of discussion” with the Afghan authorities, although David Martinon has no direct contact with them.
“What we expect from them (the Afghan authorities, editor’s note) is very simple: it means respect for human rights, a real break with terrorism […] At the moment, obviously, these conditions are not being met”, the diplomat points out.
David Martinon, who says he still receives a dozen evacuation requests every day, nevertheless says he is “ready” to return to Afghanistan if conditions allow one day. “The circumstances, the context was already very difficult. […] today, with this regime, security is not guaranteed. We know we could be objective.”
Source: BFM TV
