Fun
It took next to no time to set up. The cameraman from Sabaa Television had some fun, even though he sometimes failed to use the tripod necessary for steady images. My driver was scared because I had traded in my notepad for a far more conspicuous camera team. He wound a piece of cloth around his head and put on a huge pair of goggles. In the meantime, my translator was calling all kinds of potential speakers. 

 

This is far more difficult than in the Netherlands, where you simply invite some government representatives and opposition members. In Afghanistan, there are more players, especially outside government. Like the man in the video: Hajji Abdul Bari. He spent a long time in exile after being ousted by his rival, former governor Jan Mohammed Khan, but he is back now. He is being supported by the Netherlands; his brother in particular has good ties with the Dutch. They are important people in their little ‘kingdom’. Just a few miles down the road, somebody else is king. 

 

Future
In addition to the local BBC journalist who gave his analysis of the future of Uruzgan, we also talked to supporters of the main opponent of the Netherlands, Matiullah Khan, whose ‘kingdom’ covers many regions of Uruzgan. The governor who tried to restrain him was fired, and Khodai Rahim Popal, a close relative, is now the interim head of the province. Local conflicts are resolved in his own shura. A lady like Nuria, who is in the video, was appointed to the Provincial Council, thanks to Matiullah Khan. Just like the schoolmaster in the video: he teaches in a school set up by Matiullah Khan.

 

It took some doing to find a location which was not under the control of Matiullah Khan. We later found out that we failed after all. A director of the Olympic Sports Committee seemed to be well disposed towards us. I was told later that he raced over to Matiullah to ask his permission just before we started recording. He just didn’t dare do it without approval.