Afuqanisu-tan

ir d y: u 9
S . d
ge s p c on
a.d as ba
$. r s ls
P 0 :i g
short, she nds 0
s e Kyrqyzs-tan

Pakisu-tan

ir d y: u
S pr. nk ,
and 0 rag.
S e en ancy 0
t so i s.
younge
W 0 v
a aYe Tajikis-tan

ir d y:

9

Rev s alolane

o e u kes-

Ge. i. figh s, b ke u

o

y 00-

o spo tan 0 S Iso 5 W 1 .

T s c et, s e ve yen

sid and oves 0 sew.

Turkmenis-tan

No 0 knows go s

on i sid her had.

Meriken

i d y: ly 4
h '8 C g
borhoo
_5 erhero
c.
9
top-
S e has a 1:.endancy 0
nk er ve s o . 0
j s ce is ri or
eve yo e Uzbekis-tan

i

d y:

1

o ose. res ss a

o -$ a. you ge

tbatshe should stand up for herself.

One day, she decided

llolt! fflO ~ER GfRLS ~~e~

ANt) RUSSIA C'eJRlTAW" AS IN fI.I~ IJMlS~ eMPIRE., IS 1l-I~ ONf WeAFUNG-1"IoIf; ~N.

RUSSIA 16 1l-I~ ONe wrm mE MINK COA'f),

Epi od 1

• Afghan Memo Ep.l "Great Game"

During the 19 h cen ry,

he poli ical tug-of-!a regarding er 'toria rig ts in Central Asia between t e Russ an Empire and Great Britain we e kno!n as the "Grea Game."

n 1838, Great Britain occupies Afg anistan. With

he firs and second BritisbA-ghan wars, A ghan's an becomes a Brit'sh p~otectorate.

HOvever, in he hird Bri 'sh-A ghan wa in 19 9,

A ghanistan was ab e 0 dr've out the British and achieve

i s own independence.

NOn:: IT' IS COINIOH FOR ANIMf.I/MN(,A CHA~ TO use AN ~CLAMAnoN OR WORD SUfFIX fl.lAT IS AU. OR PART Of TJ.!·fIFl NAME,

She can't help but teueAfuganisu--tan when~

meets her.

PaJdgu-

Epi od 2

• Afghan Memo Ep.2 "Pakistan"

In 947, Pakis an gains °ndependence om B i °sh

nd'a, and's known as "Islamic Repub ic of Paki-

s an." A this time, Pat - stan had wo e rO ories d'vided hough a co rido , in whoch East Pa ·stan wo !d

ater declare independence

and cal self "Bangla-

desh. "

In Pers'an, the word Pakistan means "land of the

pure, " and is also known fo
aking the Ie ers f 0 he
f've large g oups esiding
on the area: Punjab Af9han Kashmir Sindh Baluchis an

She hag to work hard just to eat

everyday.

Afuganiwtanhua difficult time in life.

W6L-L-; YOU'Vf; GOl' 60Mf;THING I-J Of; THe~e;.

\.

L

Epi od

• Afghan Memo Ep.3 "The economy of Afghanistan"

Rou hly three-four hs of A-ghaniscan 's in ugged terrain w'th moun a'nou~ regions, with very ittle arab e and irr gated lands. I is also a landlocked count y w· h no co as al waters, so their ma'n source of water comes from melting snow from the highlands.

Afghanistan was able 0

sel -sust in on's own or many years, but recent years saw violence, pol' 'cal upheavals, drough and famine wh'ch has educed its economy s'gn'f'cantly.

It's lonely eating by yoursel£

Paldsu-tan is a1way~ lonely.

we; L.-, voove CSOT 60M5 I~ t-r ce Tr1e;~p.

Epi od 4

• Afghan Memo Ep.4 "The Durand Line"

In s i held

893, when Pakis an was ~ pa t 0 Engl'sh ndia, the Duran ine

Agreement was signed,

estab ish_ng he prese t day border be een Pakistan and Afghan'stan.

However, because his border cuts hrou9h he area belonging 0 largest ribe 'n he eg'on, he Pashtuns, it became a source of conf ict between

he two co ntr es, eve tually leading 0 a severing o diploma 'c e a ions and a closing of borde s n 1961.

This caused considerable economic stagnat'on 'n Afghanistan, so re a ons were soon restored.

AfuganiNtan is making her living by farming.

1

\

Working i.g truly hard.

Epi od ;;

• Afghan Memo Ep.S "An Agricultural Nation"

Afghanistan is highly dependen upon ag icu tu e products and I'vestoc . Rough y 70% of the population are en aged n agrarian occupations.

The prima y p od cts 0 Afghanistan are wheat, cot on, fruit, and nuts.

n he 1990'5, he nor he n and eas e n eaches 0

A ghanis an were p oducing

arge amounts of illicit

ero 5 (firs p ace in world opium production). In the year 2000, due 0 the pol"tical influence of he _aliban, governmental po_icy

ook a u-t ro, and the produe ion of illici e ops took a d astic decl'ne.

However, after the destruction of he 90vernment, illicit crop production boomed again due 0 he produc iv'ty and high val e of such crops. It remains

a problem to his day.

awesomely decoratedl y.

1'~ oo+<bV\Q 'her wH·" ts, l''fY\

c:f.'I"no. C30 bro.<j.

1!:r

I

\~

\ Jt \

Epi od 6

• Afghan Memo Ep.6 "Glitzy"

Througho extravagan buses. and

Pakistan,

y deco a ed rucks Q ound,

and have even become a

our'st a raction.

To describe i 1n a word, "g1i zy". They ove -deco a e their veh'c es w'th

a vengance.

Some hardcore decora ors will spend pwa ds of 10,000 dol a s a year 0 d ess up their vehic es.

T'I\.. ~ see ~Rf; ~ ~s Of 'flolIS:

WTP'jIWWW.PAKIST~06.Ct),Ul(lPA~06I

It's abno~ harveft time.

Loo~ forward to see how ,.· .. 'delicious

t:M9 are.

Epi od 'I

• Afghan Memo Ep.7 "Carrots"

Carro s, members of he parsley am y, 0 'g'na ed 'n A ghanistan.

hese ori inal Afghan carrots we e sp ead via the silk oad, and eventually separated into two main varieties: long and narrow eas ern carro s, and he shorter and thicker western car ots.

In modern day Japan mainly

he easily grown wes ern varieties are cuI ivated, howeve ·n A gha istan

va ious ypes 0 ca ots are still grown.

Today,

Pakisu-tan is tr1jing her best to make frien<:k

RH, WHf"ITR eOl I~ "15~el WOUl,.;"

YOI) I~ TO P'l,.;f"IY WITH-

Epi od 8

• Afghan Memo Ep.8 "The Kashmir Problem"

Kashmir 's loca ed a he norwes~e n tip 0 he Indian subcontinent, adjoining Afghanistan and China as "fell.

It was once a pro ectora e monarchy unde he B itish.

At the 'me of the 1947 separacion of Inaia and Paki-

s an, he kingdom was given he choice he her 0 accede o India 0 Pak's an.

The Maharaj a of Kashmir vias a Hindu, so he declared h s in en ion 0 join India, howeve he majori y 0 the popu a ion were mus 'ms, and "'an ing a join "i h Pakistan they s arted an upr'sing.

Due 0 military in erven ion from bo h sjdes, hOs con'ct evet al y esca ated to to become the first IndoPakistani Var.

thigthne ~willtry a frontal approach.

(', t k

• ,

•

Epi od

• Afghan Memo Ep.9 nThe Kashmir Problem Pt.2T1

There were hree Indo?ak's a i Wars fough over the course 0 t e years, but a_I of them ended with a vic ory for Ind'a against the 'mpoverished ?akistan.

In or er to strengthen i s economy, Pakistan began suppor lng 0 stabilize Afghan'a an's governmen 1n order 0 secu e a be ter rade ou e

from Central As'a] to he East. However, India began obs ruct ng Pakistan's motives by supporting Afghanistan's an '-government opposition. Hence, he civil wars r,li thin A£ghanistan became a side-frowith he res It of fur her impoverishing Afghanistan's economy.

The Kashmir conflict still rema'ns a hoc-spot be ween Indo-Pakis ani relations to this date.

She as "a e 50f'\e ffileo .s.,

: GAKU • COlLAPSIN6

Epi od 0

• Afghan Memo Ep.lO "Pro-Communist Government"

As Bri ain's s reng h in the world dec eased ollow'ng wo major world wars, the Sovie Union (formally established in 1922) began acqu'ring major inf ence aro nd Asia.

The Cornmun's n uence spread to Afghanistan, in

wh ch the pro-communist forces deposed the onarchy and es ablished he Repub ic of ALghan'stan in 1973.

However, corrupt 0 w'thin he qovernmen lead 0 a mil. ary coup d'eta in 1978.

he ne' governme t urther strengthened its al iance with he SOy et Onion and

hey renamed their coun ry to he Democra ic epub 'c of A.eghan'sT.:an.

0" 0." trro."d

But 1 Pakisu-

tan is all alone.

I ISUp~ I'l,.-l,.. HRV5 TO Give YOU R HR~[7.

/"'1ftI-!, YOU'~6 Hope;-

"eeJ~.

Shemade anew mend!

Epi od 1

• Afghan Memo Ep.ll "The Mujahedeenlf

hen pro-corum nis People's Oemoc atic Pa ty 0 A-ghan'stan gained contra 0 the government in 1973, they immed ate y declared all other poli lcal par ies to be °llegal and bega c aCk'ng down on Islamic 'nsurgents. As of this, many began to seek refuge n 0 ne'ghboring Pakis an.

These s amic 'ghte s who named themselves the "Mujahedeen" (Arabic for "holy

arrior") ob a'ned mili ary suppa t rom Pak's an and he U.S. v'th e supp 'es and support Lhey received, chey

a nched gueri la insurgencies acains the pro-camm - nis Afghan' gove nment and the Sov'et nioo.

Epi od 2

• Afghan Memo Ep.12 liThe effects of the Cold War"

The Cold ar was an an agonis c confrontat'on be ween the US and the Soviet Un'on in the aftermath of WW2, essen ial y a battle of philosophies be ween capitalism temp' e), and commun'sm (socie y),

This confron ation dragged n v ious othe coun ries, and div'ded the wo d into east and west,

In he Middle Eas ern egion, A ghan's an became the boundary between he as and West, and thus s ffered from u mul uous po i cal

u, he vels.

The Cold ~ar a so served as the impetus which gave birth o Is amic undamental's .

:Jpi od 13

• Afghan Memo Ep.13a "The Soviet Invasion"

In the la er stages of the Cold ~ar, beginn'ng 0 see

heir end On sight, he soviet allies though "If even a

sing e communist state were to fall, it ould have an effec on he ent're commun's alliance",

In January of 1979, an

slam c revolution occurred in Afghan's an's ne'ghbo ing country Iran. A hird power in the word, Islamic fundamentallsm _ose due to he infl nce of he Cold 'ar, and gave

bi h 0 the Is am'c Repub ic of 1ran.

In december of the same year, he sovie alliance fearing ha the wave of Islamic un-

dameota ism wou d spread to Afghanistan, dispatched forces to the as-of-yet s 11 politically uns able Afgh nis an

hop'ng to make a bast'on 0

commun'sm.

I'U fCBMBM- 86~ 11'1161

·Bythe I time they -_ I reauzed it ~

. her house waS ablaee., -=-

I

Epi od 8

• Afghan Memo Ep.13B "Soviet Withdrawal and Civil Wartl

D e 0 he Sovie invasion, rna~y v ~l 9 s 1n he moun a nous region of Afgh~n'stan were destroyed.

A irs, he mu~ahedeen were a n overwhelming dis dv t ng However, receiving aid rom he US, Pakistani, and several is_amic governments t ey were

ab e 0 make use of he na ra1 y

ugged nd nace Ie ru1tiSC p

in order 0 con 'nue f"gh !ng soviet allied forces.

By 1989, he eeonorn'c and hurna~ to~ of he wa forced he sovi L a iQnce 0 w' hdxaw he'r troops, and announce an end 0

t e near y 9 year per od 0

occupa ion of Afgh nis an.

However, Qf er he wi hr~wal of the soviet forces, t.he ujahedeen who had been eIlgi!lg n9 l.n

various in e nal fae 'onal disputes, began a power st uggle (c'vil war) in earnes , and

thus Afghanistan began heading yet urther down the road to

r in.

l7o"n vou iH ou~ ""~M6'6 ft~6 roo I,.ONG?

l'}.<

., tXc q.F1 ~

cJ.q; ..fq"IC 00' to-

1,.6'T'6 f"'Ifll'-e 601"16 "ICIC.-

ftM66 "TH6

Uzo.beldNtan will be "Uzubeku".

Afuganisutan will be -Afuqan".

Tajilcig\ltan will be "Tajiki".

,,/tJC'I, ""1CJ51JTI'IJ.J kllL-L- 86 ',.""u" u

Extra Epi od

• Afghan Memo Ex. "-istan"

The s ffix "-istan" eans "land of" or " coun yo" n Pers'an, s'milar 0 the suffix "-land" as used in Engl sh.

When "-'5 an" 's used 0 a co ntry name it's general y in che form "Tribe name

.i s t an " I howeve r .. Pakistan" s an exception. ( efer to erno '2)

Epi od 4

• Afghan Memo Ep.14 "Afqhani Refugees"

Villages in Afghanistan's mo n t a i.nous egions were devastated du inq the sovOet invasion, r"rhile the urban regions hat had largely avoided dest~uc ion beca e caugh up on the outbreak 0 ·nterna con icts WO h the Mujahideen suffering considerab_e damage.

Due 0 h·st nea ly al agr'cu!tural and man acturing activity ceased, and

he coun ry e 1 Onto ru n.

Mo e han 6,200,000 A ghani refugees ed to the neighboring country of Pakistan.

They represen ed he worlds larges scale e gee movement, and caused signif'cant economic and civil problems

o heir neighboring country.

Epi od

• Afghan Memo Ep.lS "The Forgotten Country"

During the Cold a, A-ghaniscan was the cen er

o atten ion as the boundary ine between East and West.

Ho ever wi h he o~ break of

e Gul var in 99, and ~he collapse 0 the Sov'e On'on, the countries of the wor d, Japan inc ded, sudden y lost

nt rest in AIghanis an.

As a resu t the supp y 0 foreign aid al but disapeared, a d th s had a huge impac on Aghanis an and its ne'gnboring coun ies.

Searching to and fro, she

, I'

Otrr OFTH6 W'RYJ

Epi od 6

• Afghan Memo Ep.16 "Central Asian Independance"

S arting In 1990, the various communis count 'es beh'nd the 'ron curtain in Eastern Europe began rebelling and declaring their ndepe dance one by one.

I seemed tha h's wave 0

ebe lions wou d spread through the entire soviet a liance, however he eoun r'es of

Cen ral Asia wero not ffeeted.

However, the declQ~a ion 0 independance by the Russian commonwealth sealed the

des rue ion of he Sovie Alliance, and he sates 0 Central Asia 'nevitably 0 owed s 't.

The various sta es of Ce tral Asia had he'r hands full deal'ng wi h he'r own inte nal tu mult in the wa.e 0 dec aring their independanee, so none of them interfered n Af hanis an's civil war.

Epi od 7

• Afghan Memo Ep.17 "Central Asian Neutrality"

Following su t with he other epublics, Tu en' stan decla ed , s independence from he Sovie Onion in 991. However, in sharp con rast to he rise of democracy and freedom in 0 er ormer Sovie s a es, rkmenis an

cleve op~d a governroen ru ed by a presidential d'ctatorship.

As IIJi h Afghanistan, Turkmeni- 5 an bounde s many eth ic g oups in its area. t has retained its neutra ity in al_ matLers around the region, and was offic'a'ly ackno _edged by the 0 Gener 1 Assembly as a "pe manent y

ne ra na 'on" ( , e Switzerand) 'n 995.

C rrently, Turkmenistan is av'dly see ing 0 co struct a huge pipeline across i s co ntry to exp oit ' s vast natural

reso rces. However, he instabili y of he region has been a major hinde ance 0 the project.

repeated maltreatment, she has lost ~hertru9t

t;. in people.

HF;;Y, Tf9t<.~ R 1...00f'. Ri THATI

Epi od

8

• Afghan Memo Ep.18 liThe Rise of the Talibanll

The wo rd "Taliban" stems fro I he plura ization of he Dari (Pe s'an) word "Ta '," which translates to "seeker."

Members of he Taliban consisted 0 forme A ghan' e ugees who earned m' . ary tactics at Islamic religious schoo s called madrasas n Pakis an. In 1994, hey nitia ed hei conques s a ound the Iura regions o~ A ghanist:an.

Their advanced 9 erilla ac 'cs ove whe ed t e

wa ring mujahedeen warlo ds. To the eyes of many Afghanis, the al ba~ was looked as a hero ha wo ld finally p

an end to years of c· v' "Tar and igh og.

This ~ not the way she imagined it..

Epi od 9

• Afghan Memo Ep.19 "The Taliban Government"

S ar lng with he aid and suppo 0 Pakistan a d the United Sta es in 994, the

aliban was able to secure an overwhelming v ctor es against the mu·ahedeen. By 1996, he Taliban cont 01 ed over 70% 0 the ~eg·on. When they captured the capical Kabul, it estab-

ished 'ts own government.

However, 0 the d'smay ° the iberal and 'lestern-minded urban residen 5, the newly formed a iban government imposed a conse va 've sate based on radical Is am.

Today, dle insists upon playing the hero IS role.

H5 Y, IF YOU ~Wlt-JG

R ~OUtJO I.. IC.5 THRT EP I7RtJGe~OV~ •••

Epi od 20

• Afghan Memo Ep.20 liThe Talihan' s Fundamentalism"

The brand of Islamic Fundamen al'sm promu ga ed by he

aliban was in uence heavi y by both che tu mult of war as well as he Pas t n moral code kno n as "Pash nwali" , mak'ng' a un'que orm 0

slam'c re 'g'on.

Conse ue tly, the al ban government was founded w h

e stated goal of "A restorat'on 0 o~der and aw based on Islam", however ~heir goverment wa s not. recogn I zed by other na ions, even other 'slam'c na 'ons (with th ee exceptions).

60, WHf'1r 170 YOU Wf'1NfoJFl P\..fW'?

Today, they are all going to play

W'S $HOIJI..O pt~ .... ...0 HE:

RL.L.IRt.JOS OF COCJflbS

WH ~lt.e YOO 6,,1(J "1 We 6"'OOL.t7 Pt.I'IY TRYR eR

Epi od 21

• Afghan Memo Ep.21 "The 2nd Great Gamel!

FolIo ing the ise of he aliban, he wa r'ng m jahedeens joined orces, They called themselves as the

" orthern Alliance" esistance aga'ns Taliban.

o form a he

When Turkmenistan's ambitions for a pipeline to its vast natural reso rces ca~e sha e, neighbor'og nat'ons began 0 enter ere 'n the mat er wh'ch further complicated the civil wa n Af hanistan.

These internat'ona in 1 - ences came 0 be known as he "Second Great Game" in correspondence 0 he or'gina

Grea Game of he la e 19th cen u y.

T/1. NOTe: MASU-sA/M ~F£RS ,0 AJ.W£D SI-IAH MMiSOUO,~~1-t WIKADfA-ORV fOR INFO

Much time having pagt, die went to cneck on herho~e.

1\ Ithad ~v'~

become a hideout for may cats.

Epi od 22

• Afghan Memo Ep.22 "Al Qaida"

Al Qaida 's an in e na ional er 0 S organiza 'on led

by Osarna bin aden un e the ideo ogy of extreme radical

slam, Its organization began ~hen Afghani mili ias fought aga'nst he Sov'et invas'on 'n 1979. Mucb 0 i s cur nt activities are motivated by anti-Amer'can sentimism.

Whan bin Laden sough re-uge and exile 'n A gh3n'stan 'n 1996, he used his VaSL financial wealth and connections

o come in close con act wi h he Taliban's 'n er ci cle, Follow'ng his, an '-American ideo ogy began to strong y

in luence the 'al'ban governmen ,

really hated Meriken.

'the boss of the may cab: that settled in Afugan's house,

1-101,17 IT ~/8HT TH6~6, YOU 60t.J OP ff 81TCHJ

Epi od 2

• Afghan Memo Ep.23 "9-11'1

Sep ember lIt 2001. Four hijacked passenge planes plowed into the twin towe s of the World Trade Center and the Pen agon in a suicide run.

The ac s of he erroris

shook he wo ld"n ea as

the death tol rose 0 over 3,000 (the largest toll from

a terrorist ac ).

This 'ncident st eng hened the hawkish conserva 'ves n the u.s. Congress. As the gears were set in motion, m'li ary ac ion began 0 be seen ove he horizon.

In October 2004, a videotape was aired in which bin aden himself admit ed in planning and instigating the a tacks.

:Jpi od 2 .4

• Afghan Memo Ep.24A "War on Terror"

Sep ember 16t 2001. Pakistan, which supported the Taliban reg'me, anno need it's a

ance with the united states. By losing its _ast suppor er,

he Taliban IO nd i self wi h no ally aga'nst he U.S.

September 20, 2001. The 0.5. announced tha "a 0.5. led

nt rnational alliance gainst global ter 0' 0 be nown as the "War on error." The U.S. built an alliance of many nations by coersion; " f a

na ion does not 0 along wi h us, tha na ion '$ a ha bore of error'sm."

S ch measurements ed 0 nations s rrounding Afghanis an 0 be used as temporary U.S. bases. any prob ems wi begin to arise due to this stance.

Epi od 248

• Afghan Memo Ep.24B "U.S. Invasion of Afghanistan"

The Tal ban government refused to heed 0 he O. S. demands 0 hand over Osama bin aden as a prime

s spect 'n the 9-1 terrorist acts. eir pr mary reason 9 was due to "ins fficien and lacking evidence. "

Oc'ober 7,200 . The U.S. refused

to and over ev' de ce ha e

Taliban req ested and began 0 airstri e p ima y a gets across

A ghanistan. A hough the primary targets were military 'nsta a-

t ons, several of these a'rstr kes hit civil' an complexes as well. As a

esul' more han 5,000 people egan to see efuge into ne'g boring Pakistan.

Alongs'de wi h hese a rstrikes, the No hern Alliance also began their attacks against he Tal'ban. By December of t at same year, t; e

al ban was overthrown and a tran- 9i ional governmen twas pinto place w· h U s perv·sion.

Her bouse has been fixed, so this is her last day as Paldsu-tan's

bouse ...

COMe OVC;~ TO Pl.-fW ftJ-JY1'IMe OlC-fty

Epi od 25

Translations bV Srln Tuar & kj1980 Edits bly' Girsej

• Afghan Memo Ep.25 liThe refugees return"

early 2002, peace finally seemed to set 'n a ter yea S 0 t rmo' ca sed by Soviet invasion -> civ'l war -> u.s. invasio . Ma. A gha refugees in neighbori 9 nations began 0

et n to the' home coun y.

he ON 'mp emented a policy of aid to ret rn1ng refugees for Afgh is a . flo ever, he problems that have p' ed up ove

the wenty years 0 war and turmoi cannot be easily fixed. _ e progress of rebuilding

Afg anistan !'ll be a major obstac e 0 the oreseeab e future.

All Images are copvrlghted to http;J/www.Iy.ukai.jpl ... timaking!COMIClOlaflmenu-af.htm

living on her own again.

:Jpi od 264

• Afghan Memo Ep.26A liThe effort towards peace"

October 9, 2004, Afghanistan held's i at gene al elec'on. The majo~ity 0 the votes for president ",as won by

he nter'm presiden I Hamid Karzai. In December of ha yea, he gove nment led by Kar~ i began its rs steps to establish democracy and rnodern1~ation 0 Afghanistan.

he Karza' admin's a ion's irst and primary concern's to d'sarm the warlords (i.e. he Northern A liance) wh ch have been in f gh ing for the pas wenty yea s.

~ith i ternational aid, they are also taK ng initial s epa

o reduce he 9 ow h of 0 ium and narcot'cs t af 'c 'ng and removing m'nes e tover rom years of warfare. S owly, they are striv ng to move towards peace and rosperi y.

Let.'s I Pb.y!

Th~ End

"There are no true friends among nations"

Despite that sad truth of the world, we sincerely hope that they can continue building their friendship.

Good Luck Afuganisu-tan!

January 25th 2005, Tima. ing

We at Banashi would like to thank Itjl9aO for all his help with this l.ittle project. Also bi9 thanu to Srin for startinq to traru.lau this short, but =te and educational story! Note that i. a v2 with .0_ eb&nge •.

Transliltion: Sr:iJl Tuilr and kjl9S0 Jtd.i.tinq: Girsej QC: Druid