Rep. Mike Honda (D-CA) on Securing Afghanistan Posted by Jacob Stokes

Today, Congressman Mike Honda (D-CA), senior member of the House Appropriations Committee and Chairperson of the Afghanistan Task Force of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, delivered a speech on Afghanistan before a briefing discussion on social and humanitarian issues organized by the National Security Network and hosted by the Congressional Progressive Caucus. Here it is, presented in its entirety:

Thank you everyone for attending today’s panel discussion on Afghanistan.  Let me offer a special thanks to the National Security Network for organizing the panel. 

As Chairman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus’s Afghanistan Taskforce, I am keenly interested in hearing insights from these panelists, all of whom come with specific expertise grounded in the realities of the country. 

Before I turn over the panel to Heather Hurlburt, Executive Director of the National Security Network, who will introduce the panelists and moderate the discussion, let me offer some brief introductory remarks.

Recent developments here in Washington — from the Defense Department recognizing that Taliban disarmament and reintegration is necessary, to US General McChrystal saying there has been "enough fighting" and that he wants to see a political solution to the long-running conflict, to the State Department pledging increased political, diplomatic and economic engagement — bode well for a country riddled with violence and poverty.

We are recognizing that our past approach is insufficient in stabilizing Afghanistan. The pursuit of solely military solutions in a country where insecurity runs rampant across political, economic and social spectrums is being rethought and revamped. This is a good thing.  What must also remain front and center, however, is the constant search for what Afghans want and how to move operations quickly towards Afghan ownership.

Most policies fall far short of these two goals. US Ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry notes that “we underestimate the risks of the expansion of our mission, have not fully studied every alternative, and that increased US and foreign role in security and governance will increase Afghan dependency”. He continues, saying “many areas in Afghanistan need not just security but health care, education, justice, infrastructure and almost every other basic government function.”

A failure to win the hearts and minds of Afghans is a failure to win the security America is seeking at home and abroad. On three critical fronts — security, governance and development — these shortcomings are evident.

Security, which is the Afghan and foreign governments’ primary objective, is seriously struggling. Afghan army and police remain ill equipped not because Afghans are indifferent about their country’s security. In fact, Afghans are quite entrepreneurial and industrious.

A primary reason why the security sector is struggling is because the attrition rate is dangerously high due to poor wages, soaring casualty rates, insufficient training, and the fact that the soldiers and police are deployed away from their homes to other provinces, where they are viewed as outsiders.

The low recruitment rates for Pashtuns in the south and southeast hardly helps either. Additionally, some 2,000 U.S. trainer positions for the Afghan army and police have remained unfilled for the second year running. The persistence of these obstacles, along with the inefficiency of military spending, where the cost of one American soldier, at $1 million annually, could provide salaries for several hundred Afghan soldiers, makes it difficult to help Afghans stand up.

Afghans remain convinced that the conflict cannot be solved through military means, which is why we are losing the goodwill of the Afghan people with continued night raids, dog attacks and detentions. Transitioning security responsibilities to Afghans sooner than later is critical, but without a political solution that is inclusive and Afghan-led, involving the insurgency’s top leadership, stability will remain elusive.

Governance is equally ill equipped. We are quick to call out corruption in President Karzai’s political counsel. But unless we are willing to hold our own Afghan and international allies accountable, many of which are guilty of corruption and warlordism, the calls ring hollow.

In Afghanistan, we retain little legitimacy in promoting good governance unless we are willing to bring to justice the warlords that continue to provide security and access to American command on the ground. Afghans want better delivery of services, professional and competent appointments, and minimal bureaucracy within the government, all of which reduces corruption. But solely condemning Karzai helps no one and only weakens the president’s ability to clean up corruption, embolden the justice system, put in place democratic processes at all levels of government, and enter into reconciliation with a stronger hand.

Lastly, the development agenda needs rethinking as Afghans see a foreign disinterest in the building of their country’s capacity. When $14,000 per day is spent to provide security for a private contractor to survey a project, when Provincial Reconstruction Teams import overpriced water and food from abroad when legitimate options exist locally, and when an initially funded $3 million project lands on the ground with only $300,000 to show for it due to the multiple sub-contracting and skimming, Afghans are understandably frustrated.

Afghan alternatives — like the government’s Community Development Councils, which fund locally elected councils to design and manage their own projects — should be the focus instead. In order to build Afghan ownership and capacity, contractors may need to forgo the actual building and instead redistribute the funds into Afghan institutions and initiatives like the CDCs, as foreign affiliation with the CDCs will put council members at immediate risk.

The key to the main challenges facing the country is to build Afghan acceptance and ownership. When 80 percent of all foreign aid dollars entirely circumvents the Afghan government, and when the same amount leaves the country in contractor hands — not Afghan ones — locals question America’s motive. If we want to win the Afghans, then we must listen to what they want.

Today’s panel moves us closer to this goal and I look forward to listening and learning further.  With more information, we in Congress can make better decisions. I thank the panelists in advance for helping us analyze this violent conflict and ultimately move towards its resolution. 

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