Dr Mohammad Hashim samatullahi has proved the pen is mightier than the sword. A testimony*
Hashim remembers the communist Saur revolution in April 1978 and the arrival of Soviet tanks in December 1979.
Hashim remembers the communist Saur revolution in April 1978 and the arrival of Soviet tanks in December 1979. “The communist coup and then the Russian invasion changed the social, political and cultural destiny of our country. This was the time migrations started, and young people raised the flag of jihad to defend their homeland and religion,” he says.
Hashim says he was in class in Kabul University during the coup. “I had the honour of climbing onto the roof to cry, Allahu Akbar (God is great)!”
In the years that followed not only was Kabul destroyed but also thousands of people lost their lives. “People were killed cruelly. Some were arrested and put in jail.”
Hashim says Soviet soldiers made three visits to his arrest to arrest him. But he was underground. “I stayed 24 days out of the government’s sight. Finally, I could leave the city with difficulty.”
Taking help from his mujahedin contacts and friends he reached Iran. “I made it through Kandahar and Herat,” he recalls. He says he was associated with the mujahedin faction, Harakat-e-Islami (mainly Shias) for 10 years.
Together they organised political, cultural and jihadic activities. “I had a presence for 10 years in jihad. Most of my works which are non-military works were done there,” he reveals.
While he counts those years as the “best time of his life” he is clear that the deviation of jihad (from against the Soviets) to civil war was a big setback. “I had really only one purpose of war: against the Russians. But when the jihad kept a distance from its main path I preferred not to follow it. In most battlefronts the value of jihad was not stated. Instead there were deviations and civil war had erupted. There was murder and looting. The idea of jihad had left its main path and taken a wrong turn,” he says.
Hashimadds when the last Soviet tank left Afghanistan in 1989 “I preferred to continue with my studies.”
He restarted his cultural activities and studies in the field of international relations and journalism. He has a doctorate in international relations Allameh Tabatabaei University in Iran.
His research on the Taleban has been published in a book, ‘The Hasty Flow of Taleban’.He studied the political situation and internal upheavals. The book has been republished several times.
Since his return from Iran he has been a lecturer in the Faculty of Journalism, Kabul University, and the private Khatamunabiyin University.
He believes passionately in the independence of the media and ethical journalism. “My research proved the media must be independent and responsible” to respond to the situation in Afghanistan, he says. “The freedom of media and press are respected. Journalists too should act responsibly keeping in mind the interest, sovereignty and independence of Afghanistan,” he adds.
Hashim wears many other hats. He is also academic adviser to the Ministry of Higher Education, and member of work policy Ministry of Culture and Information.
He is on the board of National Radio and Television, and member of a special board set up by the president for the appointment of high-ranking authorities.
One of his books that is most read is ‘The New Media Theories’, which has been approved as a text book for Kabul University. A new book in the pipeline will deal with “political” reporting.
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