Many Afghan college students who attend the American University in Afghanistan do. They represent the vanguard of a movement to restore Afghanistan’s intellectual capital – and peace. While militaries come and go, universities are enduring investments, at a fraction of the cost.
By C. Michael Smith
Kabul, Afghanistan
Sayyed’s cousins are members of the Taliban. His distant uncle is Mullah Omar, the leader of the Taliban movement. Any one of them would kill Sayyed if they knew where he was. Yet each day, he attends classes on business and management at the American University of Afghanistan (AUAF). “My father said I must have an education, because he had one,” says Sayyed. As for his cousins, he notes, “They are illiterate.”...[continued]
