Blaine and Najiba

By Oliver Freeman

The public murder of a young Afghani woman, Najiba, in Parwan province is the most damning indictment of Western policy in this beleaguered country. It’s hard to believe that we are living in 2012 when witnessing an act of violation which would not be out of place in 1012. It’s as if all the progress we have made as the inheritors of the earth dissipates to nothing in the hands of barbaric males whose cowardice relies on the support of Allah for their dreadful deeds.

It is impossible to justify the death of Australian Blaine Diddams, who was killed last week in Afghanistan, in the face of atrocities such as Najiba’s death. What is the point of fighting an unwinnable war with our (the West’s) firepower left mostly at home and the diplomatic ‘softly, softly’ approach clearly inadequate to cope with the crimes wreaked on defenceless victims by a testosterone-crazed militia such as the Taliban.

Describing her murder as ''barbaric'' Australia's Foreign Minister Bob Carr rightly notes the killing shows the unfinished business in the country. But his added comment that ''This is precisely why we're working with the Afghan national government to build a sovereign, forward-looking Afghanistan with a constitution that protects the rights of women and girls,'' really misses the point.

The West has but two choices. Either we come out of Afghanistan and leave the country to sort out its own problems on its own or we invade the country with all the might we can muster and destroy the Taliban from within.

Pussyfooting around mouthing 'feel good' statements and doing neither one thing nor the other is wastefully inept. Blaine and Najiba deserve better from those people who cherish 2012 as a time for progress and development.