Blackwell Reference Online

Extract

On the death of Khabilulla Khan in 1919, Emir Amanulla Khan assumed the Afghan throne. Inspired by European nationalist ideas, Khan embarked on a course of reforms designed to unify Afghanistan into a modern nation-state. He adopted a constitution that advanced individual freedoms, the rights of women, and religious tolerance. However, the creation of liberal democratic modernization met with great popular opposition. Many Afghanis resisted the radical changes, owing to a long tradition of Islamic religious conservatism and the inability to unify the country, which was divided by ethnic, regional, and clan loyalties. Amanulla Khan's effort to reform centuries-old family and marital traditions provoked wide opposition at the grassroots level. While conflict escalated into a series of ethnic and clan revolts, Amanulla Khan's determination to continue his program of Afghan transformation was not diminished. On returning from a long trip to Europe in 1928, Khan sought to accelerate and expand social and economic reforms. As the plans were implemented, an organized, broadly based social protest movement was gaining momentum in Afghanistan's northern provinces, led by Tajik Habibulla Kalakani, better known under the nickname Bacha-i Sakkao (Son of a Water Carrier). Kalakani formed an army of resistance fighters comprised predominantly of Tajik and Uzbek nationals rather than Pashtun peoples ... log in or subscribe to read full text