Power on the Periphery: Analysis of Afghanistan’s Subnational Powerbrokers’ Role in Stability from 2010-2021

Abstract

The inclusion of powerbrokers and warlords in Afghanistan’s state-building process has attracted criticism for the human rights abuses against them, their involvement in corrupt activities, and their lack of experience in governance. This thesis suggests powerbrokers and warlords can possess an essential role in security and can provide beneficial services to the populace when they are successful in providing security for an area. This is likely because of how Afghans grant social status to those who can provide security, services, and resolve disputes which ultimately builds an individual’s reputation giving them a name. Therefore, the power of a name has a strong influence on who becomes a powerbroker or warlord. However, powerbrokers and warlords who have strong political alignments, which mainly following ethnic lines, tended to have a detrimental effect on security of an area when it was ethnically diverse due to political meddling by Kabul in local power dynamics which created instability the Taliban exploited. Additionally, there were distinct differences between the northern and southern regions of Afghanistan due to the egalitarian nature of the tribal south and because of the level of ethnic diversity.