1 nov 2020 año - The Taliban's Islamic emirate in Afghanistan: Parallels with religious authoritarian nationalism, rejection of Western institutions, processes, and democratic ideas

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By Alex Thier
Summary: The Afghan government, backed by public opinion and a declaration of
the April 2019 consultative Peace loya jirga, has stated that the Afghan peace
negotiations must uphold the integrity of the Islamic republic’s system. The
Taliban have expressed a clear desire for a more “Islamic system” of government
and continue to call themselves an “Islamic emirate.” These seemingly opposite
demands obscure a more nuanced discussion about what form of government
may satisfy both negotiating parties’ desire for a system that can achieve mutual
goals of a peaceful and inclusive state that respects Islamic values. The
Page 2 of 7 | USIP Afghan Peace Process Issues Paper
nation of Afghanistan is composed of all individuals who possess the citizenship of Afghanistan.”1 This
means, ultimately, that all of Afghanistan’s citizens are entrusted with the power and responsibility to
choose their representatives to govern, and that those representatives are accountable to the people.
This language is similar to Article 1 of the 1964 constitution.
The key attributes of “the republic” in the 2004 constitution are:
• sovereignty is manifested through the people, citizens;
• citizens choose their leaders through elections with universal suffrage;
• no one is above the law, which passes through an elected legislature;
• three independent branches of government check each other’s power; and
• all citizens have basic rights which cannot be infringed.

The Taliban ruled a self-described emirate from 1996 to 2001 and continue to use that terminology for
their government-in-exile. According to their practice and rhetoric, and a draft Taliban constitution from
1998,
2 the Taliban’s conception of an emirate is that of a state founded on the basis of Quranic text:
“There is no command except for Allah, God” [ �الا الحکم ان [and ruled by an emir, a commander of the faithful chosen by a limited group of Islamic leaders or Shura-Ahl al-hall wal-aqd.2F
3 The emir has near
absolute executive, legislative and judicial authority, and while hypothetically having the same rights
and responsibilities as other Afghan citizens3F
4 there are no provisions for accountability. Individual rights
and freedoms are also subject to the limits of Sharia as determined by the emir and selected ulema.
The key attributes of “the emirate” as described and practiced by the Taliban are:
• sovereignty is manifested through implementation of Sharia;
• leader is chosen by a select Islamic shura, or council;
• all branches of government are subject to the authority of the emir; and
• basic rights are defined/limited by Sharia as interpreted by the emir/leadership.
It is notable that these two systems not only differ in their basic attributes, but many of them are
diametrically opposed, or at least mutually exclusive.

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