On August 15, Kabul (the capital of Afghanistan) was strike down by Taliban. It showed me \u201cthe end of one era\u201d for twenty years, we been watching what was going on there from the media of Europe and America like \u201cCNN\u201d. However, we can share the information now from moment to moment through SNS account of Afghan individuals. It was a change of twenty-years\u2019 time and, at the same time, I feel something unchangeable. \u201cChange\u201d means technical change and \u201cunchangeable\u201d means fragility of political system in Afghanistan. I know Taliban has been expanding their influence rapidly through news reports of Japan and America. However, the collapse of Afghan society was too early. I did not expect drop back of America so early. Kabul has disappeared from our memory imperceptibly and Taliban has got \u201clegitimate\u201d Governing power.<\/p>\n
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I got into university in 2003. It was \u201cthe time of terrorism\u201d back then. Influence of \u201cAfghan-Iraq War\u201d which was resulted from the impact of \u201c9\/11 Terrorism\u201d (2001) and retaliation by United States led to South Korea. I was one of person who watched 9\/11 terrorism through broadcast live, I was shocked by \u201cthe unexpected scene\u201d which was unimaginable. Attack to United States was considered as inevitable and the world supported it. Even North Korea blamed terrorist-group and delivered its statement expressing their condolence for victims. American army has been winning at battlefields which we do not know the name. We thought Taliban would be cleared from Afghanistan soon. It was said as a pretext of the war, that Taliban sheltered Osama bin Laden, a ringleader of terrorism. But American army could not attain their object all the way to the end. (He was arrested in Pakistan neighboring country.)<\/p>\n
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It was the year 2003 when American army has invaded Iraq on the pretext of allegation \u201cWMD\u201d (Weapons of Mass Destruction). At that time so-called \u201cthe power of students movement\u201d at universities in South Korea was immense. We came across banners in campus which were against Iraq War. Public opinion in South Korea has been supporting American military operation so far. But there were pros and cons arguments against Iraq War because they could not find any justification in it. And the War was drawn into a quagmire despite American President George Bush had declared \u201cthe End of the War\u201d in May 2003. When I look back, I had different viewpoint on the War although I was against the War. It was the time of my military service of two years and three months since 2005.<\/p>\n
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The Government of South Korea have been worrying whether they should dispatch their troops at American request. There were repeated demonstrations which were against dispatch. The feelings in South Korea became worse gradually against the United States and there were a lot of criticism against the Bush Administration. Not only progressive citizens\u2019 group but a lot of people also had feeling of rejection against American \u201cUnilateralism\u201d. Even after the decision of large-scale dispatching of army, controversy changed to \u201cwhere is the place which is safer?\u201d Incidentally there was a similar argument in Japan. They carried their argument in more tranquil atmosphere than South Korea. It may be a cause that Japan had abduction issue by North Korea. I skip the detail.<\/p>\n
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It was the time when the War turned into a quagmire that \u201cMy Daily History\u201d came across Iraq War. Notification of \u201cRecruiting of soldiers to Iraq\u201d was propagated in whole army. It was for army basically, but air force was planned too. Average salary at that time was 10,000 yen a month and our thinking \u201cWe can get tens of times money\u201d became as it was topic among soldiers. If we go to Iraq, we can get $2,000 a month. In a mail-magazine of Intra-net of army, the photos \u201cSoldiers who live with inhabitants happily\u201d were published often. I did not apply. But the War became close to me. Afterwards, North Korea carried out nuclear testing first (October 2006) and \u201csecurity situation\u201d at that time became \u201cMy issue\u201d. Because of this, I am interested in the era around that time scholarly.<\/p>\n
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Stabilization in Afghanistan and Iraq seems failure in end. In Iraq, so-called \u201cISIS\u201d (the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) cannot be said to be stabilized. The fall of Kabul and disastrous accident at airport were its symbol. United States have made military assistance for Iraq and Afghanistan financially and technically for the purpose of their reconstruction and democratization. But I think evaluation of the Afghan War is not high in America now.<\/p>\n
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After the fall of Kabul, I was impressed personally with a speech by Ms. Barbara Lee, Democratic Party Congresswoman as one of the domestic movements in America. She disagreed with the Afghan War all the way to the end. She insisted \u201cwe cannot prevent further terrorism by military operations\u201d and \u201csomebody have to appeal suppression of terrorism at any decisions concerning bills\u201d. But the decision was passed at 98 to 0 at the Upper House and 420 to 0 at the Lower House. Despite of this result, her adverse opinion has remained as \u201cprecepts or negative example\u201d even now, twenty years after.<\/p>\n
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This \u201ctwenty years\u201d seems to me quite short to lead to \u201ca change\u201d. Even in South Korea and Taiwan, both are simple racial composition nations, they took more than forty years to get democratization after dictatorial system in cold war era. If there would be any changes, it would be a decrease of \u201cpatience\u201d of United States. It is \u201cthe end of one era\u201d.<\/p>\n
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