Pakistan PM Imran Khan says Taliban broke shackles of slavery in Afghanistan

Pakistan
Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Monday that the Taliban takeover of
Afghanistan is “breaking the chains of slavery”. Taliban seized power in
Afghanistan on Sunday following the resignation of President Ashraf Ghani who
led the country’s US-backed civilian administration. Imran Khan’s endorsement of
Taliban’s takeover does not come as a surprise as it has long been alleged that
the Pakistani establishment, including both state and non-state actors,
covertly support the Taliban.

Also Read | Taliban takes over Kabul: What we know so far

Imran Khan’s
comments, televised on Pakistani media networks and available on social media,
come at a time when large sections of the Afghan populace fear a return to
hardline Sharia law that suppresses civil rights and rights of women to pursue
an education or work or even take marital decisions.

Also Read | Biden you are responsible: Afghan nationals protest against US President

Interestingly,
the Pakistan Prime Minister focussed on English as medium of instruction in
educational institutions while talking about Taliban’s conquest of Afghanistan.
“You take over the other culture and become psychologically subservient. When that
happens, please remember, it is worse than actual slavery. It is harder to
throw off the chains of cultural enslavement. What is happening in Afghanistan
now, they have broken the shackles of slavery.”

Also Read | Chaotic scenes at Kabul airport as people fight to board planes | Watch

Meanwhile,
Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi put up a post on Twitter saying
that Pakistan was in favour of a negotiated political settlement with
Taliban-run Afghanistan.

Imran Khan’s
anti-colonial platitudes come at a time when the United States is withdrawing
troops from the war-torn country which has been thrown into chaos with people
crowding the Kabul airport, the only way out of Afghanistan right now, in a bid
to escape Taliban rule.

Also Read | Five killed at Kabul airport as chaos ensues after Taliban takeover: Report

US’
two-decade-long efforts to keep the Taliban away from power in Afghanistan and
ensure democratic governance became undone over the last 10 days. The
astonishingly quick collapse of the civilian administration in the face of
Taliban’s onslaught has become a cause for worry for Afghanistan’s neighbours
as well as the world at large.

Also Read | US troops fire aerial shots as fleeing Afghans rush to Kabul airport

On Monday,
people jostled to find place in flights leaving Kabul airport and shots were
fired. Five people have been killed at the airport, according a report by
Reuters.