Lowell Thomas Writes On the Afghan Question

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 625, 30 March 1929, Page 17

Lowell Thomas Writes On the Afghan Question

MSHINWARI, a scorpion j and a snake have never j a soul to save.” So j runs an old proverb of j the Afghan frontier i that Lowell Thomas quotes as descriptive of the bandit chieftain, Bachasakao, the Shinwari tribesman, who recently elevated, himself to the Afghan throne. It should be recalled that the former ruler, Amanullah, whose programme of Westernisation precipitated a revolution among his Moslem subjects, was recently deposed in favour of his older brother, Inyatullah Khan, who was supplanted by the rebel leader Bachasakao, known to his fol- 1 lowers as the “Son of a Water Carrier,” who took possession of Kabul, the Afghan capital, and proclaimed himself Amir. Amanullah Attempts to Regain Throne “The Shinwaris are one of the most warlike of all the Afghan tribes, and this is saying a great deal, for all the Afghans are noted as being terrific fighters,”- says Mr. Thomas, who visited the turbulent mountain kingdom several years ago by invitation from the Amir Amanullah, and who travelled from India to Afghanistan via the famous Kabul Pass by automobile, traversing much of the territory that is now the seat of civil warfare. “The Shinwaris live in some of the most inaccessible mountains of Afghanistan, in territory that lies between the Indian frontier and the capital of Kabul,” he says. “They have a special reputation for treachery, and are one of the great bandit tribes that for centuries have waylaid the camel caravans that go to Kabul from Bokhara, Samarkand and India. “It is natural that they should be among the first to rise against the drastic measures of Westernisation and reform that King Amanullah attempted to put into effect up<sn returning from his recent tour of the capitals of Europe, where he was received with exaggerated pomp and ceremony. Impressed by Situation in Turkey “The great attention paid to him on the tour was partly due to th“ fact that he was an exotic figure, coming from a remote and littleknown land that has hitherto been closed to European influences, and partly, of course, to the highly strategic importance that attaches to Afghanistan as a buffer State between

Russia and British interests in India. “Both the Russian find British Governments outdid themselves in entertaining the Afghan monarch and his beautiful Queen, Souriya. There is no doubt that Amanullah was also 1 impressed by what he saw in Turkey, i where lie was received by his broths* Moslem, Mustapha Kemal Pasha. The j young Amir returned to Afghanistan fired with zeal to modernise his kingdom and to bring it into line with i Western progress and civilisation. | “Of all oriental nations Afghanistan !is the most untouched by Western influence, with the possible exception of Tibet. Its peopld are fanatical iin their religious faith and deeply opposed to anything savouring of infidelity to the Koranic law. May Sink Deeper Into Customs of Past ,“The result was a determined uprising, led by the more orthodox religious leaders, and the dethronement of the reigning monarch. As a result of the present movement Afghanistan will probably sink back deeper into the ways and customs of the past. “Britain is ou the defensive in Central Asia, while Russia is playing an offensive game. Amanullah played one great Power against the other, and it was difficult to tsll which one he favoured, his object being to profit at the expense of both in favour of greater independence for liis country. The only thing that lies between a Russian descent upon India is the wild mountain kingdom of Afghanistan, and the British maintain a strong army, immense fortresses and strategic railways wi»h vast piles of ammunition along the Indo-Afghan frontier, for the sole purpose of holding the Russians at bay. Afghanistan is in Strategic Position “As long as the British can maintain Afghanistan as a barrier on the road to India the Russian advance can be checked. But the control Afghanistan by Russia would mean the pushing of their railheads further, with the possibility of a direct clash between the two contending forces in Central Asia. “These are some of the considerations that make Afghanistan one of rhe most interesting countries on earth—first on account of its ultraoriental and orthodox social structure: secondly, because of its ferocious and warlike population; and thirdly, its strategic importance as a buffer State between two of the greatest empires i in the world.”