This from David Ignatius about the senstivities of the Pashtun (Taliban) culture to humuliation. It is a subject matter that is actually in many ways universal, but it would seem to be taken to nuanced extremes in this culture.  One wonders, concomitantly, if the Pashtun women have to endure this hypersensivity with the same elaborate rituals that the males do. I would guess not. But it is certainly worth keeping in mind, as these attempts at conciliatory gestures continue. A far cry from the 'slam dunk' ideology blathered around a few short years back.

As the White House prepares its reconciliation strategy, it should ponder the Pashtun culture that spawned the Taliban insurgency. The United States has often lacked this sense of cultural nuance, which is why we have made so many mistakes in places such as Iraq and Afghanistan.

One thing that should be obvious by now is that you don't make much progress with Pashtun leaders by slapping them around in public. This is a culture that prizes dignity and detests humiliation. Attempts to shame people into capitulation usually backfire.

An obvious example is Karzai himself. He reacted to public criticism from Gen. Jim Jones, the national security adviser, by throwing a tantrum last month, denouncing the West and threatening to join the Taliban. Last week's White House visit was partly a piece of theater aimed at repairing the damage.

The Pashtun stress on dignity makes me wonder about the U.S. strategy for softening up the Taliban on the way to reconciliation. That strategy is aimed at getting leverage in negotiations, but it could produce a bad result: The United States will get bloodied, and the Taliban still won't play ball.

The Pashtuns have a ritual for settling conflicts, as befits a warrior people who constantly seem to get into fights. The process is outlined on http://Khyber.org, a Web site devoted to Pashtun culture. Conflicts start because of an insult to a tribe's honor, which requires a rite of revenge known as badal. The fighting continues until scores are settled and the combatants are exhausted.

It's the mechanism of conflict resolution that's intriguing, in terms of U.S. strategy. Reconciliation begins with a process of repentance, known as nanawatey, in which the penitent party goes into the house of his rival and asks for asylum. In Pashtun culture, such a request must be granted; to spurn it would be shameful.

Once the desire for an honorable peace is clear, the tribal elders gather in a jirga and frame a temporary truce, known as a teega. The parties gather, agree to pay reparations, and the Pashtun code of generous hospitality, known as melmastia, takes over.

Obama said several times last week that he isn't seeking a military victory in Afghanistan but a political accord. If such an agreement can be reached, both sides somehow will have to agree that insults have been avenged and honor has been restored. Otherwise, in that part of the world, people just keep on fighting.

davidignatius@washpost.com

 

A Pathan Warrior's Farewell

John Baker

1966 - The Golden Pomegrenate - London

Beloved, on a parchment white
With my heart's blood to thee I write,
My pen a dagger, sharp and clean,
Inlaid with golden damascene,
Which I have used and not in vain,
To keep my honour free from stain,

Now when our house its mourning wears,
Do not thyself give way to tears,
Instruct our eldest son that I
was ever as anxious to die,
For when death comes the brave are free,
So in thy dreams, remember me.