Warlords, Strongman Governors, and the State in Afghanistan

This book argues that Afghani warlords can under certain conditions become effective governors on behalf of the state.

Dipali Mukhopadhyay (Author)

9781107595859, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 7 January 2016

388 pages, 6 b/w illus.
23 x 15.2 x 2.1 cm, 0.57 kg

'Mukhopadhyay draws on extensive field research in this study of the relationship between provincial governors and the Afghan state. Challenging the traditional view of warlords as reckless and irresponsible governors, she suggests that many have actually played a crucial role in extending the influence of the central government into rural Afghanistan.' Survival

Warlords have come to represent enemies of peace, security, and 'good governance' in the collective intellectual imagination. This book asserts that not all warlords are created equal. Under certain conditions, some become effective governors on behalf of the state. This provocative argument is based on extensive fieldwork in Afghanistan, where Mukhopadhyay examined warlord-governors who have served as valuable exponents of the Karzai regime in its struggle to assert control over key segments of the countryside. She explores the complex ecosystems that came to constitute provincial political life after 2001 and exposes the rise of 'strongman' governance in two provinces. While this brand of governance falls far short of international expectations, its emergence reflects the reassertion of the Afghan state in material and symbolic terms that deserve our attention. This book pushes past canonical views of warlordism and state building to consider the logic of the weak state as it has arisen in challenging, conflict-ridden societies like Afghanistan.

1. Introduction
2. Atta Mohammad Noor, the Son of Balkh
3. Gul Agha Sherzai, the neo-Khan of Nangarhar
4. Ismail Khan, the Emir of Herat and Juma Khan Hamdard, the Wandering Wali
5. Conclusion.

Subject Areas: Comparative law [LAM], Law [L], Comparative politics [JPB]