Suraya Dalil
Journal of International Peace Operations
Volume 6, Number 4 – January-February, 2011
Afghan Displaced Persons
Headlines of civilian or military deaths due to armed conflict dominate much of Afghanistan war reporting. As tragic as these deaths are, their numbers pale in comparison with the loss of lives due to other reasons, such as maternal deaths and infant mortality.
About 2,000 international troops, mostly from the United States, have lost their lives since 2001 in Afghanistan. About 3,000 civilians were killed in the first six months of 2010, while about 20 Afghan policemen and soldiers die every day trying to secure the country against a brutal insurgency that is maintained outside our borders.
In contrast, more than 50,000 Afghans die annually due to a lack of human security. Newly born babies, children under the age of five and mothers constitute the bulk of these lives that can, and must, be saved. Unfortunately, these silent deaths do not grab Afghan or international headlines. Why is this and what can be done about it?
One of the key reasons for this disparity in media coverage is the fact that defense spending continues to outstrip spending on development. In other words, protective security is often prioritized at the cost of human security, even though the two are inextricably intertwined, particularly in Afghanistan with a sizeable population of vulnerable groups.
