What a post-settlement constitution says about Islam may be less important than what it specifies with respect to institutions and due process.
Wednesday, October 7, 2020 / By: Peter Mandaville, Ph.D.
The question of how and where Islam should fit into future legal and political frameworks has emerged as a major sticking point in the talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government in Qatar. While the government’s chief negotiator recently reported some progress on a key issue—namely how to meet the Taliban’s demand that the Hanafi school of Sunni jurisprudence serve as the principal source of legislation while simultaneously protecting the rights of religious minority groups such as the Shia Hazaras—there are likely to be further obstacles down the road. How this question is resolved will be closely watched by Afghans, who want to ensure their hard-won rights are not sacrificed for the sake of a deal with the Taliban—Afghan women in particular have much at stake. The international community will similarly scrutinize the outcome, and their engagement with Afghanistan after the talks is expected to be conditioned on the contours of any political settlement.
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