During an interview with Amu TV on Friday, the spokesperson of the Taliban, Zabihullah Mujahid, expressed the group’s disbelief in power-sharing based on ethnicity and called it a “failed experience” of the past.
In response to the question regarding the group’s stance on ethnic diversity in Afghanistan, Mujahid said “If ethnic diversity means respecting the existence of various ethnic groups in Afghanistan, and that everyone deserves respect, then yes, we do believe in it.” “However, if the term implies to the division of power on the basis of ethnicity, then it’s an unsuccessful experiment of the past, and we do not believe in it. Everything should be based on Islamic Sharia.” He added.
The spokesperson of the Taliban was subsequently asked why all the senior officials of the group’s government were of Pashtuns ethnicity, to which he responded, “Pashtuns constitute the majority in Afghanistan, so it is natural.”
Mujahid asserted that the group operates based on “Islamic principles and Sharia Law”, not based on ethnic considerations. He further stated that, “Anyone who actively participated in the fight for the country’s freedom is represented in our government. All ethnic groups contributed to the jihad, and now have their representatives in the cabinet.”
Based on the information provided by the spokesperson of the Taliban, the cabinet of the group comprises of a total of 25 ministers, of which only three of them are non-Pashtun.
UNSC’s Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team had recently accused the Taliban of reverting to their “Pashtun-centric and autocratic policies of the 1990s.”
The international community has deemed the creation of an inclusive government, wherein all ethnic groups have substantial participation, as a key condition for granting recognition to the group.
