PESHAWAR, Oct 16: A peace-keeping force, with personnel from those Islamic countries which have never interfered in Afghan affairs, should be deployed in Afghanistan to monitor the formation of a new government in Kabul, suggested Prof Rasul Amin, an Afghan intellectual, while talking to Dawn here on Monday.

Jordan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria, etc, could contribute to the peace-keeping force, added Prof Amin, who used to teach political science and Afghanistan Studies at the Kabul University before the Soviet invasion of the country.

“ Afghans are are not terrorists. There is no culture of violence in Afghanistan. This is clear from the fact that the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington were condemned by every Afghan, he said.

“ Before any bombing, the UN should have had a blueprint of an interim government, proposed to be installed in Kabul in the wake of Taliban’s ouster,” Prof Amin said, adding that the US had left Afghanistan in the lurch after the withdrawal of Russian forces.

“ The mistake of 1992 must not be repeated when many Afghans were forced to live in utter misery in other countries,” he observed.

“ The UN must get the mandate to help Afghans form an interim setup, comprising all ethnic, linguistic and ideological groups, under the cover of the Organization of Islamic Conference as Afghans don’t like any government imposed from outside,” Prof Amin said.

Replying to a question whether the Taliban or the Northern Alliance should be included in the interim dispensation, he said that no Afghan could exclude another Afghan from any future setup in the country.

“ An emergency Loya Jirga should be convened to form an interim government for a specific period. The setup should draft a constitution, make arrangements for the return of refugees to their native land, hold fair and free election and then hand over power to an elected government,” he remarked.

Replying to a question as to who should head an interim setup, Prof Amin said that the former king could lead it efficiently as he knew the composition of Afghan society.

But there should not be any discrimination on ethnic, linguistic, or any other basis if a stable and popular government was to be established in Afghanistan, he added.