Afghan-American Arrested for Question Mark
Government Critic Detained for Exercising Freedom of Expression
Mr. Mohammad Osman was arrested at the City Centre Intersection in Kabul on the evening of July 12, 2009 and released early morning July 13, 2009 for the crime of placing cardboard question marks on pictures of President Hamid Karzai. Osman was detained at a police precinct, signed a confession, was fingerprinted and claims he was threatened with physical harm.
When he asked police to show him the law he had broken, he was released with no further action expected.
When asked about his views on the reasons behind the arrest, Osman points to a lack of police training on the role of rule of law in a democracy. "I think they were scared that what I was doing was against the law...they didn't teach them about democracy, people do not know the law or how to apply democracy...it took me four or five hours to explain that I had done nothing wrong, I was just following democracy. Democracy requires alot of education."
Question Mark Campaign Targets 2009 Afghanistan Election
Osman's question mark appears on signs, billboards, stickers, in TV commercials, as well as on election posters. His question mark campaign is motivated by a desire to get people thinking about whether another five years of the same establishment is what they want, and, it is this campaign that has landed him in jail with his first arrest record.
“I plan to move this campaign further and hope to slowly open the minds of all Afghans so they can have a say about the future of their country," says Osman, "I was arrested for my actions, held in jail and threatened physically. This is Afghan democracy today. How will it change?"
Next week, a new one-minute commercial will be airing on Ariana television in Afghanistan as part of the campaign.
Osman is trying to encourage the public to hold the administration accountable and to ask the following questions:
- Why hasn’t our country improved despite the fact that billions of aid money was spent in the last seven years?
- Why is the system of government filled with mostly unqualified and corrupt officials?
- Why are one million internally displaced persons still living under tents?
- Where are our scholars?
Criticisms of the Current Administration in Afghanistan
One of Osman's strongest criticism of Karzai's administration is the prevalence of nepotism in government appointments. He is certainly not alone. In a United Nations High Commission on Refugees report titled Freedom in the World 2009 - Afghanistan, dated July 16, 2009, many of the same criticisms can be found. "Corruption, nepotism, and cronyism are rampant, and woefully inadequate salaries exacerbate corrupt behavior by public-sector workers," the report states.
Osman also discusses cases of qualified people being discouraged from democratic participation to accommodate patronage appointments. There is plenty of support and evidence of this behaviour as well. In a March 23, 2009 article published by The Guardian, written by Jon Boone and entitled Hamid Karzai: Too Nice, Too Weak - How West's Own Man Fell Out of Favour, Mohammad Amin Farhang, former commerce minister, reportedly stated that the president often appoints unsuitable provincial governors and government officials to retain the support of warlords. "Without asking me he appointed a department head in my ministry who was totally incompetent. It was a political deal between [Karzai] and a jihadi leader and it created lots of problems," Farhang is quoted as saying.
Osman's feeling is that if educated, experienced, talented people are not encouraged to use their skills to build the future of Afghanistan, then all hope is gone for much time to come. "This is democracy at the barrel of a gun," he says.
Educational and Professional Background of Mr. Mohammad Osman
In 1965, Osman started his educational traveling tour of the United States sponsored by then Government of Afghanistan and the U.S. He obtained his Master's Degree in Public Administration from the University of Southern California in 1976. At that time, the Afghan Government was removed when the Soviet Union backed a communist regime in Afghanistan.
Since that time Osman and his family remained in the United States until he returned to Afghanistan in 2006 to finalize his duty to his nation. He once joked to an executive at the Ministry of Finance “ I’m reporting for my assignment, I’ve completed my studies and I apologize for being a little late”.
He quickly realized he was no longer in the Afghanistan of 35 years ago. The invaluable education acquired on behalf of Afghanistan to help build a prosperous future was unappreciated.
Some of the positions he has held are:
- 1st Secretary to the Minster of Finance, Kabul 1968-1972
- Passenger Services Manager, Pan American Airlines, New York 1978-1982
- Flight Control Manager, Saudi Arabian Airlines, New York 1983-1986
- Lead Agent, Weight and Balance, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines 1987-1998
- Operations Supervisor, Virgin Atlantic Airline, NY 1999-2005
- Advisor to the President of Ariana Airlines, Kabul 2006-2007
Question Mark on Karzai Election Poster
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