Caritas in Kabul: anguish but no panic, still standing by the Afghans
Kabul (AsiaNews) Aid workers are not letting their colleague's abduction in Kabul get to them; they continue their work to help the Afghan population in dangerous circumstances. However, the crime rate is rising in part because of Westerners' lifestyle.
Mario Ragazzi, a Caritas Italy official in Kabul, says that the mood among foreign aid workers in the Afghan capital is torn between anguish over their colleague's fate and the knowledge that they must go on to help the population.
"Like what is happening in Iraq, Cantoni's abduction has had an emotional impact on aid workers here in Kabul," he said. "At the same time, we must remain clear-headed and think about our work which involves dozens of aid workers and thousands of recipients".
Ragazzi goes on to say that after a meeting at the Italian Embassy that involved all of Kabul's Italians, everyone was in the same state of mind.
"In our work there are two levels: one emotional, the other rational. But they must remain separate; we cannot allow ourselves to panic. We are apprehensive about Clementina's fate but our job must go on," he said.
The Caritas official, who has held a managerial position for the Catholic organisation in Afghanistan for about a year, said that "for now circumstances do not warrant mass evacuation".
"We have looked at the situation with the agency in charge of NGO security, Italian diplomats and the United Nations and reached the conclusion that we won't call it an emergency until we clearly understand who the abductors are, what they want and if the incident will remain isolated or is the prelude to an escalation against foreigners," Ragazzi said.
What is already clear is that crime is getting more organised and is rising. The lifestyle of the Westerns living in the country is partly to blame.
This, for Mgr Giuseppe Moretti, the only Catholic priest in the country from 1990 to 1994, is the main reason for what is happening. "There is mad rush for money," he told AsiaNews. "A year ago, kids would ask you for a pen; now, they want a dollar".
According to the clergyman, who since 2002 has been the Superior of the Missio sui iuris in Afghanistan, the rise in petty crimes is the result of "Western opulence" which encourages locals to go after "easy money".
"If you talk to Afghans", Mgr Moretti explained, "they are more scared of petty criminals into bag-snatching and hold-ups than of terrorists".
"There is a growing gap between haves and have-nots and a rising number of panhandlers in the streets. Before you wouldn't see such scenes. Afghans have a certain notion of poverty with 'dignity'," he stressed.
Although reticent to generalise, Father Moretti complains about the lifestyle of Westerners living in the country.
"Foreigners' help is needed. They provide jobs to many people, but we must be careful. Supermarkets full of goodies, cars worth 50,000, and private parties generate dangerous envy in the local population who want the same but can only achieve it by joining organised crime," he lamented.
One can help without showing off one's wealth. For instance, Father Moretti points to the "humble and silent" work of the Little Sisters of Jesus, who have been in the country for 50 years now and who were here even under the Talibans.
Mario Ragazzi also complains about the vicious cycle that creates a sense of frustration and resentment in the local population vis-à-vis the promises made by Western organisations.
The Caritas official points the finger at the system of private consultants who earn salaries of up to a thousand euros per day, "the equivalent of 150 teachers".
"Western governments, multinational agencies and international development banks are paying high salaries to these consultants, who are put in government departments to train their staff," he explained.
"The system raises questions and doubts because funds which could be better channelled into developing the country are drained away. And the local population knows that". (MA)
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