As widespread battles continue in suburbs of Kunduz city in northern Afghanistan, the Afghan public's criticism over government's handling of the situation and that of security in the embattled province has gathered momentum in the past two weeks.
A number of displaced Kunduz residents said on Sunday that the National Unity Government leaders have not kept promises they made to change Kunduz in to a hub of economic development and commercial activities.
This was in reference to pre-election commitments made by CEO Abdullah Abdullah and President Ashraf Ghani.
"Ghani and Abdullah made commitments to the people during their election race. Ghani promised to change Kunduz into a hub of peace and prosperity," a resident of Kunduz, Nasir, said.
Nasir said the president's words at the time were: "At some stage people were saying if someone wants to die go to Kunduz. But I will change this perception and will say that if you want to live in peace go to Kunduz."
"What kind of leaders are they? They (Abdullah and Ghani) came to Kunduz during their election campaigns and pleaded with the people to vote for them. But today they do not bother to come to see for themselves what people are dealing with. Neither of them have come back to Kunduz after the elections," said Meena, another member of a displaced family.
The fall of Kunduz has left tens of thousands of residents homeless with the majority of them seeking refuge in Baghlan, Kabul and Takhar provinces.
According to officials, 20,000 families are registered as having been displaced by the Kunduz crisis in the past two weeks. They say this means over 100,000 people are in need of assistance.
One civil society activist, Abdullah Rasooli said: "Reports which we have on the condition of families (who fled to) several provinces are quite worrying - particularly regarding their health."
The key city of Kunduz collapsed to the Taliban nearly two weeks ago. Reports of major human rights violations committed by the Taliban during the siege have also emerged – these include mass murders, rapes and looting.
Fuente: http://www.tolonews.com/en/afghanistan/21828-kunduz-families-accuse-govt...
