Range War in the Land of One Hump Camels

Another war is simmering beneath the rangeland of Afghanistan. 

As farmers begin to see green from millions of dollars offered through agriculture projects, a counterinsurgency tool (COIN), the question that begs an answer...

Who owns the rangeland?

It depends... who is standing in the field that day and how much cash are we talking?  The Ag advisor from the corrupt Karzai government claims they do; the farmer talking to the ADT engineer about irrigation says he does; and the Kuchi, whose tribe has been grazing sheep on these rangelands for centuries says only Allah holds the land.

Land ownership has never been easily defined in Afghanistan but after decades of war followed by the current greed in the government—it has the potential to burst into a bloody conflict.

Wait...what! Obama has sent lawyers to help sort out the problem, part of his 'civilian surge’ to mentor Karzai’s government?

The Kuchis are going to get screwed and they carry weapons.

A little background. Kuchis are brightly dressed nomads who graze large herds of sheep, goats and camels.  Mostly Pashtun, they are estimated to be near 3 million in population, 60 percent still live as nomads migrating on ancient routes that cross the borders of Pakistan, Iran and Tajikistan. They are usually illiterate and uneducated.

The Kuchi are an important piece in the cash economy—more than a subsistence farmer who has little to sell after harvest.  The nomads are the main producers of the daily meal for Afghans, mutton kebabs. Nothing goes to waste in the nomadic life; they sell live animals, skins, wool, and milk products giving the Kuchi cash to buy wheat grain for the naan bread, the second staple of the national diet. 

Romantic views aside, Kuchis are more than their black tents and camels.  They are viewed by their fellow Afghans as beggars, thieves, smugglers and Taliban sympathizers.

After the Soviet withdrawal, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, leader of HIG, courted the disenfranchised Kuchis training them as foot soldiers in his bloody crusade for power.  At the same time in the south, they became supporters of the Taliban and their one-eyed leader Mullah Mohammed Omar. Because of their past loyalties to the Taliban and HIG, they are not trusted by other ethnic groups, Tajiks and Hazaras.

Clashes occur especially during times of drought or food shortage.  

Money can inflame a conflict. With millions of American dollars in agriculture projects being offered by ADTs, USAID, USDA and U.S. Army through CERP funds, the green grasslands of Afghanistan may turn red.

Just like the Range Wars of the American West with farmers, sheepmen, cattlemen and lawyers, all fighting over land and carrying weapons. 

The COIN experts have different viewpoints on how to address the Kuchi grazing issue.

One commander targets the nomads for VetCaps reaching out by vaccinating thousands of their animals.  Another wonders if they can change Kuchi overgrazing practices resulting in more forage for both farmer and nomad; while another believes they should be banned from open grazing believing if they don’t contribute to the land, then they shouldn’t benefit.  During all this U.S. lawyers will be sorting through a complicated mess of documents and laws to determine land ownership and hopefully, grazing rights.

The danger is if the Kuchis feel excluded, they will reach out again to the Taliban for support.

This summer 30,000 Kuchi are moving back into Logar province for grazing season.  At the very same time, a surge of thousands of U.S. Forces move into FOB Shank in southern Logar, essentially doubling the base.  Logar Province is Area of Operations for 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team.  The elite soldiers conduct day and night patrols; mentor the ANA; search for IEDs; and hunt down the elusive Taliban, who have promised their own surge in violence this summer with more attacks and larger bombs.

During counterinsurgency operations, keeping the disenfranchised—the Kuchi—inside the circle of trust and communication improves security.  Either by lawyer or soldier, engaging the nomads can give Coalition Forces another means for easing violence through the long, hot summer in eastern Afghanistan.

-by Janet Killeen