Amnesty, social networks, promises to women: how the Taliban take care of their image with com ‘- BFMTV

Since their return to power in Afghanistan on Sunday, the Taliban have made a series of opening gestures. These, intended to convince that they do not intend to administer the country as in the 1990s, also aim to attract them the benefit of the doubt from the international community.

Armed patrols, a society reduced by terror, members cut off under Sharia injunctions, executions in stadiums, women locked up at home or under thick black burqas. But that was before. At least, if we are to believe the spokespersons and communication of the Taliban.

The group took over Kabul on Sunday, and reestablished a regime in Afghanistan that had left such dire memories during its first stint in power, between 1996 and 2001. Moreover, the Islamists immediately called the reconquered state. that he had taken under their rule of the 90s: the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. However, the Taliban do not wish to encourage the parallel.

Amnesty proclaimed, condition of women, guarantees of goods and people: the Taliban have multiplied in recent days declarations and gestures of openness, and ripolize their communication. As a way to improve their image when traveling abroad.

Do not repeat the mistakes of the past

“If the question is based on ideology, and beliefs, there is no difference … but if it is based on experience, maturity and insight, no doubt, there are many differences “. The assertion fell in the middle of the exercise, new in itself for this very rigorous Islamist group, of a press conference held Tuesday by Zabihullah Mujahid, one of the spokespersons of the Taliban.

Indeed, if the Taliban intend to maintain staunchly their attachment to Sharia law and their ultra-conservative vision of Islam, they also intend not to repeat the mistakes of the past. In other words, they want to be more political than when they put their dictatorship at the service of Al-Qaeda of Osama bin Laden.

Opening

As of Monday, they gave pledges. Suhail Shaheen, one of their executives, highlighted: “The life, property and honor of everyone (…) must be protected by the Mujahedin”. The next day, the militia promised a general amnesty for civil servants who worked for the Afghan state from 2001 to 2021, that is, the period when they were no longer in power.

Zabihullah Mujahid took the same path in front of the media during his press briefing: “The war is over (… the leader of the Taliban) has forgiven everyone. All those in the opposite camp are forgiven from A to Z. We will not seek revenge ”.

And this displayed spirit of conciliation should find a political translation. Because if the Taliban dignitary did not advance as to the composition of the coming government, he slipped that the masters of Kabul intended to “establish links with all parties”.

And he can rely on this point of the assent of Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, co-founder and number two of the Taliban. Back from exile in Doha, Qatar, on Tuesday, this one promised immediately a “strong Islamic” and, more surprisingly, “inclusive” government.

Benefit of the doubt creeps abroad

A qualifier that we would not have really expected in the mouth of a mujahideen but which refers to the expectations of the Quai d’Orsay. Tuesday, speaking on France Info, Jean-Yves Le Drian has responded: “We need a government, truly inclusive and representative, which shows that the Taliban have changed.”

“They say they want to acquire respectability, honor. They announced that they would respect the rights acquired over the past 20 years in Afghanistan. They must demonstrate it,” said the Minister of Foreign Affairs. , believing that “it is not the same generation”.

Because for the moment, the dusted discourse of the Taliban seems to carry on the outside. On Sunday, as the Western Chanceries were in turmoil over the slump in Kabul, confusing their embassies towards the international airport where potential refugees were beginning to pour in, Russia chose to stay within its walls, assuring that the Taliban presented all the necessary guarantees of non-aggression. The Kremlin, like China, should also normalize their relations with the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan shortly, as noted here The Express.

Turkish diplomacy, two days later, welcomed the “positive messages” sent by the new power. Even the Americans seem keen to give the Taliban the benefit of the doubt. Jake Sullivan, Joe Biden’s Security Advisor, in fact announced Tuesday during an intervention at the White House that the Taliban had told the United States that “they were ready to protect the safe delivery of civilians. to the airport “.

“We intend to make them respect this commitment,” added the US official. An engagement with the air of tour de force a bit ironic, insofar as the Taliban clearly constitute the main threat on the said road to the airport.

Use of social networks

But let’s face it: the Taliban, “new generation”, intend to play the game. And to play the game of modern (geo) politics, it is also to adopt the language: in this case that of social networks . Some of their services and some of their figures now make massive use of it.

Like The echoes noticed it, the Islamists had accompanied their dazzling military campaign with the continuous publication of content and videos featuring surrenders, appeals from tribal leaders to rally them, or even images of popular jubilation, which it is difficult to establish. whether they were facade or not. And the audience gathered is in tune.

At the time of writing, Suhail Shaheeen has 357,000 followers on Twitter and Zabihullah Mujahid attracts 315,000 (or 600,000 if we add a second Twitter account spotted by The Echoes).

Along with this success on Twitter, however, the Taliban suffered some misfortunes. Indeed, while they announced last week the creation of a special number on WhatsApp to allow the population to address their complaints to the authorities, Facebook, which owns the application, decided without delay to close this account, by order of the United States. And since all of Facebook’s territory is off limits to them, the Taliban will also stay out of Instagram for the time being.

However, they took the pulse of social networks well in advance. From February 2019, Agence France Presse showed that the direct heirs of a regime which had banned radio and television from the airwaves and from the Afghan public landscape from 1996 to 2001, were now promoting the platforms of the Internet era as a tool of their war . A “facet of the fight” according to the terms chosen then by Zabihullah Mujahid.

“We will respect the freedom of the press”

The latter was also keen to reassure the more traditional press. This Sunday he granted a interview with Reporters Without Borders, ticking off the promises.

“We will respect press freedom because the information will be useful to society and, at the same time, can help correct the mistakes of leaders. With this statement to RSF, we are telling the world that we recognize the importance of the place of the media, “he said.

“Journalists who work for the public or private media are not criminals and none of them will be prosecuted. (…) There will be no threat against them”, he still pledged.

Striking illustration of this 180 ° C turn: a Taliban official even recently visited the set of an Afghan television show, where he was interviewed … by a woman. In 2019, an internal source of the movement then relayed by Point, said of television presenters: “It is better that they stay at home or that they take another respectable profession”.

The question of women in full redefinition?

But the question of women itself seems to be in the process of being redefined. If, on the merits, nothing indicates that the Islamists have changed their minds as to what gives a profession its dimension of “respectability” or not for women, the tone to say it now has something more favorable .

“We are committed to letting women work in accordance with the principles of Islam”, for example affirmed the essential Zabihullah Mujahid during his press conference on Tuesday, adding later that the burqa would not regain its obligatory character. , insofar as there are “different types of sails”.

Suhail Shaheen had previously – and via Twitter – dispelled another cloud: “Girls’ right to education will be protected”.

Women are wary, however, knowing full well that they have the most to lose in the political shift that is taking place. Tuesday the Al Jazeera correspondent in Afghanistan also filmed a demonstration of women in Kabul, protesting for their rights against the armed Taliban.

Obviously, not everyone is ready to give much credit to Taliban words. The war of images and communication will be long.