The Road to Afghanistan - George Washington University

Babrak Karmal looked extremely concerned upon his brother’s arrival. The futureseemed grim. “For now, our Czech comrades will take care of my security,” he said bitterly,“but it can be over at any moment.”The situation for the Parchamis at the time was almost hopeless. The main leadersof the faction were forced to live in hiding in different countries. Those who stayed in Kabulwere arrested and subjected to terrible torture. Regular party members hid their Parchamiconnections. Moscow turned a blind eye towards its former allies. Karmal hadn’t forgottenhow, so recently before leaving for Prague, he had tried in vain to meet with AmbassadorPuzanov.“What kind of communist is he?” Karmal asked angrily. “He is a cowardlyopportunist. This is not the way to behave towards allies in need.”“What should we do?” asked Baryalai. “Perhaps we should move deep undergroundand cease activities against Taraki and Amin.”Karmal finished his favorite Kent cigarette and lit another. Then he began to talkabout possible near-term tactics.“We cannot do anything now that could make the situation worse. Perhaps they areonly waiting to finalize the destruction of Parcham and physically eliminate all of us. It’s inour best interest to wait. I am certain that soon the situation will swing in our favor. Whatthose madmen are doing to the country will inevitably cause a wave of rage, and that wavewill wash them away. The euphoria from the revolution has passed. The people are waitingfor the changes that were promised. What do they see instead? One clown is imagininghimself as the great leader while another is engaged in murky affairs behind his back. Youwill see, many people will soon be unhappy with this regime.”248