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Jobs for Peace in Afghanistan
The Alternative to War


About                  Mission Statement

June 13, 2009: War Supplemental Appropriations Bill Action: Troops Out, Jobs In for Peace in Afghanistan. Why This War is Unnecessary, Call Congress!
Our fact-finding mission has convinced us that our central contention is as true as ever. The war in Afghanistan is driven primarily by economics and a 40% unemployment rate, not ideology or any overwhelming hatred of Americans. The Taliban pays $8 a day to its insurgent fighters, and too often it's the only job in town...MORE

We interview unemployed men in Kabul


Letter to Congress on the "Five Percent Solution" to the War in Afghanistan


Media Corner: Press Release | Yale and Harvard Grads Team Up to Stop Afghan War


Follow the June Kabul Trip Blog
enter blog here
Latest Post: "Last Blog from Kabul"


Working paper draft for Kabul forum, preliminary


Original Jobs for Afghans webpage

VIDEO: Starvation in Kandahar Province



Please contact your congressman


Other Resources



Ralph Lopez Talks on YouTube




Fact Sheet
  • Unemployment in Afghanistan: 40-50%
  • Insurgent wage: $8 per day
  • Infant mortality: 1 in 5 dies before age five
  • Mothers dying in childbirth: highest rate in world
  • Percent population with no access to safe drinking water: 70%
  • Average lifespan: 44
  • Place on world poverty scale: 4th poorest nation, dropped one place from 5th since start of NATO occupation
Afghan links

Institute for War and Peace Reporting

Afghan Discussion Forums



New York Times Magazine: Capt. Kearney's Quagmire


"The Occasional Taleban" (Institute for War and Peace Reporting)
Farah is now dominated by unemployment and poor living conditions.  This is what makes young men join the opposition.
 - Police Chief in Farah District



Who wants war?
"The Windfalls of War," Center for Public Integrity


Articles

"It Was Either Join the Taliban or Watch His Family Starve,"  (Institute for War and Peace Reporting)


"The Road to Taliban Land," Ann Jones

General Petraeus, Can You Hear Me Now?

Time Says No Win In Afghanistan Without Jobs

The Difficulty of New Thinking on Afghanistan

Oxfam Warns Obama of Disaster in Afghanistan, Targets Louis Berger Group

Afghans Tell Obama: Send Engineers, Not Troops

Obama Making the Wrong Turn in Afghanistan

The War That Should have Been Over

Time Magazine
"If the had jobs, they would stop fighting" -Korangal Valley Elder
Review of Time Cover Story
cover story



Contact: RalphLopez AT hotmail DOT com