The Taliban, rulers of Afghanistan, blasted away and
destroyed last week several monumental works of ancient art
in their country: the giant standing Buddhas of Bamiyan. The
world, including the world of Islamic scholarship, was
outraged.
The monumental avoda zoras were carved out of a
mountainside and had stood in place for centuries. The
Taliban destroyed them simply because they were idols.
The Taliban movement's leaders are mostly young sons of
illiterate peasants, raised on mine-strewn battlefields and
refugee camps, and educated to be faithful Moslems.
The victorious Taliban were welcomed in city after city in
1995 and 1996 after a brutal period of war with Russia and
among themselves. A contentious alliance of Islamic
fighters, bankrolled and armed by Washington, had driven out
the Soviet Army and then turned on each other and on the
Afghan population. Their government was ineffectual and very
violent.
None of those in power in Afghanistan has much formal,
Western education, and they lack the sense of respect for
ancient artifacts that underlies the Western approach to
history.
The two statues were 53 meters (175 feet) and 36 meters (120
feet) high and their destruction was only accomplished over
several days of work. The first is thought to have been
carved into the mountain about 1,700 years ago.
There were protests from all corners, including from other
Islamic countries, but that did not halt the work. After a
few days, the Taliban announced that the statues were no
more. The Taliban said that they were determined to destroy
images deemed "offensive to Islam."
The UN, UNESCO, a delegation from the Organization of
Islamic Conference and others tried to prevent or halt the
destruction but they were not successful and the idols were
completely demolished.
