Taliban’s Hostility Toward the Uzbek Language and the Turks of Afghanistan

The Taliban, continuing their policy of eliminating symbols associated with the Turkic peoples, have begun removing Uzbek-language signs and inscriptions from official and unofficial institutions—following their earlier destruction of the statue and inscription attributed to the great poet and thinker Alisher Navayi.

The Taliban, continuing their policy of eliminating symbols associated with the Turkic peoples, have begun removing Uzbek-language signs and inscriptions from official and unofficial institutions—following their earlier destruction of the statue and inscription attributed to the great poet and thinker Alisher Navayi.

This behavior is not a sudden or emotional decision, but rather a pre-planned and calculated scheme, designed carefully and deliberately—similar to the authoritarian policies of their previous regimes.

To avoid provoking collective reactions, the Taliban implement this policy of gradual erasure step by step, using various deceptive tactics.

Before the Taliban, in provinces where the Turks of Afghanistan form a majority, the Uzbek language—alongside Pashto, Dari and English—was used in government offices and various official and non-governmental institutions.

But the Taliban, disregarding one of Afghanistan’s indigenous and fundamental components—the Turkic population—have specifically targeted the Uzbek language.

The removal of the Uzbek-language signboard from Jawzjan University is a discriminatory and unjust act.

This conduct shows that the Taliban are intrinsically a Pashtun ethno-nationalist movement, which uses religious beliefs and values merely as instruments to advance their political agenda.

Undoubtedly, the very nature and existence of the Taliban is a continuation of long-planned policies of Pashtun supremacy and prejudice inherited from previous regimes.

Their repeated presentation of “Sharia” and religious values is nothing more than a tool for manipulating public opinion and imposing domination over non-Pashtun communities under the guise of religion.

Such actions have no connection to religion, governance, or human values; rather, from both a religious and legal standpoint, they constitute injustice and wrongdoing.

Through these policies, the Taliban not only violate the principles of Islamic justice but also endanger peaceful coexistence among Afghanistan’s ethnic groups.

The continuation of this trend will intensify ethnic tensions, accelerate cultural and linguistic erasure, damage the unity of the Muslim community, and deepen the sense of injustice and mistrust among the Turks of Afghanistan.

Dr Sayed Arif Ahmad Oghli Türkiye.