Publications

---

This article deals with the social background and the life worlds of the followers of the Taliban movement. It begins with an analysis of the essential social structures of Pashtun tribal society. It argues that both the Afghan wars, which are ongoing since 1979, and the consequent mass exodus  had  a  tremendous  impact  on  the  everyday  life  of  Pashtun  society.  They  resulted  in  a  contextualised confluence of values and norms, rooted in tribal culture on the one side and militant Islam on the other. The policy of the Taliban movement anticipated such normative changes within Pashtun  society.  Particularly  the  everlasting  reference  to  Islam,  the  defence  of  local  autonomy,  and the emphasis on social justice emerged as key elements of the self-perception of the Taliban movement. Accordingly, my key argument is that the restoration and maintenance of (idealised) local social orders have been the driving force for the success of the Taliban movement. However, this  tendency  of  preserving  an  (idealised)  local  order  in  the  name  of  Islam  is  not  unique  to  the  Taliban but can be found across the Islamic world and can be regarded as a current phenomenon of globalisation.
Please find the article here