Op-ed: In today’s world, human rights and democracy are promoted with great force. Massive organizations and institutions have been established to uphold these values, yet, paradoxically, the same entities advocating for these principles are the worst violators. The reality is that while democracy is preached, hypocrisy is practiced. This hypocrisy has become so widespread that it is now an integral part of global politics.
Human rights and democratic values are, in theory, noble ideas. However, in the modern global political system, these values have been weaponized—used as tools to control weaker nations and justify illegitimate occupations. The most glaring examples of this hypocrisy are visible in the Arab world, Palestine, and Afghanistan.
In the past three weeks, there has been a sudden increase in international efforts regarding Afghanistan. The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has been presenting reports every week, labeling Afghanistan as a security threat to the world. The United States is actively pursuing efforts to reclaim weapons left behind, with President Donald Trump even declaring that they will retrieve them at any cost. Similarly, Pakistan has launched an aggressive campaign, warning that Afghanistan poses a security threat due to the presence of American weapons. While the concerns of the UNSC, the U.S., and Pakistan appear distinct, they ultimately converge on one point: Afghanistan must be subjected to military action, and the Taliban government must be overthrown.
But is this the first time security threats, advanced weaponry, democracy, and human rights have been used as pretexts for military intervention? Or have these so-called values been historically exploited to dismantle governments and occupy nations?
Are human rights and democracy truly sacred principles for Western powers, or are they simply strategic tools used to dominate the global order? The moment these so-called humanitarian concerns no longer serve their geopolitical interests, they become irrelevant—proven by how swiftly the West cut off humanitarian aid funds when it no longer suited their agenda.
The United States invaded Iraq in 2003 under the pretext of dictatorship and weapons of mass destruction, branding its operation as The Iraq Freedom. For two decades, the Arab world was engulfed in flames—millions of lives were lost, thriving nations were reduced to ruins. And then, after all this destruction, the U.S. casually admitted, "We made a mistake. There were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq." But by then, Iraq and the Arab world had already been devastated beyond repair—politically, socially, and economically.
Today, in Palestine, people are being starved, stripped of all basic human and democratic rights. In Syria, over 1,000 civilians were killed in just the past two days, at the hands of a leader propped up by Western support. The same Western powers that back armed insurgencies—whether it be Al-Qaeda, Mujahideen, or the Taliban—now claim to champion democracy and human rights.
Western nations deliberately foster terrorism, weaken governments, destabilize systems, engineer humanitarian and democratic crises, and then use these crises as pretexts for military interventions and occupation.
Afghanistan has suffered this cycle for the past fifty years. The world is well aware of the forces responsible for creating Mujahideen against Afghanistan’s progressive political governments, transforming them into the Taliban, and then handing over power to the most extremist factions. The very same Western powers that claim to uphold democracy and human rights trampled these ideals in Afghanistan, treating an entire nation as a disposable pawn in their geopolitical game.
And then, for their own shifting interests, they turned on their own creation—the Taliban. Under the guise of counterterrorism, the U.S. invaded Afghanistan, killing millions, reducing a flourishing country to rubble, and subjecting its people to unimaginable suffering.
For what?
Afghanistan never attacked the West. It never housed weapons of mass destruction. The Taliban were a product of the West’s own policies. Yet Afghanistan was obliterated—not for security concerns, but to serve Western political interests.
The very same nations that claim to uphold human rights stripped Afghan children of their basic rights, displaced them from their homes, and then, after fulfilling there interests, those afghans were forcibly deported back to the war-ravaged land they themselves destroyed. After two decades of destruction, the West shut its doors on Afghan refugees, sending them back to the very Taliban-led Afghanistan they spent years demonizing.
The hypocrisy of the U.S., Pakistan, and the United Nations Security Council is blatant. The democratic government in Afghanistan was toppled by these very forces in 2021, handing power over to the Taliban. Pakistan celebrated this transition—its then-Prime Minister declared, "The Taliban have broken the chains of slavery," while Pakistan’s intelligence chief sipped tea at Kabul’s Serena Hotel in a triumphant display.
But now, because the Taliban no longer align with Pakistan’s interests, Pakistan cries foul, calling them a security threat.
No one questions Pakistan—if they dismantled Afghanistan’s democratic government and now oppose the Taliban, then who should govern Afghanistan?
Similarly, the U.S. negotiated directly with the Taliban in Qatar, sidelining the Afghan government. Yet now, when the Taliban fail to serve American interests, the U.S. brands them a threat.
And in all this hypocrisy, the United Nations plays a crucial role.
The UN’s so-called human rights bodies release daily reports about Afghanistan’s food shortages, healthcare crises, lack of education, mistreatment of women, and security threats. But never once do they question the U.S., Pakistan, or Western powers about why these very forces imposed the Mujahideen and Taliban on Afghanistan in the first place.
Are the U.S. and Pakistan not the real criminals?
The Taliban are merely tools—the real perpetrators are the global powers that created, nurtured, and imposed them upon Afghanistan. The true criminals are those who celebrated the Taliban’s return to power.
Yet, the International Criminal Court (ICC), quick to issue arrest warrants for Taliban leaders, remains silent on holding the real masterminds accountable.
Where is justice for the global architects of these humanitarian disasters?
The same Western powers that claim to uphold human rights have now openly exposed themselves in Palestine. They do not condemn Israel’s blockade on humanitarian aid but instead threaten the starving Palestinians with statements like "You are going to face hell" and "You are dead."
The same game played in Afghanistan is now being played in Ukraine. The West fueled a war between Ukraine and Russia, turned a prosperous nation into ruins, caused millions of deaths, and poured billions into Ukraine’s military. But now that their objectives have been met, financial aid and military support are being withdrawn, and Ukrainian refugees are being deported from the U.S.
World can see the United States cares more about its weapons than the suffering of the Afghan people. They struck a deal with the Taliban, brought them to power, and then shamelessly imposed sanctions—pushing millions of Afghans into starvation and misery. All of this to serve their own hidden agendas, while innocent lives are crushed under their ruthless policies. This is the ugly truth behind their so-called human rights and democratic values—nothing but hypocrisy and cold, calculated cruelty.
Just yesterday, the U.S. has imposed a ban on Iraq purchasing electricity from Iran.
The so-called champions of democracy and human values have been blatantly exposed—now the U.S. decides from whom Iraq can buy what.
They do not allow a country the freedom to trade independently, yet they claim to uphold global democracy and human rights.
The fate of the Arab world, Palestine, Afghanistan, and Ukraine is identical—all sacrificed at the altar of Western hypocrisy, under the false pretense of democracy and human rights. And soon, Taiwan will likely face the same betrayal.
What do all these cases have in common?
The systematic exploitation of human and democratic values to justify war, genocide, slavery, humanitarian crises, and catastrophic destruction.
Who will hold these global criminals accountable?
Who will answer for the millions of lives lost in the name of democracy and human rights?
There is no answer in sight.
