The United States has a history of installing both successful and unsuccessful governments to power. Following World War II, the United States played an instrumental role in assisting both Japan and Germany to get on their feet with democratic governments.

However, the United States has supported groups in Latin America, Iraq and Iran that have grown up to be serious human rights violators. Saddam Hussein, perhaps the most famous American nemesis, was supported with American tax dollars in his war against Iran in the 1980s. And Hussein is only a part of other mistakes.

We don’t want this to happen again.

That begs the question: once the Taliban is ousted, who is next in line in Afghanistan?

The Northern Alliance, the Taliban’s primary opposition, seems to be the likely candidate.

Current reports of arms aid to the Northern Alliance are concerning. According to Amnesty International, there are reports of up to $45 million worth of weapons aid from Russia, without attached human rights requirements.

Also, there are bills for in consideration in Congress to provide up to $300 million of military aid to “eligible Afghan resistance organizations.”

So what is wrong with supporting the Northern Alliance with our tax dollars? Major human rights violations.

America and other allies may be playing with fire in supporting an opposition group with a less-than-respectable record. A Human Rights Watch (HRW) report released Oct. 6 listed many of the violations of international human rights law committed by various forces of the Northern Alliance/United Front.

According to Human Rights Watch, in May 1997, “Some 3,000 captured Taliban soldiers were summarily executed in and around Mazar-i Sharif by Junbish forces under the command of Gen. Abdul Malik Pahlawan.”

Also, a part of the HRW report, “Late 1999 – early 2000: Internally displaced persons who fled from villages in and around Sangcharak district recounted summary executions, burning of houses, and widespread looting during the four months that the area was held by the United Front.”

These leaders are also central leaders of the Northern Alliance/United Front. The commanders responsible for such gross violations of international are war criminals, and should not be beneficiaries of our tax dollars. Instead, that aid would be better spent carefully and comprehensively building a coalition government. Moderates of the major organizations exist, and should be used as the foundation of such a government.

The best way to protect future American interests is to work in a long term, multilateral manner and help to build a stable, responsible Afghan government after the Taliban.

We should learn from past mistakes, for our sake and for the international community, to help to bring just and democratic leaders to power in Afghanistan.

We won’t regret it.

editorialboard: Andrea Hauser, Tim Paluch, Michelle Kann, Zach Calef, Omar Tesdell