This account is taken entirely from Sayed

Qassem Rishtya's personal diaries and

recollections of his time as a Minister

between 1963 and 1965 told with

unflinching honesty and insight. There is

no historical precedent in Afghanistan for

a discussion of political affairs in the form

of a personal narrative. Much of his story is

firsthand, including private conversations

with world leaders.

Of particular relevance to today's events

was his involvement in Afghanistan's first

democratic Constitution, written and

adopted in 1964 - the period when Afghan

women in European dress held seats in

Parliament and filled the Universities away

from the eyes of the media.

Not only was he one of the principal

authors of the model document, he was also

one of the leading players in the political

manoeuvring taht led to its adoption. His

insistence to adopting the Constitution to the

letter earned him the respect of his colleagues,

but also antagonised opponents, causeing a

rift in the Afghan body politic.

His integrity and deft handling of the oftconflicting

concerns of multiple political,

religious and tribal factions, in particular as

it concerned the constitutional reforms, since

they are now partially reinstalled in the 2004

Constitution, could be a model for the

country's effort once again to bring democracy

to that troubled land.

One of the highlights, of this remarkable

account is President Kennedy's caution to

Zahir Shah, during the latter's official visit

to the United States in 1965, about the

dangers of the democratic reforms then

underway in Afghanistan and the need to

proceed cautiously !

The original manuscript and diaries may

well have been lost to posterity were it not

for the courage of an Austrian diplomat, who

smuggled them out of the country under the

noses of the Soviet occupiers.

Sayed Qassem Rishtya was himself forced

to flee, taking only the clothes he stood up

in, in the wake of Soviet Russia's blitzkrieg

during 1979. His name figured on a list,

prepared in the aftermath of the Communist

Coup, of those who were not allowed to

leave the country.

The tanslation into English by his

daughter presents the readers with a personal,

account of diplomacy and government

intrigue at the highest levels, told in an

intimate manner that makes us feel as if we

were there.