Parcham

Parcham (Persian: پرچم, meaning "Banner" or "Flag") was the name of one of the factions of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan. The Parcham faction seized power in the country after toppling Hafizullah Amin.

The basic ideology of the Parchamis was one of a gradual move towards socialism in Afghanistan. The Parcham faction supported this idea because they felt that Afghanistan was not industrialized enough to undergo a true proletarian revolution called for in the Communist Manifesto. The Parcham faction had more urban based members who belonged to the middle and upper middle classes. Pushtuns, mainly Persian speaking, educated and urban were the dominant group in Parcham but non-Pushtuns were also represented in cadres. In 1986 its leader Babrak Karmal asserted that he was a Persian-speaking Pushtun from his mother's Mullakhel (Ghilzays) tribe; however, his origins remain disputed. Many claim him to be a Tajik since his family integrated into that community. Opposed to the moderate Parchamis were the more radical Khalq faction. The Khalq (meaning "People") developed a more vigorous line, advocating an immediate and violent overthrow of the government and an establishment of a Soviet-style communist regime.

In 1992 the Parcham-led PDPA converted itself into Watan Party.

References

• Arnold, Anthony Afghanistan's Two-Party Communism: Parcham and Khalq (Histories of Ruling Communist Parties) Hoover Institution / Stanford University. 1983. (ISBN 0817977929)

• Kakar, M. Hasan Afghanistan: The Soviet Invasion and Afghan Response, 1979-1982. University of California Press. 1997. (ISBN 9780520208933)

• Rasanayagam, Angelo. Afghanistan: A Modern History. St. Martin's Press. 2005