8 - The development of the parties between 1980 and 1984

Summary

The party spectrum in 1980

The distribution of support for the parties is not the result of chance but may be correlated with fairly precise social networks. The map showing the level of support for the parties in the different areas and their relative strength has yet to be drawn. Naturally, studies carried out at the time were almost non-existent, and the situation has to be reconstructed. At the beginning, only the Hizb and Jamiat militants made mention of the idea of the party; they established themselves through their networks of militants, without exercising any overall control over the population. People in general followed their local leaders, who made up their minds according to their belief in one of the four networks described above. For this reason there was a great diversity of opinion, combined with frequent shifts in loyalties. Sharp divisions in people's political loyalties owing to a great number of parties being represented at the same time in the same place characterised much of the country at the outbreak of war. Nevertheless, it seems that in the south the sharp divisions were less marked at the beginning but remained a factor to be reckoned with, while in the north, which was more divided in 1980, the political situation became clearer and a certain amount of regrouping went on.