Kabul cosmopolitan: Geopolitical empire from the planner’s viewpoint

This article uses cosmopolitanism as a theoretical lens to explore both the urbanism and the ethics of planning in Kabul. The Cosmopolis arguments of Sandercock is synthesized with the political argument of Mouffe to articulate a concept of agonistic cosmopolitanism in contrast to a concept of globalizing cosmopolitanism. The practices that shape urban life in Kabul resemble what Simone describes as worlding processes in cities of sub-Saharan Africa. Under such adverse conditions, Kabulis demonstrate vital aspects of agonistic pluralism. Conversely, a transnational community in Kabul embodies a less critical, presumptively global cosmopolitanism through the production of a Global Village that encourages socially disruptive land speculation. The value of a more critical, agonistic understanding is then demonstrated through the analysis of an unexpected discrepancy in planning ideals between the national and local planning agencies in Kabul. This analysis suggests a new ethical task for urban planners: to challenge geopolitical empire through a cosmopolitan ethic that embraces the substantive conflicts which come with actual recognition and political inclusion of the Other.