This study consisted of qualitative interviews with six Afghan political leaders who served as cabinet members in the Afghan government prior to the Soviet invasion. The study sought to report the political conditions in Afghanistan based on the direct experiences and the reflections of these leaders whose titles and names remain anonymous.The data were collected and analyzed using a modified version of Spradley's Developmental Research Sequence Writing methodology. The data included field notes gathered from numerous interviews, casual conversations, tape recording, library research and documents provided by the informants.The rivalries that prevented political unity during the war of resistance have exacerbated the quest for power now that the common enemy, the Soviet Union and Afghan-Marxist regimes, has disappeared from the scene. No credible social or political within the country to initiate and promote political reconciliation. Each group appears to be attempting a unilateral solution to the national crisis. The great majority of Afghans are not only left out of the political process, but are also held hostage to the confrontation between competing groups whose political and military strategies is the elimination, or at best exclusion, of other competing groups. Dangerously, none of the powerful group's adversaries has given up the idea of war as the institution or nationally acceptable leadership is available instrument of political settlement. Among political leaders there is still much in Afghan political culture that is basically hostile to open and competitive politics. / Department of Educational Leadership