A Silent Shout

         It's 2am and  I couldn't sleep, my mind  wrestled with so many taught,s getting  that email in the midst of the trending  news the night before ,it  opened a flood gate of emotions for me, kabul had fallen and once again the future of the afghan people and  especially the women, seem to be in limbo. 

The email was shared from a  sister who  reached out to our dear World Pulse, encouraging us to speak out, to stand in solidarity,to raise our voices, sign the petition, pray, but not forget, it was a loud shout that came in the form of a silent whisper

The fear and  the anguish  came alive from between the lines of the email , I could only imagine the hopeless feeling of impending gloom , faced with uncertainty, fear, mistrust ,  they have been here before, and they wonder, are they going to become nameless, faceless, invisible again fully clothed, but stripped of basic rights, dreams,and  desires to excell. 

I wanted to respond, I knew some of the history, I didn't know enough or understood enough to have an opinion, so I began to read and  research, listen more, I looked for facts from reputable world media, looked for the voices of the women, to hear their stories. 

And I found this :Afghanistan :The land of Endless Wars..A documentary compiled in 2019,  centered on the accounts of Six, Brave, Resilient women in  leadership roles  that survived the different changes in rulership in Afghanistan

They painted a picture of life before these last few decades, when there was peace,and  freedom , girls grew up, they did the normal things we all did, they went to school, they played sports, they spoke out, they got married and they dressed fashionably. 

Shukria Barakzai  says, kabul   was colorful, modern, it was lively, there were movies, dancing, life very much like in the west, they went to clubs, where there was big band music, jazz and then  came  the  hippe culture, and she says it was better than Europe.. Better than Eroupe. Tourist came, there was lots to see, but along with the tourist came a different side of  western culture and movement s for women's rights, and the push for equality

But there existed another world, on the out skirts, of Kabul and  it brought to birth the need to protect the traditional lifestyle, and differing policitical ideaologies bringing division.What followed was years of persecution, policitical imprisonment, women and men lost their lives, their loved ones, protest, resistance, citizens becoming  refugees , many fleeing to nearby Pakistan as the war raged on for control 

1992 seems a significant point in the history as it heralded a period  which, can only be described as days of darkness for women especially, they were not part of the struggle, they were not on the front lines, but they paid the price, eventually being forbidden to work,be educated, ordered to be totally covered from head to feet, forbidden to be outside unless escorted by a male, the regime in control at that time offered peace, at the cost of freedom. 

Nadia Ghulam who now lives in a foriegn land was, and one of the six was twelve years old in 1992, she recalls having to dress and pretend to be male to be able to work to take care of her mother, young sisters  and family as her father had been killed. 

Another of the women is overcome with grief as she remembers searching for her husband amoung those released after being held as political prisoners, she was never able to see him again, she was a Women Rights Activist, who  later became  the minister of Women's Affairs. 

2001 saw change sweep across the country and women enjoyed freedom again, shukria described it as such a wonderful time, the feeling was great  being able to breathe, oxygen, she said when she removed her burka like thousands of women, she felt born again. 

Democracy was restored to a point, The floggings were over, women  could resume schooling, go to work and buy food, women served in parliament again, shukria who once taught underground, was part of the drafting of the constitution, although it was a struggle and  unable to see her family due to her commitments she persevered, fighting to ensure  women could vote and enjoy fundamental rights again, women could let their voices be heard, she became a member of Parliament from 2005 to 2014

The one regret is that the wealth of the economy has not been shared especially amoung the poor,and coupled with  corruption has once again led to dissatisfaction, which has lead to another political pivott. For the country to  return to the period of restrictions and alienation of its women is worrying, painful and causing anxiety, again there's a desperate bid to flee, our screens are littered with photos of mothers and fathers pain and worry etched on their faces carrying, crying screaming children, is indeed a sight we wished would not have  ever greeted us again. 

I have a dream  says shukria, to have my country back, would that be too much? she asks, but another resilient member of this group, doesn't think it would be like before, she thinks woman will fight for their freedoms, their rights, like my friend says, under those burka, s a revolution is brewing, these millennium women would resist. 

I understand a little more, there are still so many unanswered questions, but I know enough to know I can stand in solidarity with my sisters, I signed the petition last week  I asked my friends to do so also, I'm letting my voice be heard along with my sisters in solidarity on this platform, I too am praying shukria, our sister and all the other women would get their  country back 

You are not forgotten

We are holding a light for you 

Credit @DW Documentary YouTube 

Afghanistan - Land of endless War