Pul-e-Jawan: A Regional Peace-building Team
Pul-e-Jawan, which literally means “bridges of youth” in Dari, Urdu and Hindi, is a group of regional peace building and active youth from Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. In September 2011, Internews, Afghanistan took initiative and invited five citizen journalists with an interest in peace and reconciliation issues from each of the above countries (a total of fifteen people) to meet in Kabul. The aim of Pul-e-Jawan is to provide an exchange for the youth and to bridge any gaps and issues…
read more »Support Afghan Female Boxers Fighting their Way to London Olympics
In the basement of once notorious Ghazi National Olympic Stadium of Afghanistan is where the Afghan national team of female boxers train tirelessly hard for the Olympics 2012 in London. Once known as the stadium of death the venue was used for holding public executions and stoning under the brutal Taliban rule, 1996 to 2001. Under the Taliban women were completely forbidden from participating in any sports, not even as spectators. Refurbished by the US government, Ghazi Olympic Stadium reopened…
read more »That’s what I do
I was in Dara-e-Noor, a district far to the north of Jalalabad city. My team members and I were there for a mapping survey for which talking with a local resident helped us make better and more accurate maps for any given area. Here, we ran into Baghcha Gul. We were talking about the village and names of the roads, public buildings, etc. and my colleague, Akbar asked this random question: “How many children do you have?” “I have only one…
read more »No, There Is only One God!
When I was taking this picture I raised my index and middle finger and parted them asking the gentlemen to make peace gesture. The senior man in the back shouted, “No, there is only ONE God!” “There are not two Gods”, he added. I almost got into a big trouble. They probably thought I was trying to convert them or something. It was in my own city of Jalalabad but these folks seemed alien. Some people in Jalalabad know what…
read more »Plucked from Garbage Scavenging, Sokha Becomes an Inspiring Girl Worldwide
“When my father died, I lost everything: my education, my struggling spirit and my parental love and even the love from my siblings because I had to go away and live with others,†she said. If there is one lesson she’s learned, it’s that “you must never give up hope,†she said. “You must struggle and struggle until one day you see success.†Article on VOA Cambodia: Plucked From Garbage Scavenging, a Girl Makes Good
read more »Team Work
Photo credit: Najib Bismil People in rural Afghanistan build their mud houses with thick and high walls, Qalla. They usually tie two or more ladders together to pass the mud to the mason.
read more »The Irrepressible Pashtun Sense of Humor
Pashtuns like to have a very loose schedule. We spend a lot of time trading jokes with other ‘comrades’, especially if there is green tea and a nice little Hujra(guest room). No matter how sad or troubled we are, we make fun of the misery and laugh about it. Interesting read in Dawn: The Irrepressible Sense of Humor of the Pashtoons Part of the article: ‘Where is Comrade Amin, our first Socialist Leader?’ ‘He’s dead, Comrade.’ ‘And where, Comrade Information officer…
read more »Open Source Map for Nangarhar
Jalalagood Geek Squad worked on this open source map of Nangarhar for about seven months starting from June 2011. I am not bragging but Jalalabad is the most detailed city on open street map. A lot of aid workers and those who are new in town use this open source map to get around in Nangarhar. If you are using it on a smart phone it has navigation as well. NGOs and health workers use it to plan their humanitarian projects.…
read more »A “Step Backwards” for America in Afghanistan
A video posted online last week showing US Marines urinating on the corpses of unknown Afghans was truly deplorable. Asia Times Article
read more »On the Hunt for Mullah Omar
America has been trying to hunt the leader of the Taliban, Mullah Omar for over a decade now. Unsuccessful to get him, it wants to negotiate with the Taliban. Where is he? What does he look like? New Yorker Article: Looking for Mullah Omar
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