September 9, 2002 Men Make War. We can't leave it up to them anymore. We women are going to take the lead in the reconstruction to make real peace. Eight o' clock in the morning, and already the temperature has risen to 30-degrees. The summer sun is glaring down on Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, which is more crowded with people and cars than ever before. The change is remarkable compared to when I visited a few months ago in spring. In the center of the town, traffic is congested, with cars creeping along like snails. Every time a horse-drawn cart or handcart tries to get in the line, the drivers sound their horns in irritation. Amid the morning rush hour, there are women walking proudly with their long scarves billowing in the wind. This is a sight that makes me aware of the increasing number of women who are taking off their burkas. The majority are career-oriented women heading off for work. For the first time in six years, women are returning to their former workplaces and getting back their jobs. It is one of the changes brought about in September 2001, by the collapse of the Taliban regime, which forbid women to work. Maharie, 20 years old, teaches English at a private English school as well as at a junior-high school. At the private school, class is divided according to the students' English abilities _ their gender is not a consideration. There are many male students who are older than Maharie. During the Taliban regime, Maharie took the risk of teaching English and math in her home to neighborhood children. "If the Taliban showed up, I would have said that I was teaching them the Koran," she says. Fortunately, no one gave her away. Now she can teach with no such fears, which, she says, makes her extremely happy. "Afghan men do nothing but brag _ most are just lazy. I know that once I get married, it'll be hard to keep my job and also do the housework. So I'm not thinking about marriage yet, but if I am going to get married, I would like someone who is both wealthy and intelligent." She smiles as she says. Played a Role in Actual Fighting "Women weren't able to get an education or a job, so I had to content myself with housekeeping and child rearing. Now that the Taliban regime is gone, I feel reborn." Safiha, a Tajik, is a servicewoman who works at the military camp of the former Northern Alliance. She has broad shoulders, muscular arms, and is a sturdy build. As she walks through the dimly lit narrow corridors of the barracks, male soldiers salute to her _ she is their senior officer. "As part of the national army, I took part in a number of battles and played a role in the actual fighting. I visited villages and confiscated guns, pistols, and other arms. I've parachuted 150 times when I was in the paratroops," she says. This March, on International Women's Day, Safiha was appointed leader for a women's troop that was reestablished on that day. This troop, first organized in 1990, takes POWs to jail, and engages in espionage. She has under her command over 70 women. "If I were ordered by the national defense minister to fight the resisting forces, I would take up arms immediately. Wearing an army uniform, I am afraid of nothing _ the physical difference between men and women mean nothing." At present, the national army has 600 women soldiers, many of whom were forced to retire during the Taliban regime, but have returned with enthusiasm to restore peace in Afghanistan. Female Doctors Working at Full Blast The only profession women were allowed to practice during the Taliban regime was medicine. Traditionally, female patients do not expose their skin to the eyes of male doctors, and so the Taliban was grudgingly forced to admit female doctors. In the Rabiah Balkhi Women's hospital close to the center of Kabul works a woman doctor, Gullnama, performing surgical operations. She is a little tired from the endless flow of patients. The UN reports that an estimated 1.2 million Afghan refugees had returned home by July 2002. Consequently, Kabul's population is growing at a prodigious rate, and there are many who suffer from diseases resulting from dire poverty. Over 50 women were waiting at the entrance of the hospital when I went to visit. Alternately sitting and standing, they anxiously waited for their turn. Women with their children were particularly conspicuous. The white-tiled surgery room was about 10m2 in size. A small window let in the sunlight, and the room had a cheerful atmosphere. However, medical equipment was lacking, especially the monitors to show blood pressure and body temperature and the electrocardiograms that are vital in an operation. The two surgeons, two assistant doctors, and the anesthetist who compose the hospital staff are all women. I was able to watch a Caesarean section in which the mother survived but the child did not. The stillborn baby was wrapped in a soft cloth and laid in a corner of the room. There are many stillbirths in Afghanistan due to poverty and malnutrition. Because of the increasing number of patients, the women doctors at these clinics have almost no time to rest. The little time that they do have is a mere 15 minutes or so between surgeries, just enough to quiet their nerves. In a country where a burka costs about five dollars, their salary is 30 to 40 dollars a month. Life is harsh, but still, Gullnama feels a deep sense of satisfaction with her job. "Women living in villages around the country are denied going to school or to work because of their parents' decisions. If the women do not follow the customs, they can be beaten up by their fathers or husbands. But being a doctor, there is no discrimination between men and women. That's what I like about it." Bringing Education Back to Pre-Civil War Levels Sherifa, a Pashtun, was the main chemistry teacher at the most prestigious girls' school in Kabul before the Taliban came in to power. She too, has returned to her former workplace and is now the headmistress. Every morning at 7:30, before the entire school of 3,732 students, she reads the Koran and gives a five-minute talk. Sometimes her lectures are given in a strict tone. "Women's education was at a very high level in the 1970s during King Zahir Shah's reign, or in the late 1980s during the Najibullah government. Now we have to start from zero. We first have to improve the level of both the students and teachers. In the school, I have set up two message boxes: one for the students and one for the teachers, in hope that they will let me know their ideas." The long-lasting civil war has led many students to suffer from PTSD. Sherifa says, "Some students suddenly start laughing or crying, or fall into a state of shock. The teachers have to take these children to the drinking fountain and wash their hands, faces, and massage their bodies." Her most immediate goal is to teach the students about peace and freedom, for education reform is one of the pivots to restoring peace in Afghanistan. In June 2002, when Karzai was elected president at the Loya Jirga, about 1,600 delegates from around the country were summoned. Of the 200 women delegates, Sherifa was one of them. "I cast a vote for Mr. Karzai then, but the wonderful point was that there was a woman candidate for president, too. I think that women can work as hard as men. Only two women now hold a place in the cabinet which are the Minister for Women's Affairs and Minister for Health Affairs, but I hope that there are more in the future." Anger at Military Cliques that Talk About Peace On the other hand, Sherifa is not content with some things. "The people sitting in the front row at the Loya Jirga were military cliques and high-powered people from the provinces. Those are the ones responsible for shattering Afghanistan into pieces, and why are they now talking about peace? Why didn't they act for peace before they started the war?" At the Loya Jirga, women speak up for their rights and their freedom. Many male delegates were astonished at the women's expressiveness. Jamila Mujahed is also one of the delegates chosen for the Loya Jirga. She is the chief editor for a women's magazine "Mararai," which came into publication after the collapse of the Taliban. She is angry that her people are still arming themselves. "Boys and youths who have had no education are being forced into provincial military cliques to join a jihad." "Mararai" is a magazine that conveys Afghan women's real opinions to the outside world and is attracting attention from foreign media. Jamila has become well known to the foreign press as the person to interview. But as "Mararai" becomes more popular as an icon for independent women, Jamila receives harsh criticism from conservative powerful figures and military cliques. "Those men think that women are free as they are now, so why want more, why join the Loya Jirga. They just don't understand." Although Jamila says so, she feels she is exposing herself to danger. Whenever she goes out for an interview, she takes off her burka and puts on a scarf, but when going to the market or visiting a relative, she keeps on her burka. But, she says, she will continue her profession. She will not change her editorial principles. "I love my job and I am proud of it," she says. Breaking Loose from All Restraints Shakiba Mariam was one whose fate changed drastically. Together with her two sisters, she was an ordinary carpet weaver trying to make a living out of it. But on the day the Taliban fled from Kabul, Shakiba took off her burka and went outside with only a scarf wrapped around her head. Her neighbors were shocked; people walking past her looked at her as though she were mad. " I wanted to take off my burka for a long time," Shakiba says. "It was wonderful to know that women were claiming their rights, and I took it off so naturally." Nothing made her afraid. The next day, when television broadcasts started again, Shakiba was selected as the first woman announcer and appeared on screen. What awaited her after the program was a crowd of 350 journalists from around the world, waiting to interview her. She became an icon of "freedom from the Taliban" and was introduced all over the world. She has become a star announcer and now takes on nine TV and radio programs. From the late 1970s for over 20 years, Afghanistan has been scarred with wars and conflicts. At long last, peace is returning to the country. The role women will play is immensely important. Women who were not able to work under the Taliban regime are being freed from old restrictions. It is their great ambitions that are the real forces behind Afghanistan's reconstruction. (Published in AERA, September 16, 2002 issue)