Afghan

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Two women journalist killed

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It has happened again, now it’s the second time that two women journalists Shikeba Sanga Amaj and Zakia Zaki were assassinated, within a week. Shikeba was shot anonymously on may 31th in her home. She was the correspondent of Shamshad Private TV. According to her family Shikeba shouted for her mother simultaneously when the gun fired and while her parents were running to her room. They were only in time to be witnesses over the bloody dead body of Shikeba. She was 22 and worked since a year with Shashad private TV channel. She is the second woman journalist killed within two years.

Just five days later another journalist, Zakia Zaki, a very effective reporter and journalist trainer in private Radio Solh (Peace Radio) channel based in Parwan province was killed in her bed. She had started with her work eight years ago in a region which was out of the Taliban control. She was a very active women journalist, known in the country and she had her critics always against injustice, criminals and Mujahideen.
Just four days later after Shikba’s death, six men who committed the assassination were arrested. The police security chief pointed out that these six men are involved in Hezbe Islami Hekmatiar party.

The reason why the two women journalists were killed still remain unknown. It is almost two years agoo, since Shaima Rezaie, another female private Tolo TV channel reporter had been killed in her home anonymously, in May 2005. And it is still unknown why she was killed. It always happens that people do not agree that women work in society. Afghanistan is very complicated and very traditional.

Women have a very limited space for development and for working side by side with men. Afghan men always believe women should stay at home; the men feed them and let them go out. Many others believe that the current situation is too traditional and not ready for women to work in media. Many Afghan men believe their traditions don’t allow them to let their women work outside; they honor to have them at home, rather than have them being active in the Afghan society.

Six Million Children at Risk

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Recently I heard shocking news from Noor Mohammad Wasil, the deputy minister of social work. Lately he visited an orphanage in Mazar-e-Sharif, northern Afghanistan. According to Noor Mohammad, 6 million children are at risk of sexual abuse, violence and harsh child labor. According to the deputy of minister of social work, 50% of these children are under 19. Since 6 million out of 12 million got the opportunity to go to school, the rest of the children are under exposure of different threats and abuse.
According to his estimation, children are exposed to addiction of narcotics, child abuse, marriage under the legal age and smuggling.
The government and international community must pay attention, since these are serious threats for the future of the children.

If you walk the streets of Kabul, hundreds of them are begging. They are homeless or they their parents during the eternal war. Today lots of international NGOs are involved in different projects to rebuild Afghanistan (in reality they aren’t rebuilding) but they don’t care how the residents are.

P.S: I want to ask you if you are able to help Afghan children. Please collect and send me clothing, notebooks, pens and money.
We are going to launch a few projects in different districts to help the children to at least keep them war in the next winter.
Already many people from Italy, The Netherlands and the US asked to send me some clothes and shoes for Afghan children, but unfortunately it wasn’t easy for me to find the right people in the area where they live.

If it doesn’t cost you much please send your gifts to Afghan poor children individually or if you know each other in your city please act as a group and send me your gifts. I promise to transfer your gifts to Afghan children.
I will document and take pictures to send to back to you.