Laughter. Are you serious?

This is the response I received after I told two men who are working for NATO-ISAF – one from Turkey, one from the United States – that I am working on campaigns to push NATO-ISAF and PRT Commanders to design and incorporate gender policies into their strategies and operations.

Prior to my arrival to Kabul, I envisaged myself providing support for campaigns Afghan women’s rights directed at Afghan society and the Government of Afghanistan. How wrong I was!! For the 2 months I have been in Afghanistan, I have spent 90% of my time and energy advocating for the importance of gender considerations and Afghan women’s rights, not to the Government of Afghanistan or to Afghan society, but to the international community in Afghanistan. I have been pushing NATO-ISAF, PRT Commanders and the Civil Military Working Group that is drafting the new Civil Military Cooperation (CIMIC) Guidelines for Afghanistan to understand the importance of gender.

We have to understand that NATO is very different from NATO-ISAF, and that there are different national models for PRTs. PRTs are very, very autonomous. They have a lot of freedom. How they operate depends on the area of operation and their nation’s priorities. In addition, a lot depends on the amount of funds they have. There are haves and have nots among the 25 PRTs. The Swedish PRT's budget is something like $40,000, while many of the US PRTs have budgets that are in the 10s of millions. This is why awareness raising/public awareness is almost more important than pushing for an operational policy change at the NATO-ISAF level. PRT Commanders have to understand that incorporating gender policy in their strategies and operations will lead to operational effectiveness and influence operation success. AWN has succeeded in getting an invitation to one of the quarterly PRT Commander Conferences, which will be held at the end of August. At the Conference, AWN will not present the importance of gender considerations to all 200 people, but they will be part of a Sub-Group on Gender within the frame of the Conference. It is also important for AWN to discuss this issue with individual PRTs. We succeeded in getting NATO’s support to organize a lunch with some PRT Commanders, with NATOs assistance, and MOWA and AWN.

Regarding NATO-ISAF, for the past two months we were told that the PRT Working Group is drafting a Policy Note on Gender. The PRT Working Group is made up of representatives of embassies and national offices of the PRT Troop Contributing Nations. Draft Policy Notes are presented to the entire Working Group for comment and editing. After everyone has had their say, Policy Notes are considered for approval by the PRT Executive Steering Committee (ESC). The ESC is made up of the Ambassadors and key national representatives. This is NOT a fast process and it moves with "all due deliberate speed," we were told. As you might have noticed, no where in this process is there a consultative phase where representatives from the Government of Afghanistan or civil society can provide feedback and suggestions. I was just informed today that the PRT Working Group decided not to pursue a Policy Note on Gender at this time. The Policy Note on Gender was the only thing that Ambassador Everts, NATO SCR, could point to as proof that gender is a priority for NATO. Now that there is absolutely no indication that gender is a priority for NATO, AWN needs to push NATO and PRTs even harder.

PRTs need to be more transparent and accountable to the people of Afghanistan. AWN, with my support, are advocating for the importance of consulting with the people when developing these Policy Notes, and, in this case, consulting with Afghan women. Women need to be incorporated into all levels of decision making processes to maximize their contribution to the reconstruction process.

We determined that CIMIC is an incredibly important front to take on. There are new CIMIC Guidelines being drafted for Afghanistan at this time. As it stands, gender considerations are not incorporated into the guidelines. They are being drafted off of other peace operations and successful CIMIC models, so the argument goes. The point is that gender has not really been incorporated into the operational (tactical-practical) levels in peace operations before. However, there are a few good examples of gender being successfully ‘operationalized’ in EUFOR missions. I have secured a spot for AWN at the next Civil Military Working Group to argue why it is important to incorporate gender considerations into the Guidelines.

Apparently, I am not alone in advocating for gender sensitivity and gender awareness to parts of the international community in Afghanistan. A few days ago I had a meeting with the Sr. Adviser on Police and Gender to the Ministry of Interior of the Government of Afghanistan, who is contracted by the Canadian Government to work with MoI. She told me that the international police reform contingent said they do not have time or the resources to incorporate gender into the reform process. “We can always go back and incorporate gender later,” they remarked. Can you?

What to look for? White or red Toyota Corollas. Cars with tinted windows. Irregularly placed donkeys.

What to know? Most suicide bombers blow themselves up before noon. Stay away from armored convoys. Stay away from the Ministries.

The timeline below reflects the reported anti governmental incidents and threats in Kabul over the course of the past week:

15 June 2007
Suicide bomber blew himself up near NATO convoy, killing 4 ISAF personnel.

17 June 2007
A suicide bomber disguised as a beggar walked onto a bus that was transporting officers and instructors of the Afghanistan Police Academy. Initial reports claimed that 22 people were killed, 35 injured.

20 June 2007
One suicide bomber blew himself up next to a national official’s vehicle. No one was injured. The police were hunting two other suspected suicide bombers.

21 June 2007
The US Department of State issued a warning that well-dressed, English speaking suicide bombers would try to strike at expat hangouts. No reported incidents.

I wish I could easily spell out for you what it feels like to be on the look out for something that seems very obvious but is so very abstract in reality – the suicide bomber. The best description that I could come up with is that it is something between fear, resignation, denial and certainty:
• It won’t happen to me because I am being smart and I am working so far under the radar that I will not be targeted.
• It could happen to me because it is about being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

When asked how people – nationals and expats – feel about the recent security incidents, the answer is always the same: This is Afghanistan. I understand completely for my friends, colleagues and family members who are not in Afghanistan that this explanation – This is Afghanistan – is convoluted. In lieu of providing you with an outline of the complicated history of why this makes sense, I can write that no NGOs or international organizations are talking about leaving yet. When one decides to come to Afghanistan, they understand that they are taking a risk. In the past 5 years, the situation has been worse than it is now and it has been better and then worse again and so on.

How do I feel about the security situation? I have no basis for comparison other than the last three weeks I have been in Kabul. All I can do is listen to the security professionals and feed off of my friends and colleagues who have been here much longer than I. For the time being, I feel fine. I am being productive. I have a social life. However, I am fully aware that things could get worse very quickly. More than anything else, I think that this is the most important thing to understand.

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The Ministry of Finance decided not to support an $11 million project that they initially supported on family planning, or birth spacing, because they thought it was only going to be a $500,000 program. The Deputy Minister of Finance, the appropriate UNAMA representative had already approved this project. The final ok was to come from the Minister of Finance. At a meeting called to discuss the next steps after approval of this project, a 22 year old man, a representative of the Ministry of Finance said, “On behalf of the Ministry of Finance, I am here to say that we do not approve this project. What do you need $11 million for family planning?” He provided no other explanation for the Ministry retracting their approval.

Why is family planning important in Afghanistan? Fertility and infant and maternal mortality rates are among the highest in the world. A woman should have the right to choose how many children she wants to have. 70% of the population makes less than $2 USD a day to support their families. There are multiple reasons why family planning should be a priority for the government of Afghanistan. They had the chance to do something but decided against it. Why? What can the international community do to suggest to the government how important family planning is in order to have healthy mothers and children in Afghanistan?

Daily, I develop way more questions than I do answers. This country is becoming more of an enigma to me the longer I am here.

Afghanistan has the most delicious and beautiful mangoes (imported from Pakistan).

What follows is a step-by-step lesson on how to eat a mango the Afghan way:

1) Cut down the middle.
2) Twist both sides. One side clockwise, the other counter clockwise.
3) One side will be released. The other side will maintain the pit.
4) Dig in with a spoon.
5) Once you have scrapped the first side clean, grab a hold of the pit with the skin, and twist again. The pit will come free completely. Dig in with a spoon.

So good.....

“Afghanistan may be the only country in the world where during the last century kings and politicians have been made and undone by struggles relating to women’s status,” scholar Huma Ahmed-Gosh aptly states. Frequently, the historical positions of Afghan women are only understood in terms of during the Taliban and after the Taliban. These terms erase the very complicated history of women’s rights in Afghanistan. This fight has been ongoing since at least the late 1800s. Some of the earliest attempts at emancipation and social reform in the Muslim world took place in Afghanistan. This complicated history was what drove me to want to work for the largest national women’s rights organization in Afghanistan.

Last week, I met AWN’s Executive Director, A. Within one hour of beginning a conversation with her about my role at AWN, she proposed that I stay with AWN for 2 years or so. What an unanticipated suggestion! A argued that if one really cares about women’s rights in Afghanistan than one will stay for the long term. At this time it is not realistic for me to consider staying in Afghanistan for the long-term. I was frank and honest with A.

The Advocacy Project’s Fellowship program was conceived for short-term placement of Fellows with AP’s partners all over the world, I explained. While explaining what I could do for AWN in the short-term, I found myself agreeing with her.

And yet, how do you measure conviction? The amount of time you devote to something?

Upon reflection, I truly believe that it's not how long you spend working on something, but how you choose to spend your time.

I will revisit this blog posting at the end of my Fellowship.

“NATO can do a lot to bring peace, rehabilitation and reconstruction if they ensure the people’s participation in their overall program,” as one women’s rights activist aptly remarked.

The people of Afghanistan know very little about NATO’s mandate in their country. Seldom do people differentiate between NATO’s presence in Afghanistan, which is the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), and the United States’ Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). Whereas OEF’s primary mission is counter-terrorism, ISAF’s primary role is to support the Government of Afghanistan in providing and maintaining security in order to enable reconstruction and development.

In practice, this takes the form of conducting patrols, embedding advisors within Afghan National Army units, and overseeing the operation of 25 Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) located throughout Afghanistan. Described as “the leading edge” of NATO efforts in Afghanistan, PRTs combine civilian and military personnel to coordinate security and reconstruction efforts for the surrounding area.

On 3 June 2007, NATO representatives and Afghan women parliamentarians and representatives from civil society met in mutual recognition of the important role that both Afghan women and NATO must play in building sustainable peace and security in Afghanistan.

At the meeting the Political Adviser to NATO’s Sr. Civilian Representative stated that ISAF – PRTs would come up with “some sort of Policy Note on Gender for PRTs” and left it at that. On the one hand, this seemed like a step in the right direction. On the other hand, there was no mention of collaboration by either side. AWN’s representatives accepted NATO doing something for Afghan women’s rights, without questioning how they would go about doing it. Were they settling? Are they empowered enough to voice their concerns to NATO but not enough to question what the means to the ends would be?

24 hours before a meeting I organized with AWN, NATO and other relevant actors to discuss how to design and implement gender policies for PRTs will take place, the Political Advisor to the NATO Senior Civilian Representative delicately informed me that NATO-ISAF does not really have any sort of gender policy. There is not even an institutional foundation to work off of! NATO has no gender policies, but 50% of the population is female.

Let's see if we can plant a seed for change…

So here I am in a city where you can buy counterfeit Coca-a-Cola and Kit-Kat and stunning traditional handmade pottery, weavings, and glass.

Kabul is both beautiful and destitute. Both hopeful and depressing.

In one week, I had affirmed and shattered the belief I really understand what I am here to work for – women’s rights.

During N’s son’s going away party last Thursday, the neighbor came by to speak to N. Our neighbor’s son married a young woman within the last year. Unfortunately, the bride’s family disapproved of the match. It is still unclear how they were legally married, but they are legally registered as husband and wife.

Due to their disapproval with the marriage, they had our neighbor’s son put in jail. Although they are well connected, they could not find a way to justify the city keeping him in jail. They decided to pursue a different kind of recourse. Phonetically pronounced as “bad”, the chosen recourse is extra legal but widely practiced. Essentially, “bad” translates into “in kind”. This practice is used to settle debts of all kinds, including gambling debts. The bride’s family wants to steal one of our neighbor’s nine daughters to settle the score. If they succeeded, the girl would be forced to marry or treated as a slave.

Our neighbors knew that the bride’s family would have done just this. Last Thursday, our neighbor, her husband, 9 daughters, 1 son and new daughter-in-law were preparing to leave everything their home for good in the middle of the night to escape to Peshawar, Pakistan, just across the border, about 6 hours away from Kabul. None of them have passports, but cars can easily drive back and forth across this unmonitored border. Once in Pakistan, this family will have to register as refugees for the fourth time in 15 years.

This event both affirmed and shattered the belief that I really understand what I am here to work for – women’s rights. I have worked on women’s issues in the broader context of democractization for the last 6 years. In the abstract, I “know” why I wanted to come to Afghanistan to work for women’s rights. I “know” what obstacles the women’s rights movement in Afghanistan faced – lack of political participation; child marriage; forced marriage; lack of opportunities for education; poor maternal health care; women’s activists and public figures are regularly threatened, beaten and murdered; endemic domestic violence; professional intimidation; few economic and social rights and the list goes on. And then it is happening right next door.

There were about 6 of us, most of us working on gender issues, one with UNDP, one with the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, others with NGOs, and yet we were helpless. We are going to try to put our neighbors in touch with some people to help them once they are settled in Peshawar. Maybe write an open letter to circulate. But this happens every day. With this event, I realized that it was not Afghanistan that I am so eager to work in, but Afghanistan under these conditions.

Despite the women’s movement in Afghanistan having many successes in the recent years- the Taliban was ousted from power, the Bonn Agreement was signed, a new Constitution has enshrined the rights of women, a democratically elected government is in power, women are serving in the Parliament, millions of girls are going to school – it is not linear, incremental progress. The social, economic and political positions of women in Afghanistan are still some of the worst in the world.

Within the first few minutes I entered AWN for the first time, I was greeted by the woman who I had been communicating with for months and whom I was supposed to work most closely with. She greeted me with, “It is so nice to meet you! I quit. Today is my last day.” Needless to say, I was surprised. Regardless, she, I will refer to her S, briefed me on who is who and outlined for me what AWN is currently working on, which I will go into in detail in a later blog.

At lunch-time, about 8 or 9 of the 21 staff members at AWN sat down together for their daily serving of one of several different Afghan dishes. The S brought in a digital camera to take pictures of the rest of the staff on her last day. I insisted that I take pictures so that she could be in the pictures, not just taking them. After a few, I told S, AWN’s Program Manager, a 20 year old woman, who I will refer to as R, and one of AWN’s finance staff, an 18 year old man, who I will refer to as SH, to squish together in order to get all three of them in the picture. R turned cherry red and covered her face with her head scarf. SH too blushed. S said chuckling, “Come on! This is Afghanistan!” In the end, I played it off as a joke, but it was a close one!

This summer, as a 2007 Peace Fellow, I will work for the Advocacy Project, a Washington, DC-based NGO, but with the Afghan Women's Network's (AWN) office in Kabul. The Advocacy Project (AP) provides focused support for community-based advocates promoting peace and human rights by helping their partners use and disseminate information more effectively.

Founded in 1995 as a coordination body, AWN’s foci are advocacy, networking and capacity building. Between 2003 and 2004, AWN’s campaigns played a central role in assuring women’s rights have a place in the new Afghan constitution and mobilizing women to vote in the 2003 elections. The “progress” that AWN and other organizations and women fighting for Afghan women’s empowerment have been simple or linear. Progressive women are simultaneously a symbol of change and a target. This blog is in part a testimony of the accomplishments, obstacles and risks that these women and their network negotiate through on a daily basis. Since the Constitution of Afghanistan was approved more than 3 years ago, the fight for improved conditions for women in Afghanistan if far from over.

Advocacy is the act of arguing on behalf of a particular idea, issue or person. In my capacity as one of AP’s Peace Fellows, I will work to increase AWN's capacity to produce and disseminate information about their work and their issues while at the same time supporting their advocacy and service programs in the field. With AP's strategic guidance, I will not only be advocating on behalf of AWN, but advocating for an idea – women's rights – that I care about, while keeping the particularities of context in focus, and diving into a personal and professional challenge, which will lead to personal and professional growth.

I am eager to share with you amusing missives, both frustrating and exciting personal and professional anecdotes, and updates on the Afghan Women's Network's activities. You will be able to follow my experiences in Kabul as I regularly will be posting this blog.

Four days and more than 7000 miles to go. Managing ones assumptions and expectations seems futile, especially when I have been working to with AP and AWN to develop a tentative work plan. They have inevitably been incorporated into this plan. In addition to feeling very flexible, I’m preparing to have my assumptions shattered and for the priorities that structure my work plan to shift very quickly. I'm both excited and apprehensive.

I am trying to be conscious that I will be working in a country, a city, an NGO where rights, political power, security, might all be understood in different terms than I will be able to immediately understand. Based on my previous professional experiences, I understand that all of these are contested and abstract concepts that are frequently articulated in local forms. That being said … women in societies everywhere suffer from internalized forms of oppression and both explicit and implicit forms of violence. I will work side by side with Afghan women in support of their fight, while bearing in mind that on many levels it is our fight.