Wanderlustress: "Hear our Voices"

IRIN is a UN coordinated effort to bridge the information gap for NGOs and International Aid workers doing humanitarian relief world-wide. Their reports are collected from some of the most remote and underdeveloped places in the world, and the information is submitted by “Governments, aid workers, civil societies, disaster specialists, members of the public.”

Their current web special is a project called, “Hear our Voices.” It is a compilation of stories collected from Asia and Africa that are told in the people’s own words. What we should note from these testimonials is not a plea for handouts from those of us in the “first world”, but rather a voice of how they are affected by crisis, and the ways they cope in their day-to-day lives.

“A common thread that runs through many of the personal accounts is that they do not want to remain dependant on aid but want help to enable them to rebuild their lives, and to ensure a future free of re-victimization for themselves and for their children.”

I will occasionally post each story here so that you can understand my motivations for the life I’ve chosen for the next two years. Here's the first:

"Afghanistan: Mother attending literacy classes"

Qadi Gul's story

"My name is Qadi Gul. I am forty years old and a mother of ten, four sons and six daughters. I live in Ghazni city in central Afghanistan. Every one of my children is illiterate, so is my husband. One day at a wedding, I met the head of women's affairs department who told me they had a literacy course and encouraged me to attend.

"I did not believe I would ever learn anything because I am so old. But in ten days, I learned how to count up to 100 and can write the name of my country 'Afghanistan'. There are 200 of us women studying literacy and some vocational training in Ghazni Women's Affairs department. At first, my husband did not let me go to the literacy course, because he thought a 40-year-old person was too old to learn. But I have found that many women are interested to join our class after they saw me write and count. Even though it is too dangerous for my daughters to attend the course as it is too far from home, there would be many girls like my daughters who would attend such courses if they were in the villages and near community residential areas". (Photo: IRIN)