Winter in Afghanistan

Like many Westerners, I scoffed at the idea of enduring Kabul's harsh winters. That warning must be for all of these Texans! I survived 4 Chicago winters! They just aren't used to being cold.

However, I'm starting to realize why winter is so difficult in this region. First of all, at nearly 6,000 feet in elevation, Kabul receives snow by the foot! This buildup leads to avalanches that destroy homes, leaving the inhabitants to become frostbitten in sub-zero temperatures. Secondly, there are two options for getting heat. Electricity is rare and absent in most Afghan homes. Even if one can afford an electric heater, the electricity will go out for a few crucial hours every evening. Most Afghans use the second option: fire. If you choose to heat it with kerosene you run the risk of paying exorbitant prices during the winter months, especially if the winter lasts longer than expected. This kind is also more dangerous, as too much kerosene could drip into the oven and cause an explosion. You might instead choose a wood-burning bukhari. This is the least expensive option. But Afghanistan is a very poor country. In the absence of wood, people resort to burning plastic or bits of trash.

As maintaining heat is so difficult, many homes lose their indoor plumbing in winter. The pipes freeze, and without a steady source of heat, they will not thaw until it is closer to spring. Families pump water from the well and store it in a container to use for washing dishes, bathing, cooking, etc.

Washing clothes is another story! If you have working pipes, you can use a washing machine, but without a dryer, it will take about a week to air-dry your clothes in such cold weather!

But before we decide to curl up under several blankets next to the bukhari and tell our colleagues not to disturb us until springtime, think of one positive side to winter in Afghanistan: in winter, the weather is so bad that even the Taliban stay home! :) Enjoy central heating, friends!

Reverse Shock

I'm about to head back to Ktown. I won't say that I was exactly "shocked" when coming back, but here are the things that played in the back of my head:

• Those men and women in hip-length T-shirts...have they no shame?
• Geez, people, cover up!
• We have too many electric devices on--we're going to blow a fuse! Quick, turn something off!
• Wow, this Internet is fast!
• Why is this person apologizing that the Internet is kinda slow? We can stream!
• Cover up!
• Let's go to the grocery store and get vegetables, fruit, cake, and alcohol...at midnight...because we can :)
• Internet is really nice...now what can we do to spend more time on it?
• Hmm...this packaging would make great fuel for the bukhari (wood burning stove).
• No security updates!

I am really enjoying my time here. This is in hopes that writing this will help stave off the desire to tell those around me (my poor family) how different life is over there.

A Marathon, Not a Dash

http://kabulpress.org/my/spip.php?article94563

Ms. Basir Ahang must have been raised outside of Afghanistan. As a Westerner, I can relate to her view. Violence against women, which takes so many forms in Afghanistan, must end! Most Afghans even agree with us!

However, the approach must not come from the West, or from the minority of Afghans who agree with the international community.

If, as the above article reports, 87% of Afghan women have experienced physical violence in some way (forced marriage, physical/sexual harassment), and we assume that this violence was committed by the opposite gender, what have we learned about the men in this society? These acts are not committed by those on the margins of society. If the "Elimination of Violence Against Women Law" was enforced, as this author calls for, what will happen to quite conceivably the majority of men in the society?

And does this mean that the majority of Afghan men are "bad guys"? Decades of war has indeed caused psychological damage to both men and women, but should we really demonize the entire gender?

I believe that putting a stop to violence against women does not begin and end with changing the law or enforcing it. Instead, Afghans (not Afghans who have lived abroad and are back now that the Taliban are out of power) should have open discussions about these issues (and I hope that they will include women too). If they are making laws, let's start small. If they choose which acts are the most destructive, they can decide to change them a bit at a time.

Change will not come by demonizing the majority of men and telling them that they are incapable of making moral decisions. Let the men be the ones to influence change, to shame the men who deviate from these agreed upon mores.

We cannot expect Afghanistan's gender issues to be solved overnight, either. Step by step, things can change. But if an external force pushes too hard too quickly, the reaction will put Afghanistan into even more chaos!