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Out of the House and Back to School: Afghan Girls Start or Restart Their Education
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22581 |
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Section : |
LIFE
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| Issue
Date : |
10 / 2002 |
1,789 Words |
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Text and photos by Juliette Terzieff
Juliette Terzieff is a photojournalist based in Sofia,
Bulgaria. |
"We have a real future now, an opportunity to build something for ourselves, our country, without the threat of rockets and killings hanging over our heads," says the diminutive 37-year-old English teacher.
Like many of her generation, Afsa can barely remember a time without war. Born and raised in Kabul, she survived the Russian occupation, brutal civil war, and a murderously despotic regime. An indestructible sense of hope never left her even in the darkest days of 1994--95, when rockets rained down on the city.
Now Afsa's struggle has evolved from one of mere survival. As one of 142 teachers tasked with instructing over 4,500 students at Kabul's Zarghuna High School, she faces an incredible challenge. "This is the best chance we've ever had to move forward," she asserts. "People are tired of the killing and want to live normal, quiet lives."
What makes Zarghuna so special? Quite simply, it is a courtyard filled with an entirely female student body, age 6--24. Their excited giggles and chatter would have been unthinkable a year ago, when the ultraconservative Taliban regime ruled most of Afghanistan.
The girls gather in small groups to discuss their studies, excitedly pouncing on any foreigner they see to practice their fledgling English. "What's you name? Where you from?" they shout ecstatically.
When the Taliban swept to power in the mid-1990s, women were barred from working and encouraged to remain indoors at all times. Girls were forbidden education, and
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