Afghan women celebrate culture at Women's Day event

Published March 15, 2009
By Capt. Stacie N. Shafran
Provincial Reconstruction Team Panjshir

BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan -- With burkas and families set aside for a few hours, nearly 125 Afghan women and girls relaxed, enjoyed one another's company and shared their culture during an International Women's Day celebration at the Astana Guesthouse in Bazarak District, March 8.

The event, organized by the Panjshir Director of Women's Affairs, featured a series of guest speakers who highlighted economic, political and social challenges as well as accomplishments of the valley's women.

"Panjshir has very smart women," said Deputy Governor Abdul Kabiri. "They are working beside the men for the development of society. With education, we can have doctors and teachers...our society needs everything."

One of the most popular presenters, a former 17-year Afghan judge named Rahila, received recognition as 'Panjshir's Woman of the Year.'

During her passionate speech, Rahila focused her thoughts on the Afghan education system. "We tend to pay more attention to boys, valuing them more than the girls, who are often uneducated," she said. "Women are half of the society. They can participate in whatever they want."

The judge acknowledged that during the majority of her career, men were displeased with her role as a judge. "Don't be discouraged," she said.
"One day your daughters can be like me."

Rahila distributed educational materials to the women and girls and talked to as many as she could before the event ended.

Another guest speaker, Air Force Tech. Sgt. Dawn Allison-Hess, the Panjshir Provincial Reconstruction Team's intelligence officer and representative of the PRT's women's affairs section, shared a similarity between Afghan and American women.

"The reason I can stand before you as a woman serving in the U.S. military is because of the hard work, sacrifice and dedication of countless women who came before me," said Allison-Hess, who's deployed from Goodfellow Air Force Base, Texas.

"I am grateful for their dedication, as I know your daughters and granddaughters will be grateful to you for selflessly striving to secure their futures."

Following the speeches, the women and girls conversed with one another and feasted on a traditional Afghan lunch of pilau, a rice dish made with raisons and carrots, meat and vegetables.

"This was an opportunity of a lifetime to meet with the women who influence the lives of Panjshir," said Air Force Maj. Valerie Trump, the PRT's nurse practitioner, who is deployed from Nellis AFB, Nev.

"The female judge and the doctors impressed me the most because of their hearts and their powerful minds. It was a proud day for me to be a part of their celebration. I believe the Panjshir women are the key to affecting change in their families, and ultimately, this will improve the quality of life here."