SHABNAM DAWRAN / AFGAN TV ANNOUNCER
I shared my post-Taliban grievances on social media. The UK’s offi ce for refugees has off ered to take me out of Afghanistan. I came to England leaving all my savings behind. I wish Afghanistan was as peaceful as it is here.
When a child steps into this world, whether it is a girl or a boy, remains under the infl uence of the family and society. In a country where war and victimization were the fi rst to come to mind when Afghanistan was mentioned, my father completed his higher education in the military fi eld and
served the country as a pilot in the army. I remember from my childhood the days when Hamid Karzai became the head of the interim government and the
traces of the Taliban were erased. The sounds of fi ghter jets are still ringing in my ear. My sister and I couldn’t sleep until the morning out of fear. By the fi rst hours of the morning, we used to collect, accumulate and sell shell casings that fell in the garden of the house to blacksmiths. And with the money we earned, we used to buy junk food. We used to be happy collecting shell casings, not knowing how many lives those casings took…
My father, who had been on duty for a long time, came home one day covered in blood. During the mission, a bullet hit him in the foot. Since we were small, my father’s wound didn’t not concern us, we would only be glad of the gifts he brought.
We are four sisters. We couldn’t go outside ever. There was no girls’ school in our town. When my youngest sister was born, we moved to another city. Where our new house was, there was a school, a hospital and a bazaar.
WE WERE INSTRUCTED OUTSIDE ON WAXCLOTH
We couldn’t speak Persian because we were from a Pashtun family. As I couldn’t speak Persian, I don’t like school and I didn’t want to go. At that time, schools did not have buildings. We were following our classes on waxcloth on the fl oor in hot weather.
After a while, we started our lessons under a tent distributed by UNICEF. US soldiers came to visit our school. They gave me a notebook, a pen and a toy as a gift, as I could count to 10 in English. They took a picture of my sister and me.
The next day that photo was published in the newspaper. Fortunately, my father is an educated man. While my father welcomed the news as normal, my relatives criticized it, saying that it was a shame that “the photos of the girls were published in the newspaper”.
COMMUNITY PRESSURE HAS INCREASED BECAUSE I WAS AN ANNOUNCER
While watching TV with my father, I used to dream of being able to present news like announcers on the screen. I was always the host when any program was organized at school.
Since my native language is Pashto, my speech, writing and diction were good. After graduating from school, I began to present morning programs on a private television channel. That’s how I stepped into the media world.
I was faced with the community pressure for presenting programs on television. Many of our relatives have stopped contacting us because I was hosting the programme. I continued my work regardless of the rumors. I have given up neither my job nor my goals. My parents have never spared their support from me.
We had economic difficulties. My dad wasn’t working anymore. My sister and I were working and making a living at home. As a result of my hard work, I began to present the news. Being a newscaster also means an increase in salary. I presented a news program for 2 years on Jowandon television, where I first started my job.
A SUICIDE ATTACK WAS CARRIED OUT ON THE TV I WORK FOR
I received a job offer from the Shamshad Group, a popular television channel among the Pashtun. I was getting more and more known among the public. This made me very happy.
The suicide attack on the Shamshad television building was one of the worst moments I can’t forget. I was presenting a program at the time of the attack. With a bang, the studio shook. A large fire occurred due to the impact of the explosion. I survived the attack, but there were some of my friends who died and were injured. After the attack, we took our wounded friends to the screen. We have conveyed the message to the world, “You cannot silence the press and freedom of expression”.
My life has changed with the job offer from Tolonews, the most famous publication in Afghanistan. My popularity with Tolonews had increased. I quit for special reasons and got a job at state television.
OUR LIFE WITH THE TALIBAN HAS BEGUN TO CHANGE
Our lives have begun to change with the progress of the Taliban in many regions of the country without slowing down. No one predicted that the Taliban would be able to take over the country in a short time. Everyone has bad memories of the Taliban in the past. That was why there is a great fear in the public.
I had a duty on the day in the channel before the Taliban took over Kabul. I presented the news of 19 and 22. When I read the news that the Taliban had advanced and captured many provinces, my hope was low. My despair was also reflected on the screen. That was the last news I presented on TV that evening. The next day, the Taliban captured Kabul.
The Taliban had said they would not interfere in women’s rights and girls ‘ education during peace talks with the United States in Qatar. Yet, as a result, my sister and I were unemployed.
THE ERA OF AMIRATE HAS BEGUN
After the Taliban took over, life began to return to normal. People were going out and work. So I went to the TV. When I got to the main entrance of the TV, I showed my card to the Taliban member at the door. He didn’t let me in and said, “The Republican era is over, the amirate era has begun.
You guys go sit at home for a while.”.
I shared the incident I had when I got home on social media. I expressed my victimization. In a short time, national and international support began to pour into my message box. I started to tell what happened with the live broadcast. I have received a response to these calls from the UK’s office for refugees. They offered to take me out of Afghanistan.
The troubles at Kabul airport were on the agenda of the whole world. after staying at the airport for 2 days, we reached the UK. I left all my savings behind. There is peace and trust in this country. I wish Afghanistan was like this. Unfortunately, we are far from peace.