TALIBAN’S ANGELS | Bridges TV

Once upon a time there lived a girl named Khalida in Kandahar, the southern region of Afghanistan. It is the spiritual base of Taliban, a puritanical movement which proclaims its roots in Islam.

When she was just eight years old, a ragtag militia from her town took control after fierce fighting with the bandits that controlled the city, terrorizing the people and holding them as hostage in their own homes. She was happy that the new militia in charge would bring peace and stability to her town and help people kick-start their lives after two decades of war and chaos. And to her utter surprise, the whole region became peaceful and stable very soon.

Things started to get better and she finally got to attend a nearby girls’ school. Her dad, who was a truck driver, could go to areas as far as Herat and make a decent living thanks to the new-found safety and security on the roads and highways controlled by the Taliban. It was the happiest day of Khalida’s life when her dad took both his daughters to the school in their truck.

But one day, on her return home she found her mother sobbing. Her dad was nearby consoling her and telling not to worry. Khalida approached her dad quietly and asked why her mom is crying. “Nothing serious dear. She wanted to educate herself and be helpful to her community but a new Taliban directive has quashed all her hopes. Nothing for you to worry about my baby,” her dad whispered in her ears and gave a big hug. The eight-year-old girl was sad but started to play with her younger sister and soon forgot about the whole incident.

Khalida used to see convoys of pickup trucks patrolling the area where her school was located. She instantly got worried whenever she saw them around though she had no idea of what they were up to. The young girl always feared the new rulers despite hearing her father praising them for bringing peace to the region. They never bothered her at all and she always felt safe while on her way to school and back. However, in the back of her mind, she always knew that they don’t seem to be reliable enough.

One day she sat anxiously in the classroom of more than two dozen schoolgirls who were playing and repeating rhymes. From the window she saw couple of pickup trucks driven by men in turbans stopping at the school entrance. They rushed into the headmistress’ room and had a quiet word with her. She thought the militiamen will storm her classroom but nothing as such happened. Then at the end of the school day, the head teacher told the kids that the school would be off for the next couple of days. The children yelled in joy but Khalida was shell-shocked. She couldn’t believe her ears.

Her mom greeted her on the door. “What happened to you today Khalida? Where is the bright smile on your face? What are these tears for? Did someone steal something from you?” her mother asked immediately. Khalida couldn’t reply and burst into tears. She wept and wept without telling her mother the reason. Her mom let her cry for a while. Once the tide of tears broke, she asked her again gently but firmly.

“Mama, they shut my school and I’m afraid it’s never going to open again,” the young girl shouted. Her mother put her hand on the crying girl’s mouth. “Keep quiet. You’ll be fine. The school will reopen. Even if it doesn’t, I’ll make some arrangement for you. Everything will be alright. Go and wash your face,” her mother assured her. “You’ll study. That’s my promise!”

The Kandahari schoolgirl was right. The school was shut down by the Taliban on concerns about the safety of the girls. Despite establishing unprecedented peace in the country, the Taliban, ironically, never trusted themselves to provide comprehensive security to the women under their rule. “Things are not yet under control when it comes to providing security to our mothers, sisters and daughters. We are working on it and very soon we’ll give them total protection so that they can become an active part of our society,” read a communiqué issued by the Taliban government in Kabul soon after it outlawed women’s education and restricted their movement.

Now girls like Khalida were left cornered in their homes. Their right to movement was severely restricted by the Islamic militia’s patrolmen roaming the streets. Khalida had no choice but to accept the services of a private tutor, a woman from another neighborhood, which her dad arranged secretly. She was not going to see her school friends any soon, which made her sad.

Time went on and Khalida’s literacy skills improved thanks to her new tutor. But on the other hand, situation in the country started to decline badly. Clouds of war started to linger and shadow Taliban rule. Then the evitable happened. Foreign forces invaded the country and people began to flee. The country was engulfed in flames of war and destruction soon after the U.S. invasion. Taliban got engaged in a fierce battle of survival and the situation of law and order collapsed completely. The old tyrants who ruled the country before Taliban were in control again.

Khalida’s family’s hopes of a decent life were also reduced to ashes. Her dad’s truck was damaged during the aerial bombing and could not transport goods anymore. Anarchy returned to the countryside due to the return of bandits in her town on the backs of occupation forces.

Despite the bleak situation, Khalida continued to study on her own. Her private tutor fled the country along with her husband and other family members. This gave the young girl a new resolve to complete her studies and help other girls do the same.

Years passed on and Khalida matured into a young woman with love for education blossoming in her heart. She regretted the fact that she couldn’t complete her formal education and could never see the face of a secondary school. However, given the fact that her town saw fierce fighting that resulted in bloodshed and heavy losses on both sides, she considered herself quite fortunate to be alive and living with her family despite hardships.

Several NGOs in the area operated a few makeshift schools where dozens of kids got some basic education. Khalida always wanted to join an honest NGO and offer her help but couldn’t do so as there was no proper security for the charity workers.

One day while she was at home looking after her sister there was a knock on the door. It was an elderly woman who came to see her. “Do you remember me? I used to be your teacher in the old primary school,” the woman who was in her 50s said in a charming tone after an exchange of pleasantries. “You’re a genius. I’m really proud of you. You’ve managed to learn on your own which is a great feat that no other woman in Kandahar has ever achieved. May God save you from bad influences,” the woman continued her charm offensive as she hugged Khalida tightly.

The woman sat with Khalida and her mom for a while and told her the reason of the visit. “I came here to tell Khalida about a teaching job. It’s not far away from the village and she’ll get to teach girls of her own age,” the woman said with a big smile on her face. “Besides all, it’s a paid job and the employers are going to provide transport and security so that she can work safely,” she continued only to Khalida and her mother’s amusement.

“I’ll have a word with her father and let you know,” Khalida’s mother told the woman very gently and said goodbye. Khalida was jumping around the house out of joy and excitement. Her father arrived quite late that evening but he was in a good mood. The prospect of Khalida teaching only made it better. “Everything seems wonderful but I’m not so sure about the security arrangements,” her father insisted. “Who can guarantee you security when both occupiers and resistance fighters find no safety and are killed on daily basis?” her father quizzed. The young girl and her mother couldn’t say a word and agreed with him. It was decided that the dad would pay a visit to this place first to assess the job offer and her employers.

The next day he visited the address given by the former schoolteacher. It was quite a huge compound where he met a couple of people from his town, including a few town elders. He was told that proper plans are in place to ensure that women of this area get some kind of education and benefit from local talent. Khalida’s father saw the elaborate arrangements in the compound and couldn’t be more content.

Khalida was so happy with herself. She couldn’t believe her eyes when she was stood in front of the girls giving them the first lesson in a proper classroom. It was like a big dream come true! With extensive security arrangements, proper teaching materials like marker boards, notebooks, textbooks and pencils in place, the young woman felt like a VIP. The girls that she taught were very happy to learn how to read and write but they had to keep it as a secret from their relatives and neighbors fearing retribution from the insurgents.

Weeks passed and Khalida helped dozens of young girls read alphabets and common words. It was a huge progress for everyone.

One day, Khalida was on a break after delivering a Basic English language class. A student approached her and asked to help read a book. “Can you keep this as a secret please? Only between you and me? I’m not allowed to show you this book but I’m curious to find out what it says,” a teenage girl patted on her shoulders with a glow on her face. “Sure! I promise. What’s in there?” asked Khalida and took the book in her hands.

She started reading the book that was some sort of a manual. The colour on Khalida’s face faded. Her hands began to shake and body trembled with fear. Her fearful eyes stared into her student’s cold eyes. “Where did you get this book from? Who gave it to you?” Khalida could only ask as shivers went down her spine.

“Well, the chief of the educational camp gave this manual to all the girls who came to attend the classes here. Some of the girls, including me, can’t read it, especially the English words so we need to ask someone what’s written in there,” the teenager with cute looks confided in her teacher. “We are strictly not allowed to discuss about this book with anybody or take it outside.”

“But do you understand what’s in there? It’s a suicide manual! It illustrates the ways you can create a suicide vest and detonate it. It also tells about different signs in English you read on daily basis e.g. police, army, NATO etc.” Khalida explained in a trembling voice. The girl seemed calm about the material whereas her teacher was dumbfounded.

The young Kandhari teacher could not believe what she saw. She felt very dizzy and struggled to stand on her two feet. “All the girls in there are would-be Fedayeen (suicide bombers)? Oh my God! This cannot be happening,” Khalida kept on murmuring as she passed out.

She never returned home. Her parents couldn’t find out what happened to their beloved daughter. They suspected she was targeted either by the occupation army or the local militia supported by them. Khalida’s dad went to the compound several times to find out about his missing daughter’s whereabouts but found no clues. He suspected the Taliban might be behind her disappearance but what proof did he have?

Nobody knew what happened to her. Some reckon she left the town secretly and crossed the border to start a new life elsewhere. The people in her town still believe she is an angel who would return to them one day…

(By Moign Khawaja. Story inspired by true events)