February,
2008-Kabul,
Afghanistan--We
have just begun work on setting up a library in one of the
Kabul orphanages. This new library is, of course, the first one
we’ve had so far in our orphanages and we expect it to be rich enough to
fulfill the requirements of our children. 130 children will share this library, but we plan to make its books and
DVDs available for our other orphanages as well. We have found a large and beautiful house for
the orphanage and have reserved a big room for the library and for English
lessons. We have also acquired some tables, books, chairs, and shelves.
Now, all
we need are books and DVDs, as we are starting from scratch in stocking those
shelves. We are looking especially for books and movies suitable for children
(from very young children to teenagers), as well as reference books. Many of our sponsors have “leftover” books
and movies that belonged to their children or grandchildren, stuff that is
sitting around the house, unused and no longer needed. Our friends and
neighbors may have such sources as well.
One of our
child sponsors,
Doffie Rotter, has
agreed to collect donated materials, package them up, and send them to the new
orphanage. If the cost of sending your
donations is more than you wish to absorb, you are welcome to send them to her
C.O.D (cash on delivery), and she will pay your shipping costs herself. We would like to have donated materials by
Mother’s Day of this year, which is May 11, the second Sunday in May, but the
sooner the better in terms of organizing the shipments abroad.
If you
would like to contact Doffie directly, with questions or with additional ideas,
please send her an email:
Doffie Rotterdoffierotter @
mac.com
Since we’d
also like to buy new or used books in Afghanistan/Pakistan, we already have an
ongoing Library Fund. If you wish
to help out in this way, you can visit the website https://www.charityhelp.org/afceco/donation/library.
The
Guardian: A growing humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan is being overlooked as an
unknown number of people are fleeing their homes, caught between security forces
and the Taliban, Red Cross officials have told the Guardian.
3-
Swan song for NATO: The real cost of defeat in Forgettistan
Spero
News: It was supposed to be "the good war"; a war against terror; a war of
liberation. It was intended to fix the eyes of the world on America's state of
the art weaponry, its crack troops and its overwhelming firepower. It was
supposed to demonstrate�once and for all-- that the world's only superpower
could no longer be beaten or resisted; that Washington could deploy its troops
anywhere inn the world and crush its adversaries at will.
4-
Iran deports Afghans despite call for winter halt
AFP:
Kabul is seeking an urgent meeting with Teheran about the deportation of
Afghans, the government said on Wednesday, with 7,000 forced out in the past
month despite a pledge to halt expulsions over winter.
The
Washington Post: With its fortress-like outer walls and posh interior, its
sumptuous brunches and post-sauna massages, the Kabul Serena Hotel was a symbol
of both progress and privilege -- a haven for foreign visitors in a harsh,
unfamiliar environment and an inaccessible tower for most poor Afghans.
The Deccan Herald: Unicef's winner
of the best picture in 2007 is a chilling reminder of the condition of the
region's child brides. Poverty may have made women and young girls more
vulnerable, but the methods of exploitation they suffer take on an altogether
different proportion in a country wracked by 30 years of unending
conflict.
Reuters: Nine police and two civilians were killed in an
air strike by U.S.-led troops in Afghanistan, a provincial doctor said on
Thursday, but the coalition said Taliban fighters had been killed.
Badger Herald: Every now and then, I run across
a news story that reminds me of the importance of individual liberties in modern
society. One of these stories came out of Afghanistan this Wednesday.
Pajhwok Afghan News: Reportedly
dejected with her engagement to a young man by her parents, an 18-year-old girl
ended her life by shooting herself to death in Jabul-Saraj district of central
Parwan province, security officials said on Sunday.
Pajhwok Afghan News:
After the blood-curdling incident in Kunduz province yet another baby was sold
due to extreme poverty and hunger in northern Takhar province.
Pajhwok Afghan News: Poverty, cold
weather, and hunger forced a woman to sell her four month baby in Kunduz.
Mahboba, 26, whose lower limbs are paralyzed is living in a dark muddy room in
Sar- dara area of Kunduz city.
Xinhua: Taliban
militants beheaded four local employees of a private construction company in
eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday, said the Interior Ministry in a press
release.
IRIN News: Knocking on the windows of cars stuck in
traffic on Shar-e-Naw Street in Kabul, Zulaikha and her children beg for money
to keep warm and feed themselves. Their daily routine starts at about 7am and
ends at 6pm every day.
PAN: A dejected young Afghan
woman having a domestic dispute with her husband tried to take her life in
Mehtarlam High Court on Wednesday, court officials said.
Children in
Afghanistan
are exposed to a very hostile and poisonous environment, at school, home and
outside. School books, newspapers and magazines, TVs and movies all have few
things in common that are unhealthy for children. Through the various media,
children are “taught” to believe in the ideas of Islamic extremists and to
ignore their terrible atrocities.They
are not encouraged to read and listen to materials that engage the person in
activities which could be felt as a threat to the extremists.
Indian drama, widely available, is akin to intellectual and
emotional sleeping pills and have addicted nearly every person in
Afghanistan,
even small children as the whole family sits in front of the TV ever day from
6:00 pm until 10:00 pm.The content of
these programs mainly centers on disputes within very wealthy Indian families
and issues related to large businesses that fill the minds and hearts of the
Afghan people with materials hat have barely the slightest relation to their
real lives.Ignorant and uneducated
people who don’t have access to safe media and the Internet are unable to learn
the realities in their own country.And
this, of course, pleases the religious extremists, terrorists, the drug mafia
and warlords who have control over everything in
Afghanistan
because they never feel resistance of even reasonable questions from the
sleeping masses.
Textbooks, newspapers, and magazines are harmful to children
in a different way.These printed media
are filled with violent content and are fully controlled by the powerful
extremists, Islamic groups like the “
Northern Alliance,”
Taliban, warlords, drug mafia, and armed gangs.For example, Sayaff, a notorious criminal jihadist was appointed to
compile the school books funded by the
University of
Nebraska
or US-printed schoolbooks which teach the alphabet by using such examples as J
for Jihad, K for Kalashnikov, and I for Infidel. (I Is for Infidel: From Holy War to Holy Terror in
Afghanistan
by Kathy Gannon)
Besides the obvious needs for food, shelter, and education,
Afghan children need to be kept safe from exposure to such unhealthy ideas and
from the “trash” that passes for entertainment on television and in videos.A good library can make an enormous
difference in this regard, as the children would have ready access to good
books, magazines, movies, and the Internet.And they would learn to look for interesting and accurate information
from these sources.
The administration of RAWA’s orphanages has designed a plan
for a well-equipped library with the budget shown in the table below:
Unit
Qty
Unit Cost
Total
A.
One-Time Costs
A.1
Books for children
Piece
800
$5.5
$4,400
A.2
Reference books and dictionaries
piece
80
$15.0
$1,200
A.3
DVDs
piece
300
$4.0
$1,200
A.4
DVD player
piece
1
$130.0
$130
A.5
TV
piece
1
$380.0
$380
A.6
Sound system
piece
1
$160.0
$160
A.7
Furniture (shelves, tables, chairs
and..)
piece
1
$1,800.0
$1,800
A.8
Multimedia Projector
piece
1
$570.0
$570
Subtotal
$9,840
A.9
Travel costs from
Kabul to
Iran for purchasing Farsi books, movies and etc
per trip
1
$1,300
$1,300
Subtotal
$11,140
B.
On-going Costs
B.1
Librarian Salary
per month
12
$150
$1,800
B.2
Rent
per month
12
$200
$2,400
Subtotal
$4,200
Total Costs
$15,340
You can aid this effort! If you are a current sponsor,
you can log into your account
and make a one-time variable amount donation designating the RAWA Library
Fund. You can also visit https://www.charityhelp.org/rawa/donation/donations
and go to the bottom of the page for a one-time variable donation. Please
remember to designate the RAWA Library Fund if you want to support this effort!
Your contribution to this library will be highly appreciated
and can create a healthy environment for the Afghan children living in RAWA’s
orphanages.
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