My Dear AfghanistanI am from a place where everyone smells bloodEveryone sees blood, even if they look the other wayI am from a place where every second people wait to dieI am... Page 3

Habiba Sarabi Awarded World Peace Prize of the United Nations Development ProgramWorld Peace Prize is given to those men and women who influence greatly on peace process in south Asia by the United... Page 4

Saturday, February 25, 2017 Vol. 2, No. 66

2.3 Personal Essays4-5. News6. Short Stories

7. Literary8. Interview

See Inside Quote of the Week“The problems of the world cannot pos-sibly be solved by skeptics or cynics whose horizons are limited by the obvious re-alities. We need men who can dream of things that never were." - John Keats

Star Educational Society Weekly

Interstellar (adjective): situated or occurring between the stars; conducted, or existing between two or more stars

Sima Samar: Health Services Must Equal... Page 5

Hope in my countryFor many people in Afghanistan, the word “hope” is an unfamiliar and even unbelievable concept. Many think that poverty, unemployment, insecurity and other disasters leave no room for hope and happiness. However, there are some who still challenge them-selves to bring peace and hope to the country. Is hope only... Page 2

Rashid’s hopeA short storyRashid was a handsome, tall, and strong young man who was no more than twenty-five years old. He lived in a village with his family. His father had Parkinson’s disease and his old mother took care of him. Rashid had two small brothers and four sisters. One of his sisters was married with two teenagers and a smaller child.... Page 6

Having recently returned from Paki-stan, I finally felt hope for my own fu-ture. And I felt tremendous hope for the future of all Afghan youth who had been deprived during the Taliban years. Hope was the first stone in the foundation of Star Educational Society in Kabul and upon that stone of hope I built an Eng-lish language center to help open the world to other hungry, motivated young Afghans. Education was the door to a promising future for the new generation of Afghans. Education lit the candles of hope and slowly turned the old war torn city of Kabul to a city of joy newly decorated with thousands of buildings, roads, schools and infrastructure.

As the enrollment and demand for English and other classes in the West of Kabul grew, so did Star. My hope became my family’s hope. Hope stood hand-in-hand with me and my family as we ex-panded Star into more branches in Ka-

bul, added a library, and a private school in our efforts to serve more and more eager Afghan youth. Our hope became the hope of our students. Our students’ hope became the hope of our teach-ers. Star alumni followed our mission of “gain and convey” and opened new Eng-lish centers around the country.

In 2015, the newest branch of Star opened in the remote province of Dai-kondi serving hundreds of new students with no access to all the English centers in bigger cities. Our teachers and gradu-ates have grown into the most influen-tial personalities – studying at ivy league schools, working in research centers, government and non-government of-fices. Thousands gained admission and scholarships to English medium schools all around the world – from Japan, to Australia, India, Germany, Turkey, the UK, America, and more.

The English language skills learned

at Star have changed the lives of Star-ians and their families forever. Every year we honor and applaud the ac-complishments of more and more Star alumni who are chosen for prestigious Fulbright, DAAD and Chevening schol-arships.

The hope that Star offers changed a watchman into a loyal teacher, a suc-cessful director and ultimately our devoted executive manager of all Star branches. If it was not for hope, Star would not have evolved into a source of social mobility which transformed the lives of many who walked through our doors. It has been a place where people can realize their dreams.

Let's hold our hands together and build a wall of human chain. We have to stand strong and keep our hopes alive – hope for a better country and a better tomorrow. A tomorrow filled with peace, prosperity, joy and success!

As a young boy, hope for an education turned me into a bag seller on Quetta streets so that I could fund my school expenses. I clung

to the hope that there would be a time I would have enough money to sup-port my family and cover the expenses of books, notebooks and colored pens. With hope, I carried that dream and was able to attend school and, ultimately, support my family as an English teacher in Quetta.

In 2003, hope played a key role in my decision to create Star Educational Society in Kabul. The dark night of the Taliban’s terror was over. The new inter-im government promised a fair and free election. Afghan youth and, more spe-cifically, the girls who had been locked in mental darkness were finally allowed to return to school and sing the joyful morning school anthem.

Star: A fountain of hopeA message from Ali Reza Yasa, Chairman and Founder

February 25th, 2017

Vol.2, No. 66 Personal Essays

Page 2

drug addicts into a country that is famous for beauty, culture, dignity and hospital-ity. We will rescue the hopeless ones who are drowning in the depths of extreme adversity. We will be assiduous to con-vert the darkness into light and build the country that we have all imagined.

They can see light through the open door! I am curious about what makes these people different. How have they found joy amidst the violence and insecurity in Afghanistan? Does their hopeful attitude set them apart from disappointed people in such a beautiful way?

In a society fed up with poverty, inse-curity and corruption, where should one look for a fountain of hope? When the whole world is full of misery and pain, it seems like hope is hard to find. We must learn to convert darkness to light and help spread the light to everyone living in darkness. We must imagine and dream of the fountain of hope to harness the en-ergy that hope will bestow upon our lives.

Miracles are possible when there is hope and love everywhere. Hope is in every single moment of our life and it depends on us to change our single mo-ments into love, joy and pleasure. We should stay positive and believe in our-selves and our ability to live a hopeful and happy life.

When people are hopeful, they are more motivated to be altruistic. Altru-ism is most joyful and effective when the good deeds are done anonymously. The people who benefit will not easily notice who did all the good things for them, but they will live a more hopeful and happy life. It is best when you forget your favors immediately and do not consider that there is any debt of kindness to be re-paid. Isn’t it pleasant to open a way for light and hope into our hearts and into the hearts of others? Isn’t it pleasant to let hope create real joy, happiness and vitality?

A constructive imagination breeds hope and allows us to see beyond the ex-isting realities of our current society and to heed the calls for change. Hope will be restored because there is a new gen-eration of Afghans who love their country and do not want to join the millions of

For many people in Afghanistan, the word “hope” is an unfamiliar and even unbelievable concept. Many think that poverty, unemployment, insecurity and other disasters leave no room for hope and happiness. However, there are some who still challenge themselves to bring peace and hope to the country. Is hope only attainable in an affluent society where there is security, comfort, general well-being and all necessary facilities? Regardless of their circumstances, aren’t there people who have all they want, but still feel that something is missing? And aren’t there people who have very little to celebrate, but still live each moment of their lives happily?

My country faces extraordinary chal-lenges and lacks many things. Nonethe-less, I know people with renewed passion for life who cherish hope and happiness.

displaced people around the world. They are trying to change desperation into hope and hate into love.

Afghanistan will be transformed by its own people! With hope, we will trans-form it from a place that is notorious for war, corruption, suicide bombers and

Hope is one of the most significant and influential phenomena in human’s life. Hope makes life more rich and beau-tiful and gives more meaning to life. Life is replete with troubles and comfort but the powerful phenomenon of hope can provide balance between these two prominent assets. The power of hope can change impossible issues to possible ones, to change an unreal opportunity to a real opportunity and to create a new destiny for a person. So we must be hope-ful and thankful to God for the opportu-nity we have to fulfill our destiny, reach our future goals and meet life’s necessi-ties with our hard work.

What is the meaning of hope? Where is it found? What is the meaning of life? Why are we here? These are the questions that many people think of. Throughout my childhood, most of these questions were on my mind. The answers to all of these questions can be summarized in two words: hope and ambition. We can find responses for these questions by reading and studying books and thinking deeply about them. Reading books and acquiring new knowledge became my life’s goal and pilgrimage of faith. I knew that my faith in Allah had brought me great peace and joy. I had often read the book Goals!, by Brian Tracy - a book that presents the “essential principles you need to know to make your dreams come true.” I read it to bring change in my life and find better direction and, as a result, my confidence grew and I began to set higher goals for myself. I encouraged all of my friends to read it too. Before study-ing this book, I was painfully blind to the value of hope.

I am not yet free of my weaknesses, but I am confronting them and trying to overcome them. Now I have more posi-tive energy and feel more optimistic and hopeful about my future. Now that I have a clear purpose in my life, I no longer feel like a wandering person searching for an unknown address with noone to show me the way.

Everyone’s perspective of the word ‘beauty’ is different’. Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines it as: “the qualities in a person or a thing that give pleasure to the senses or the mind.” However, I have a different perspective of the concept of beauty. My own definition of beauty is: never losing hope, enjoying every mo-ment in your life and spending your day, as if it is your last.

In my home country, Afghanistan,

Q ●Hope is a valuable tool, so under-stand its value and chase your goals.

Q ●Hopeful people are naturally op-timistic and think positively.

Q ●Hopeful people don’t worry about the ups and downs of their lives.

Q ●Hopeful people are open-minded and able to remove obstacles from their lives.

Q ●Hopeful people try their best to be a pioneer for others. There is much to be learned by study-

ing the biographies of hopeful, talented and knowledgeable people around the world. Hope plays a big role in people’s success and happiness. As we all know, being hopeful in Afghanistan is challeng-ing, but we must pursue our goals, be op-timistic and focus on positive things. Be hopeful and never give up.

people are being killed every day. There is war going on in some of the provinc-es. The war and insecurity has caused much damage in people’s lives; however, we never lose hope. Beauty can be seen and felt in almost every minor thing if we open our hearts and never lose hope.

The embodiment of my true defini-tion of beauty is seeing Afghan people with sincere faith in Allah; helping each other no matter what the circumstances are; supporting each other during thick and thin; and staying together during sleepless nights of fear. Yes, it is beauti-ful. Hugging each other as if it is your last hug, helping each other like you would never have a chance to do so again, cleaning your heart from all the hatred towards people, and realizing that this world is going to end anyway, so hatred should not exist at all.

I see the beauty in the laughter of a child, the silent drops of the rain, the sin-cere hug of my grandmother, the mid-night sky filled with shining stars. Learn to see the beauty in everyday things. Be happy for small things, have faith, love each other, see beauty in each other’s smiles and support each other in difficult times.

When people see the beauty in their lives, they are more grateful for the good that happens in their lives.

Hope in my country

The Importance of Hope

Beauty: never losing hope

About the author: Hanifa Darwish is a Star Educational Society alumna and a current member of Star’s TOEFL class. She is a graduate of Rabia Balkhi High School. She currently manages a library called Baale Parwaz, which she and her sister, Sajia Darwish, established.

About the author: Mohammad Zaki Zaki is a Star alumnus and former instructor at Star's Daikondi branch. He recently graduated from the Geoscience Faculty of Kabul University.

About the author: Sveto Muhammad Ishoq is a junior at the American University of Af-ghanistan majoring in Business Administration. She volunteers as an editor and transla-tor for the ROYA Online Writing Center and the Interstellar Bulletin.

Vol.2, No. 66Personal Essays

Page 3February 25th, 2017

motivation and source of energy and creates possibilities in which more hope may flourish.

To me, however, hope is a life-chang-ing, phenomenal beam that pulls with a magnetic force toward a powerful energy source, overcoming all challenges. Hope is that provocative, moving and stimu-lating power that articulates the music of my soul. Hope, to me, is that hidden energy which transforms the impossible into possible, the drab into appealing, and the infertile to fertile. The transfor-mative power of hope prevails no matter how dark or depressing circumstances may be.

Hope stands hand-in-hand with cre-ativity. Hope stands with love. If some-thing is deceptive, elusive or cunning, hope can transform it into something positive and productive. Hope is an un-seen, unpredictable and unprecedented force. The rays of hope’s concentrated beams propel a man to move towards the summit even when he is exhausted and weak. For the sick who hope eludes, hope seems an illusion. For the forlorn, a false expectation. But for the hopeful, hope is a new, invigorating horizon beckoning them forever forward.

Hope, to me, is the horizon between dreams and reality where life’s possibili-ties wait to be discovered. Hope is where passion prevails and a thousand shades of possibilities unfold. Hope is the elixir that sustains the soldier with his half-cut throat in the battlefield and comforts the single mother with blistered lips raising

I don’t want women to be tortured like Setara whose nose was cut off by her drug-addicted husband. I don’t want people to make distinctions between Hazaras, Uzbeks, Tajiks, and Pashtons. I don’t want people to focus on the differ-ences between me and you.

There should be equal rights for girls, boys, men and women. Everyone should respect each other’s rights. I am choking from the hardships we face. I want to shout from depth of my heart and say, “It’s enough! No more war!” We are tired of war. We need peace and freedom. Our children need love and patience. We must make our country united, it needs us.

When I open the window of my dreams, I want to hear mothers and children laughing. I want the walls to be painted with peace, the land to wear green clothes again, flowers to blossom always, trees to sprout. I want girls and boys to go to school with high motiva-tion and to keep their hands together in unity. We should not let others hurt our country anymore. Let’s come together to experience a better life. We should be powerful like trees so that no storm can break us. We should work hard and work together like ants.

We want peace, we want peace! I hope for a proud and successful Afghan-istan.

When I wake up in the morning, I open the window with hundreds of hopes and dreams. But before I open my window, I wish there would not be war anymore. I wish there would not be vio-lence against women and children.

I don’t want the blood of our people to fill this land. I don’t want lakes to be dry or the sky to be gray. We have suf-fered enough violence against women.

Wishfulness. Dreaming that certain things will go certain ways. Wishing or wanting certain things to happen in the way or ways one wants. Regardless of the situation, wishfulness has become synonymous to hope in my country. The youth I encounter on a daily basis in and around Kabul all have it - hope. It’s the ability to see that little gleam of light that others can not see. It grows. It spreads. It infects other people. It becomes one's

My Dear AfghanistanWritten by: Taiba Atiffi

I am from a place where everyone smells bloodEveryone sees blood, even if they look the other way

I am from a place where every second people wait to dieI am from a place where death follows us everywhere - me, my father, my little brother, and my peopleI am from a place where in one moment people laugh and the next moment people cry because of a sudden suicide attack

I am from Afghanistan where we do not see peaceWhere everyone sees body parts after a brutal attackStill, everyone is hopeful. We think positive, we wait for peace

My country is a place where peace is a dreamy wordI am from a place where people are strong. A mother loses her young son who was a soldier, her little cute daughter who was going to school, and her hard-working husband who was trying to bring bread for the familyBut still, she struggles and remains strong

I am from a place where there is hope, where there is love, and where there is beauty in everybody’s eyesI am proud to be from this place, even if it looks like hell

My beautiful Afghanistan, my homelandWe are all Afghans from different nations We are hopeful about you.We love you, work for you, to build you backWe, the strong people in Afghanistan, will show your enemies that we can not be conqueredWe will all bring peace. We will all make you paradise

My dear Afghanistan

yard in Afghanistan is a sign of hope for a new day.

I see hope in the faces of thousands and thousands of young Afghan girls and boys crossing long distances in Daikondi to reach their school in the rocky debris of Chaprasak. I see it every morning in the eyes of the old watchman who works in below zero temperatures in Dasht-e-Barchi. Students push me to write rec-ommendation letters with hope for the foreign scholarships and acceptance let-ters they pursue.

Hope is an inspiration, a feeling filled with its own nature, reproducing itself in the form of continuity and persistence.

three young daughters on her own. Hope is like crutches for the disabled man with slumbering, shaky legs. The 90-year-old widow has made hope her companion, serving it like sweets to all her surviv-ing children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Hope’s milky white, flash of light may be seen on the wuthering cliffs of Bamyan, in the wide and starry skies, on the remote and barren, jagged peaks of the Koh-e-Baba Mountains. I feel hope when I look at the smiling face of a child street vendor, the half-dried rose petal, the pleading eyes of my affectionate pup-py. The morning dew on the grass in my

The invigorating horizon of hope

About the author: Ali Reza Yasa is the chairman and founder of Star Educa-tional Society. He earned a BA in sociol-ogy from Kateb University and an MA in Central Asian Studies from the American University of Central Asia.

About the author: Shamsia Ahmadi is a Level 1 student at Star’s A Branch. She is in the 9th grade at Marefat High School.

Langari, Shaista. Cradling Hope. 2017. Oil on canvas.

A window of hope

Page 4 February 25th, 2017

Vol.2, No. 66 News

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Af-ghanistan said that on Wedensday six countries will meet in a conference in Mascow to talk about peace in Afghani-stan.

The Ministry said that the meeting cannot be replaced with the efforts of peace talks with Taliban.

Shekib Mostaghni, spokesman for ministry of foreign affairs, told TO-LOnews that such meetings can not be replaced with the process of peace by Afghanistan government leadership, but

Sima Samar, the president of In-dependent Human Rights Commission says that the offered health services must be equal to people’s economic abil-ity. She states that supplying high qual-ity and extortionate health services limit the accessibility of people to health ser-vices. Sima Samar, delivering a speech in Consultation Meeting about National Youth Symposium on Sustainable De-velopment Goals talked about its third aim which is “sound life and promoting welfare and health right” and mentioned that Supply of high quality services was the responsibility of government, while all the people have crucial role in im-plementing and obeying that. Dr. Sima Samar said, “ when health service is of-fered, it should be of high quality, safe, influential and equal to people’s eco-nomic ability which means if we supply extortionate health service to people, it certainly limits the accessibility of peo-ple to health service and this is discrimi-nation which should not exist in health service. She states that there should not be any gender discrimination or any prejudice based on race, sect, language or geographical location; health service must be effective and reliable and the intimate secrets between doctors and patients must be preserved. Sima Samar added that one of the other aims of SDG (Sustainable Development Goals) was to reduce infant and their mothers’ mortal-ity rate and stated that until 2030, moth-ers’ mortality rate should decrease to 70 persons in every hundred thousand and infants’ mortality to 12 in every thou-

World Peace Prize is given to those men and women who influence greatly on peace process in south Asia by the United Nations development pro-gram every year.

Global Network for Peace appreciated what Habiba sarabi has done by awarding her the World Peace Prize of the 2016 on February 9, 2017 in Thai-land.

Among 100 candidates from different south Asian countries, especially the countries facing con-flict, the prize was awarded to her to appreciate all she has done in Afghanistan.

Afghan High Peace Council thanked her

Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Russian Foreign Affairs, visiting Salahudin Rabani, Minister of Af-ghanistan Foreign Affairs, stated that Russia had invited Afghan government to second round ne-gotiation about Afghanistan. He stated that nego-tiation would be held on next few days. Including Afghanistan, Iran and India would also participate the negotiation.

Afghanistan was not invited in the first round negotiation which was held with presence of Russia, China and Pakistan envoys. Visiting Mr. Rabbani, Minister of Russia Foreign Affairs insisted to sup-port peace efforts in Afghanistan on Tuesday, 19th of Dalwa. In addition, he stated that negotiation with Taliban should be based on resolution of UN Security Council. He stated, “We support all efforts regarding making the situation better and enforce battles against rebels in Afghanistan led by Afghan government”.

Minister of Afghanistan Foreign Affairs also stated, “For removing violence, those countries who are supporting rebels, should cease their collabora-tion with rebels.”

can be the best supporter for the efforts of peace in Afghanistan.

At the meeting the representatives of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Russia, India, China and Iran will participate. Afghani-stan was not invited in the first round of the conference but the conference took place with the participation of Russia, China and Pakistan in Moscow. At the trilateral meeting Russia, China and Pak-istan announced their readiness to re-move Taliban figures from the embargo list for achieving peace in Afghanistan.

sand. The Independent Human Rights

Commission chief identified poverty, insecurity, lack of clinics and female personnel and lack of public awareness of health issues as principal reasons for the high rate of mothers’ and infants’ mortality. Furthermore, Rula Ghani, the first lady of Afghanistan stated that women activities in society caused rapid development and gender equality which is one of the aims of Sustainable Devel-opment should be supported and they should advocate the fifth aim. Because it is based on religious and local values and causes rapid development in society as well. She named the essential points about gender equality inserted into Sus-tainable Development as followings: ending any prejudice against women and girls, eliminating violence against women, removing harmful treatments like forced and underage marriages, cer-tainty of women participation in lead-ership, economic, politics and social decision makings, equal accessibility of women to economic sources, property and national services. These efforts are all because of treating a woman like men and a real human being in the society. The first lady of the Afghanistan also said that all these things were mentioned in regulations United Nations Security Council in 1325. In addition, Abdul Sat-tar Murad, the minister of commerce says that self-confidence and activities of youth in national liability is a horizon of hope for effloresce and development of Afghanistan.

through an appreciation ceremony for everything she has done in terms of peace, stability of the country and being proud of Afghanistan.

During the ceremony, Mrs. Habiba sarabi said “I really have not worked for being awarded but it is a good feeling when I’m appreciated for doing a good work.”

She also added, “This prize is an honor for all Afghans, especially Afghan women.”

Currently Habiba Sarabi is the Vice Chancellor of the Afghan High Peace Council. She has received the great Leadership Prize as the first women gover-nor in Afghanistan from Filipina.

Quoting from Mr. Rabbani, reports from Min-istry of Foreign Affairs show that terrorism and nar-cotic are considered as a joint menace between Rus-sia and Afghanistan.

Based on this report, collaborations between Russia and Afghanistan are considered remarkable in regional and international conventions. Further-more, Mr. Salahuddin Rabbani has Russia support Afghanistan’s membership in Shanghai Coopera-tion Organization. Minister of Russian Foreign Af-fairs stated that Russia would support all Afghan government’s efforts regarding fights against rebels, removing narcotic production, peace process led by Afghan government and enrollment of Afghanistan in Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

Furthermore, Mr. Rabbani mentioned Afghani-stan’s needs in terms of purchasing helicopter from Russia, fixing Air Forces’ helicopters, expansion of economical and commercial cooperation between Afghanistan and Russia, and helping Afghan busi-nessmen to obtain Russia visa easily. Mr. Rabbani visited Russia in a condition that relationship be-tween Russia and NUG had not been so good.

Translator: Mursal JamiliSource: Etillat-e-Roz

Translated by: Zakaria KhaleqiSource: Hasht-e-Subh

Translated by: Wahid GhulamiSource: Etlaate-roz

Translated by: Fakher Ahmad AmirzadSource: Etlaate-roz

Participation of six countries in Moscow conference about peace in Afghanistan

Sima Samar: Health Services Must Equal People’s Economic Ability

Habiba Sarabi Awarded World Peace Prize of the United Nations Development Program

Russia Invites Afghan Government to Second Round Negotiations about Afghanistan

Page 5

Vol.2, No. 66News

February 25th, 2017

German newspapers reported that de-ported Afghan youths have been wounded as result of suicide attack in Kabul.

Ali Aqayee, one of the 26 asylum seekers who were deported from Frankfurt airport to Kabul airport in January said that he was in-jured in a suicide attack after living for less than a month in Kabul, even though the gov-ernment of Germany considers Kabul as a safe area.

According to DW (Dutch Welle), a Ger-man newspaper (Suddeutsche Zitung) made a report under the title of continuous fear. It is stated that Ali was coming out of the guest house for the first time in Kabul since he was deported, he faced a suicide attack.

He is 24 years old and calls himself Ali Aaqa. He interviewed with German newspa-per on telephone. He stated that the incident happened after two weeks being deported. He added his German adoptive-mother has sent him money and the incident happened while he was going out to get the money from the bank.

After migrants’ influx in Europe and in-creasing argument against Angela Merkel ‘s immigration policy, the German prime min-ister intensifies to repatriate asylum seekers voluntarily and speed up the deportation of

Intelligence officials of Afghanistan say that they have valid evidence and documents that indicate the existence of installations of Pakistan in Chaman, closed to Afghanistan border where suicide attackers are trained, sent to Kandahar, Kabul, Helmand and other provinces of Afghanistan to commit suicide at-tacks. The officials state that the recent attacks

others waited for years.But for the undocumented, the atmo-

sphere in Washington is a signal to pre-pare for the worst.

In the parking lot of a Latino shop-ping strip in Austin, Tex., one couple who were walking with their two children out of a pediatrician appointment said they had picked a friend with documentation to serve as their children’s guardian if they were sent back to Mexico.

“And we’re getting our kids U.S. pass-ports so they can come visit us in Mexico,” said the man, a stocky restaurant worker in a gray baseball cap, who has lived in Texas for 15 years and declined to give his name.

He said he was not afraid to leave, but wanted to be prepared. “If they’re going to take me,” he said, “they’re going to take me.”

Two Roman Catholic nuns with the Sisters of Loretto, who did not want to be identified because they did not want to put the people they serve in jeopardy, said they were already seeing the undocu-mented people they knew change their habits out of fear.

They know a woman who has stopped going out to buy medication. They know a couple, restaurant workers, who have lived in the country for 25 years and are now taking turns going shopping. That way, they figure, their children will still have one parent if the other is picked up.

Some low-income families in New York with children who are citizens have declined to re-enroll in a program offering food assistance worth several thousand dollars, said Betsy Plum, director of spe-cial projects for the New York Immigration Coalition, an advocacy group.

“There’s a real isolationist reflex that’s happening now,” Ms. Plum said.

On a good Sunday, the Staten Island tamale restaurant run by Cesar Rodri-guez and his mother makes $3,000. Since the start of the year, it has averaged only $1,500, and this past Sunday only $700.

Mr. Rodriguez, who was brought to New York when he was 13 and has tempo-rary protection from deportation under an Obama-era program called Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA,

No going to church, no going to the store. No doctor’s appointments for some, no school for others. No driving, period — not when a broken taillight could deliver the driver to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

It is happening in the Central Valley of California, where undocumented im-migrants pick the fields for survival wages but are keeping their children home from school; on Staten Island, where fewer day laborers haunt street corners in search of work; in West Phoenix’s Isaac School District, where 13 Latino students have dropped out in the past two weeks; and in the horse country of northern New Jersey, where one of the many undocumented grooms who muck out the stables is think-ing of moving back to Honduras.

If deportation has always been a threat on paper for the 11 million people living in the country illegally, it rarely im-periled those who did not commit serious crimes. But with the Trump administra-tion intent on curbing illegal immigra-tion — two memos outlining the federal government’s plans to accelerate deporta-tions were released Tuesday, another step toward making good on one of President Trump’s signature campaign pledges — that threat, for many people, has now be-gun to distort every movement.

It has driven one family from the local park where they used to play baseball in

denied refugees.At last Brussels conference, the European

Union declared that they would continue their financial support for Afghanistan if the gov-ernment of Afghanistan agrees to accept the deportation of Afghan asylum seekers from EU. As the result, the EU and Afghanistan signed a joint declaration about migrants and it facilitates the deportation of Afghan asylum seekers from EU.

Till now, 60 Afghan-asylum-seekers were deported in December 2016 to January 2017 to Kabul by two flights. A young Hindu Afghan is also among them. The deportation of Afghans from Germany has faced increasing opposi-tions. According to the latest United Nation’s report about civilian casualties in Afghanistan, 11,418 civilians were killed or wounded in Afghanistan during 2016 and it shows 3% in-crease than last year (2015).

In spite of dangerous situation in Afghan-istan, the German government intensifies to peruse the asylum-seekers’ documents indi-vidually and deport the denied asylum seekers to safer areas in Afghanistan.

Less than 50% of Afghan asylum seekers are denied up to now and most of the accepted ones are just given permission to be in Germa-ny for a limited time.

on Kabul, Kandahar and Helmand were com-mitted by those suicide attackers who were trained in mentioned installations in Chaman. According to these officials, when the suicide attackers or other terrorists enter Afghanistan, they are in touch and have contact with Paki-stan installations in Chaman until they com-mit suicide attacks in Afghanistan.

said he thought undocumented residents were saving their money in case they were detained. They may also be reluctant to leave the house for fear of immigration agents stalking outside.

“They are listening to fake news,” he said. “Even if it’s not true, they are afraid.”

Empty chairs inside classrooms have become increasingly common in Ceres, Calif., a Central Valley city where 75 per-cent of students are Hispanic, according to school administrators.

The schools there are surrounded by dairies and almond orchards, which are predominantly staffed by undocumented workers. School administrators attributed the absences to parents who were wor-ried they could be identified through the school records of their citizen children.

In response, school officials have asked teachers to reassure students that the district does not collect data on immi-gration status.

In some cases, fear has lapped fact.For Graciela Nuñez Pargas, 22, who

came here when she was 7 and is pro-tected under DACA — which covers im-migrants brought to the United States by their parents as children — the prospect of taking her driver’s test has become daunting. Minor driving infractions are unlikely to lead to deportation proceed-ings, but Ms. Nuñez, who lives in Seattle, was nonetheless anxious.

“They’re expanding what it is to be criminal,” she said. “Things that a normal person would do by accident could land me back home in Venezuela.”

The Northwest Immigrant Rights Proj-ect, a nonprofit legal services group in Seattle, has issued thousands of business cards in recent days, advising undocu-mented immigrants what they should do, or not do, if a law enforcement agent knocks.

“Do not answer questions about where you were born or about your immi-gration status,” the cards advise.

The group is also telling immigrants that if a knock does come, sliding a card under the door is acceptable.

One side of the card reads, “To whom it may concern: Before answering any questions, I want to talk to an attorney.”

the evenings, and young men from a soc-cer field in Brooklyn where pickup games were once common.

It has kept Meli, 37, who arrived in Los Angeles from El Salvador more than 12 years ago, in a state of self-imposed house arrest, refusing to drive, fearing to leave her home, wondering how she will take her younger son, who is autistic, to doc-tor’s appointments.

“I don’t want to go to the store, to church — they are looking everywhere, and they know where to find us,” said Meli, who asked that her last name not be used out of fear of getting caught. “They could be waiting for us anywhere. Any corner, any block.”

It has washed ever-larger tides of im-migrants in Philadelphia, New York, Los Angeles and beyond to the doors of non-profit advocacy and legal services groups, which report hearing the same questions: What should I do if I am stopped by an officer from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE? How quickly can I apply for citizenship if I am already a legal permanent resident? How can I designate someone with legal status as my children’s guardian if I am deported?

“There’s a real fear that their kids will get put into the foster care system,” said Mary Clark, the executive director of Es-peranza Immigrant Legal Services in Phil-adelphia. “People are asking us because they don’t know where to turn.”

The new policies call for speedier de-portations and the hiring of 10,000 ICE agents, and direct them to treat any of-

fense, no matter how small, as grounds for deportation. For Mr. Trump’s support-ers and longtime advocates of stricter immigration en-forcement, they are a wel-come move toward restoring law and order to a system that they say offered no de-terrent to entering the coun-try illegally. Undocumented immigrants, in their view, have filled jobs that belong to Americans, drained pub-lic resources and skipped the line for visas on which

Translated by: Mohammad Hadi NooriSource: Hasht-e-Subh

Translated by: Dawood Karimi Source: Hasht-e-Subh

Deported Afghan Youth Wounded in Kabul Attack

Pakistan Training Suicide attackers

Immigrants Hide, Fearing Capture on ‘Any Corner’By VIVIAN YEEFEB

Republished from: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/22/us/immigrants-deporta-

tion-fears.html

Cesar Rodriguez, who runs a tamale restaurant on Staten Island with his mother, says customers are staying away. CreditHilary Swift for The New York Times

Page 6 February 25th, 2017

Vol.2, No. 66 Short Stories“It is not magic. It is a feeling but it

has a magical nature. It fights fear and confusion and creates a strong belief that something you wish will happen,” He ex-plained.

“Why do people die of cancer then?” I asked.

“Because they do not have enough hope, I believe so much in hope that even if I died I would have my family write the word hope on my graveyard stone,” he said.

My family and I moved to another place and he travelled with us to visit a doctor. While saying goodbye to his fa-ther, he hugged him and cried. He said, “Father, please forgive me because of my shortcomings and if I die, pray for me.” He climbed inside the truck and his father took his hand and did not want to release it. It was as if it was the last time they will see each other. When the truck began to move, his father finally released his hand and walked behind the moving truck like he was in a trance.

Unfortunately, Rashid had to stay

became bolder and used the stick to try to push the snake out of the trail. But, it still wouldn’t move. Finally he worked up his nerve and approached the head of the snake and realized that the snake’s head had been crushed by the rock. The snake was dead. The man pushed the snake out of the trail and continued on his way, full

ther,” he explained.“What do you mean by expressive

eyes,” I asked. “When I look at my father’s eyes, I

can see and feel all the years that he has been suffering, but he survived because he had hope. I paid the neighbor boy to draw a picture of my father,” he said.

"Why?” I asked.“A picture is worth a thousand words.

For me it is one word written a thousand times and that is why I named the picture ‘A Thousand Hopes’,” he said.

I did not know what he meant. I lived in the same village as he did and often went to his house to play games with his brothers. One day, I went to their house and everyone was sad. When I asked what happened, someone said, “Rashid is sick.” I thought that now there is no one to take care of the farm, no one to cut wood so that they can build a fire and get warm during the cold winter, no one to feed the children or take care of problems.

Rashid’s disease had something to do with his throat. After some time, his dis-ease got worse and he was unable to eat food easily. He left his village and went to another place to visit a doctor. The doctor gave him some injections and tablets. His body was in pain and he was often ask-ing me to massage him. I remember that he was injecting himself in his throat. I do not know whether I should call it bravery or running out of choices. His disease be-came worse and worse, so much worse that he could only take foods in the form of liquid, but he never complained. He al-ways talked about his plans and what he was going to do once he was better. He visited another doctor and was diagnosed with throat cancer. One day I regrettably said, “They say that there is no treatment for cancer.”

“But there is one,” he said.“What is that?” I asked.“Hope,” he said.“What is hope? Is it magic?”

sides of the trail was too thick for the man to go around, so he realized he was stuck. He picked up pebble and gingerly tossed it at the body of the snake, hoping it would move. It didn’t. Then he picked up a long stick and poked the body of the snake and then jumped back, hoping it would move out of the trail. It didn’t. He

Rashid was a handsome, tall, and strong young man who was no more than twenty-five years old. He lived in a vil-lage with his family. His father had Par-kinson’s disease and his old mother took care of him. Rashid had two small broth-ers and four sisters. One of his sisters was married with two teenagers and a smaller child. Despite the fact that his father was sick, that his brothers were small children and there was no one to help him in any of his affairs, he was brave and strong enough to take care of everything himself and not feel any lack of support. For him, his family was everything. Around that time, I was a kid. One day while he was busy irrigating his farm and I was tired of running around aimlessly, I went to him and said, “You are working so hard. Why don’t you get tired?”

“I have enough reasons,” he said, ”the always-happy faces of my brothers, the blushing, shy look of my sisters, the smile of my wife, the motherly love of my mom and the expressive eyes of my fa-

A man was walking down a trail in a very thick jungle in Africa. Ahead of him on the trail he saw a large snake. He could only see the body of the snake ly-ing across the trail; the head of the snake was on the other side of a rock just off the trail. The man recognized it as a very venomous snake. The vegetation on the

with us for some days before someone could get him to a doctor. I was with him. Eventually, he could not even talk. His throat was almost blocked. One day, I found him alone and I cried, I asked him, “Say something, please. At least one word.” He took a paper out of his pocket and showed it to me. It was the draw-ing of his father. That was when I un-derstood what he meant by “a picture is worth a thousand words.” I could see the thousand words of hope in the picture of Rashid’s father, just as he told me earlier.

When Rashid went to another doctor, it was discovered that the previous doc-tor's diagnosis was false and that he had no cancer. The doctor did an operation and Rashid soon recovered. Then I real-ized that fear and confusion could have killed him long before. If he stopped be-lieving that he will survive, he would have definitely died. He could have stayed at home and said that cancer cannot be cured and died of ignorance—unaware of the fact that he had no cancer. Hope gave him another chance to live.

of hope. His hope didn’t come so much from dead snake on the trail behind him; there could be more snakes ahead. His hope came from knowing that there was someone going ahead of him on the trail – clearing the way, removing obstacles and making it safe.

Rashid’s hopeA short story

An African parable of hope

About the author: Najeebullah Husseini is an alumnus of Star Educational Society. He is currently studying his Bachelor of Computer Applications in Mysore, Karna-taka, India.

Words of hope from around the world“However long the night, the dawn will break.” -

African Proverb - Hausa Tribe

“The darkest hours are just before dawn.” - English Proverb

“Keep your eyes on the sun and you will not see the shadows.” - Australian Aborigine Saying

“We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.” - Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.” - Desmond Tutu

Page 7February 25th, 2017

Vol.2, No. 66Literary

StoriesMy Grandmother

Told Me

73

About the author: Hadi Zaher was the first graduate of Quetta's branch of Star Educational Society in the year 1999. He has an MA from the University of Wollongong in Australia and is currently a post-graduate student at the University of New South Wales.

down the mountains. I remember this one time when

he was bitten by a snake he had brought to the village. We worried and begged him to go and see someone, the mullah perhaps but he was not worried. He murmured his spells a few times and blew it out over the bite mark, and walked back in to the fields. We all thought he was going to die. He returned home, ate and went to sleep. Early the next morning, the old Kar-blaye came looking for him:

Go and wake him up. Check if he still lives.

No sooner had Karblaye asked for him that Hassan walked out of the room with a smile on his face. He sounded unfazed:

Snakes? No snakes can kill me.Hassan got married a few years

later. He had a daughter. He was a happy person, and adored his baby daughter. He returned from the fields one afternoon and said he was ill. He

John Keats (1795 – 1821) was an English Romantic poet. Although his poems were not generally well received by critics during his lifetime, his repu-tation grew after his death, and by the end of the 19th century, he had become one of the most beloved of all English poets. Today his poems and letters are some of the most popular and most analysed in English literature.

ness. He might have had any of the many diseases that were common in the moun-tains. There were no doctors and there was no medicine. He died.

Hassan was nineteen or twenty or perhaps young-er, perhaps a little older when he died. I do not re-call how and I do not know

why. He just fell ill suddenly, and died half a day later.

Hassan was my my uncle’s – my father had a half-brother – son. His fa-ther and my father were from the same father but different mothers. We were Hassan’s family. He was still a child when he lost his father and mother. He was a clever child, and grew up to become a brave young man. He had learned the spell used to catch snakes and lizards. He would go into the hills and chase snakes when he had noth-ing else to do. He read the spells, caught snakes, sewed their mouths shut, wrapped them around his neck or waist, and return to the village to scare children and adults alike. He caught big snakes, some so big that it must have been an effort to carry them

went to sleep, and just like that, he died. He did not wake up from the afternoon sleep.

I do not know what it was. Perhaps he had been bitten, or perhaps he had an ill-

To HopeWhen by my solitary hearth I sit,And hateful thoughts enwrap my soul in gloom;When no fair dreams before my "mind's eye" flit,And the bare heath of life presents no bloom;Sweet Hope, ethereal balm upon me shed,And wave thy silver pinions o'er my head!

Whene'er I wander, at the fall of night,Where woven boughs shut out the moon's bright ray,Should sad Despondency my musings fright,And frown, to drive fair Cheerfulness away,Peep with the moonbeams through the leafy roof,And keep that fiend Despondence far aloof!

Should Disappointment, parent of Despair,Strive for her son to seize my careless heart;When, like a cloud, he sits upon the air,Preparing on his spell-bound prey to dart:Chase him away, sweet Hope, with visage bright,And fright him as the morning frightens night!

Whene'er the fate of those I hold most dearTells to my fearful breast a tale of sorrow,O bright-eyed Hope, my morbidfancy cheer;Let me awhile thy sweetest comforts borrow:Thy heaven-born radiance around me shed,And wave thy silver pinions o'er my head!

Should e'er unhappy love my bosom pain,From cruel parents, or relentless fair;O let me think it is not quite in vainTo sigh out sonnets to the midnight air!Sweet Hope, ethereal balm upon me shed,And wave thy silver pinions o'er my head!

In the long vista of the years to roll,Let me not see our country's honour fade:O let me see our land retain her soul,Her pride, her freedom; and not freedom's shade.From thy bright eyes unusual brightness shed---

Beneath thy pinions canopy my head!

Let me not see the patriot's high bequest,Great Liberty! how great in plain attire!With the base purple of a court oppress'd,Bowing her head, and ready to expire:But let me see thee stoop from heaven on wingsThat fill the skies with silver glitterings!

And as, in sparkling majesty, a starGilds the bright summit of some gloomy cloud;Brightening the half veil'd face of heaven afar:So, when dark thoughts my boding spirit shroud,Sweet Hope, celestial influence round me shed,Waving thy silver pinions o'er my head!

ties. Unfortunately, Afghanistan is still one of the most challenging places for women. Many women still lack basic hu-man rights, like the right to get an educa-tion, be free, or participate in sports. Even today, most families don’t support their daughters’ ambitions. Despite all the ob-stacles, Afghan women are making history on a daily basis. Woman like Fereshteh Fo-rough, Niloofar Rahmani, Roya Mahboob, Sakena Yacoobi and hundreds more keep me going. We have so many brave women working hard to make sure the next gen-eration of girls have freedom and oppor-tunity. It is not hard to be inspired by that.

In your experience, what are ways Af-ghan women can overcome cultural, gender barriers? Overcoming gender and cultural barriers is difficult, but definitely possible. We need to find allies and advo-cates among men and community leaders to emphasize the important role women play at the local and national level. Many men in Afghanistan support gender equal-ity and women’s rights for other women, but they don’t want the same for their own sister, mother and wife because they feel threatened by their female family mem-bers gaining power. We need to educate boys from a young age so that they grow up to be allies, not obstacles.

In addition to having male allies, it’s highly critical that we promote and sup-port female role models. Media plays a key role in helping introduce women who are working in sports, hospitals, and schools or running local businesses and mak-ing women’s participation mainstream. Women and girls are more likely to par-ticipant in school and sports if they know those opportunities do exist.

You have said your own father has always been supportive of your dreams. Can you speak on the importance of men’s sup-port for equality? Both my parents were highly supportive of education for my sisters and me. Even during the Taliban my sisters and I were home-schooled and we attended se-cret underground schools in Kabul. Everything I have achieved in my life is because of my par-ents’ support. I never had to ask my father for permission to at-tend school because getting an educa-tion was prized in my family. I don’t even remember ask-ing for permission to play soccer, I started

Saturday, February 25, 2017 Vol. 2, No. 66

playing and my father supported me de-spite the criticism he received from my relatives and neighbors. I don’t believe I would be where I’m now without my fa-ther’s support because in a patriarchal so-ciety like Afghanistan, it can be life-saving. This is because my father believed in his daughters.

All men can play that role for their daughters and other women in Afghani-stan since it is a male-dominated society and men’s voices carry more weight. To make men allies in this fight, we have to encourage and educate them on how gen-der-equality is essential for making our societies safer and better.

What gives you hope for the future of Afghanistan? The only thing that gives me hope for the future of Afghanistan is our new generation. Women have made so much progress over the past decade despite security challenges. That gives me hope. When I see the women’s soc-cer team competing in the Asia Soccer League I feel hope. When I read about the women’s cycling team breaking gender barriers by biking in the outskirt of Kabul I feel hope. When I see the videos of young women practicing shaolin martial arts in the snow I feel hope.

ing six women from six Muslim-majority countries to attend the Julie Foudy Lead-ership Academy camp in the summer of 2017.

Together, we can train these athletes to become more than soccer superstars. They can become role models and lead-ers for other women, on and off the field. In addition to instilling leadership skills in these athletes, we will promote cross-cultural understanding among the Ameri-can soccer players, Muslim athletes from many nations, and within Muslim society.

By enabling young women to attend JFSLA, we are working to advance famil-iarity with, and greater acceptance of, women playing sports. We hope this will lead to even more women finding their voices and self-confidence. JFSLA is pro-viding scholarships that include room and board for each of these international ath-letes. However, we still need to raise funds for their travel costs, including flights, visa fees, and ground transportation. Shirzan-an and I need your help to make this hap-pen.

Like you said, Shirzanan’s work is about more than women playing sports. How have you seen soccer change women and girl’s lives in Afghanistan? Speaking from firsthand experience, sports gave me the opportunity for higher education and to come out of my comfort zone and be free. It also changed the way society treated me. People no longer saw me as weak. The boys from my neighborhood stopped ha-rassing me. They were threatened by my ability to play soccer. I remember hearing them say “don’t mess with her. She is a footballer.”

Soccer empowered me and my team-mates. It built our self-confidence and opened doors for us. Today, most of my teammates have gone on to be accom-plished women in various fields. Although women’s athletics is relatively young in Afghanistan, there is growing evidence that it can play a key role in creating a safe space for women and change women’s role in society. What is an accomplishment you are most proud of and why? My proudest moment in life was receiving the Arthur Ashe Cour-age Award from ESPN in 2006 presented by Ashley Judd. I was honored to show a different face of Afghanistan. I was ex-tremely happy to represent the women of Afghanistan through the power of soccer and show our courage and bravery.

Every day we wake up to a new wave of negative news and as Afghan women, we face a wide range of obstacles in our lives. What keeps you going? What inspires me is the power of women and girls. Afghan women are brave and hardworking and we want to contribute to our communi-

You are an inspiration to many around the world. What initially inspired you to start playing soccer? When I kicked the soccer ball for the first time, I felt as if nothing existed around me that could prevent me from doing what I wanted. It was a sense of empowerment I can’t ex-plain. After I started playing soccer many people tried to discourage me. Some people told me I was not physically strong enough to play, because soccer is seen as a men’s sport in Afghanistan. It made me angry and I used my anger to fuel myself. I wanted to prove people wrong and I was determined to show men that women are powerful and strong.

At any given time you are working on several projects. What keeps you busy these days? When I left Afghanistan to at-tend the 2006 Julie Foudy Soccer Leader-ship Academy (JFSLA), it was a big step. I came from a deeply conservative society where women are encouraged to remain silent, but there I was playing soccer. It was at JFSLA that I first learned that if I worked hard and believed in myself, my potential was endless. I wanted to provide other young Afghan women with the same opportunity. Today, in collaboration with Julie Foudy, an incredible leader and the former captain of the U.S. Women’s Soc-cer Team, and Shirzanan, we are invit-

About the interviewer: Pary Shuaib is a Free Women Writers member with a relent-less passion for gender equality. She has a BA in Communication from George Ma-son University and sometimes does yoga to soothe her soul.

Empowering Young Women through Sports in Afghanistan and around the World

Republished from: http://www.freewomenwriters.org/empowering-young-women-sports-afghanistan-around-world/

Website: http://www.star.edu.af Email: interstellarbulletin@gmail.com

Editor-in-Chief: Ali Reza YasaEditors: Kara Lozier, Jonathan Greenburg and Murtaza FarjadDesigner: Musa AutbinDistribution: Najibullah Malikpoor 0785103920

C Branch: Jafar Musafer 0708457453B Branch: Rahmat Doorandish 0787372650Bamyan: Essa Omid 0773609598Daikundi: Qasem Karimi 0771117721Ghazni: Essa Jamal 0787126362

Add: Star Avenue, Sabiqa Stop, Dehburi, Kabul.A Branch Phone: +93 (0) 785 10 39 20 / +93 (0) 744 56 37 55

From practicing martial arts to climbing soaring mountains, Afghan women are finding creative ways to break barriers in sports, but before we could conquer hill-tops, we had to find our way to fields and gyms. This week, I had the chance to speak with a pioneer for women’s soccer in Af-ghanistan. Shamila Kohestani was one of the first captains of Afghanistan’s National Women’s Football (soccer) Team after the fall of the Taliban regime. Today, she is working with Shirzanan, an organization dedicated to encouraging more women from Muslim-majority countries to join sports.