Afghan women are demanding their voices be heard under Taliban rule.
Once the bullets had stopped and a ceasefire called, the children could come out to play on the streets of Kabul.
Despite the war that existed beyond her walls, writer and activist, Homeira Qaderi, remembers the colourful fruit trees that grew in her family’s courtyard. This imagery of her childhood is described in Qaderi’s book Dancing in the Mosque.
In recalling her memories of growing up in conflict-stricken Afghanistan, Qaderi remembers her Nanah-jan (grandmother) saying that “a girl should have fear in her eyes”. But Qaderi was raised in war, and as her Madar (mother) would often say, it contributed to her fearlessness.
“Before Homeira heard her own cries, she heard other people’s screams. No wonder she isn’t afraid of anything.”
Like many women in Afghanistan, Qaderi has been fighting for women’s freedom since the Soviet occupation, and as the country’s current situation deteriorates, she is forced to continue the struggle.