By: Erica My personal situation seems very secure here but the signs that I am in conflict zone are all around me. When I first arrived, my hosts told me about an incident earlier that morning in which a warlord, Gen. D, who also held a high ranking position in the government, stormed into a…
By: Erica Today I accompanied the team that works on the Afghan Civilian Assistance Program (ACAP) to one of their field offices in a province near Kabul. The local staff here are extremely dedicated to the project but often overwhelmed by the challenges of operating in such a difficult environment. They cover not just their own…
By: Erica I leave on Saturday from Cairo to Dubai, the main port of entry to Kabul. Before I leave, I thought I’d send another quick note on some of the work I hope to accomplish on behalf of CIVIC in Afghanistan. For those of you have been following CIVIC’s work, you already know…
By: Erica Hi all! I will be arriving in Kabul on Feb. 3 to begin my work as CIVIC’s jack-of-all-trades in Afghanistan — researcher, advocate, on-the-ground point-person, and of course, blogger. I think it is most important for this first post to give you a sense of my personal motivation for joining CIVIC and my own…
As you know, CIVIC has a long history working in Afghanistan to get help to war victims. However, because of the rising cost of security it’s been hard to maintain an ‘on the ground’ presence there.This past fall, Harvard offered to CIVIC a fully-funded advocate to live in Afghanistan. Due to unforeseen complications on Harvard’s end, the fellowship will…
By: Nick Returning to Sri Lanka is much like returning home after a long time at college. Ther are of course my immediate loved ones here—people who open their homes and kitchens to us. Then there are the many friends and acquaintances, and all the news to catch up on. Obviously the major issue in…
The Iraqis I met a few weeks ago are still fleeing car bombs and sniper fire, but they’re not running for their lives. Instead, they are running for a living, earning money by playing distraught civilians in a fake Iraqi province called Ghanzi. Created by the U.S. military in California’s Mojave Desert, Ghanzi is part…
Spend some time in Brussels and Kabul with the soldiers and civilians of NATO and you’ll hear the same thing: If there ever was a place and a time when winning support of the local population would help win a war, the place is Afghanistan — and the time is now. Afghanistan is beginning to…
In Kabul a few weeks ago, I met Sahib Dad, an Afghan father. During the 2001 U.S. invasion, two of his girls were killed when a U.S. bomb missed its target and exploded in their playground. He says he never saw an American face, never received an apology. At the time, the United States had…