Afghanistan – The Deconstructed Globe

A Holiday Benefit

Posted on December 6, 2015 by Judith

A Holiday Benefit for The Afghan Peace Volunteers’ Quilt Project

After 13 years of U.S./NATO intervention in Afghanistan, and US$1.172 trillion dollars spent on the Afghan war from 2001 to October of 2012, the basic needs of ordinary Afghans constantly caught in the crossfire are still poorly met.

In the following winter of 2013, the Afghan Peace Volunteers ( APVs ) organized the making and distribution of duvets to poor families in Kabul, including those in refugee camps.

Thanks to international peace-builders who had raised funds from among ordinary Americans, the APVs were able to distribute more than 2000 duvets that year. The Afghan ladies who sewed the duvets were paid a living wage per duvet. – quote from APV website

What Happened to Aafia Siddiqui and Where is She Now?

Posted on March 30, 2015 by Judith

A Pakistani Woman named Aafia Siddiqui was abducted from a taxi in Karachi, Pakistan along with her 3 children 12 years ago on March 30, 2003. At the time she was vulnerable, recently divorced from an abusive husband; living with her mother; her father had just died of a heart attack. The youngest child was an infant. Following her […]

Valentines Day and Never Ending Wars

Posted on February 14, 2015 by Judith

Syria ** Iraq ** Pakistan ** Afghanistan ** Venezuela ** Ukraine ** Russia Obama has requested an authorization for war on ISIS in Iraq and Syria. While Congress is gearing up to talk about it, the U.S. is already bombing there daily. We have several hundred ‘advisors’ on the ground, who admit to engaging in battle at times. The U.S. […]

Afghanistan and the Arena of Ideas

Posted on November 10, 2014 by Judith

by Dr. Hakim / Dr. Wee Tek Young, cross posted from Countercurrents.org “You didn’t know about the decision of the Singapore government to join the fight against ISIS ?” she asked. I was catching up with another Singaporean, Lynette ( a pseudonym to respect her privacy ), who had previously worked in Kabul and who was back in Afghanistan to […]

Bombs Away! Drones In the Sky

Posted on November 10, 2014 by Judith

For a while it seemed that the drones project had been restrained following a flood of public criticism last year. Reports from United Nations Special Rapporteurs, and mainstream NGOs like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International clearly documented violations of International Humanitarian and Human Rights Law by Drone strikes in Pakistan and Yemen, countries the US is not at war […]

To Commemorate The 2014 Election in Afghanistan

Posted on October 3, 2014 by Judith

Introduction followed by reprint of post by Sherif Samir on Our Journey to Smile. After months of wrangling, and a runoff between feuding candidates, Abdullah Abdullah, and Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai, who represent different regions and ethnic groups of the country, Ashraf Ghani was declared the new president of Afghanistan. The numeric results were apparently too sensitive to release, and were […]

Afghan Children and the News Merry-Go-Round

Posted on July 22, 2014 by Judith

Today I spoke with friends in Kabul, members of Afghan Peace Volunteers, a group of young people who engage in peace building projects. They make headscarves for mothers, sew and market blankets for rural families in winter, Their videos, which are consistently quite charming, can bee seen at http://ourjourneytosmile.com. These young people from war torn Afghanistan are healing themselves by […]

Send Aafia Home

Posted on July 8, 2014 by Judith

Please sign the petition linked below to help Dr. Aafia Siddiqui, a political prisoner, and also a victim of state terrorism. Aafia Siddiqui has been abused, humiliated, shot, and driven to the edge of sanity. She was tried for one crime and convicted on the basis of false evidence of another. There was no evidence other than some contested witness […]

Mary Ellen O’Connell on Drones and Cyber Weapons Under Law and Morality

Posted on March 30, 2014 by Judith

Mary Ellen O’Connell spoke at Le Moyne College on Wednesday Evening. Her Topic was: Drones, Cyber Weapons and Autonomous Robots, Law and Morality. Recording by Judy Bello, 3/26/14 My Flip ran out of juice just at the end of the talk, so I made an audio recording of the Q&A on my phone. Unfortunately it isn’t as loud as I […]

Flying Kites on Nao Roz

Posted on March 25, 2014 by Judith

On Saturday Rochester Upstate Activists came out in solidarity with the Afghan Peace Volunteers and Voices for Creative Nonviolence, UK Fly Kites Not Drones campaign to celebrate Nao Roz, the Afghan New Year, by flying kites at a local park near a busy highway. It was 35 degrees under a steel grey sky, with 20 mph winds. Uncomfortable for humans, […]

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