Dear friends,
It has been 30 heart rending years since the demise of Meena, leader of the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA), when the KHAD and Gulbuddini criminals took her from us in a treacherous ploy. Meena was immortalized and her cry that called for justice and freedom of thousands of Afghan women still resonates among our women today.
After the death of the revolutionary Iranian poet, Samad Behrangi, one of his close friends, Hussain Sa’edi, wrote, “Samad’s biggest masterpiece was his life.” This statement surely applies to our dear Meena as well, her biggest masterwork was her own life and the founding of an organization like RAWA. Meena was a strong rock that no power succeeded in swaying. The intimidation by her enemies did not shake her strong will to fight for the freedom of people. The organization found by Meena has today become the thorn of the eyes of fundamentalist and non-fundamentalist criminals, and stolen their peace of mind.
Dear friends,
Our women have been burning in the inferno of violence of all kinds under the rule of treacherous, misogynist gangs. US imperialism mocked the security of women’s rights and justice for Afghan women with the creation of government bodies such as the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Special Prosecution Office on Elimination of Violence against Women, the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission, and hundreds of NGOs. These bodies that reek of the Jehadis and Taliban mentality, are so treacherous and incompetent, that they have been disgraced before our people and women years back. In the past sixteen years, despite deafening slogans by the US and its Western allies, crimes and violence against our women has only increased. This is because of the domination of the misogynist fundamentalist pigs in the puppet government. Farkhunda was taken apart by a group of Jehadi goons; Rukhshana was stoned to death by the brutal Taliban; our 11-year-old Tabbasum was beheaded; Zahra and Rahila was burned to death; 8-year-old Rubaba was forced into marriage with a cleric; and many more such cases. Tens of women and children are killed by the US occupiers’ bombs every year. All this is while the US and other Western governments are using their media to portray the corrupt mafia Kabul government as pro-women. In this ridiculous show, they have also used sold-out figures from the Civil Society and parliament.
Dear sisters,
On this day, we want to take an oath to follow Meena’s path till the end, and struggle for the freedom of our suffering nation from the dark claws of internal traitors and foreign invaders. We should remember that there is no savior, no one is going to rescue us; our freedom is only possible with our own struggle and not by relying on the so-called international society and foreign invaders.
Let us honor Meena’s memory by continuing her honorable path and struggle!