August 15, 2021. Kabul. Afghanistan. 11:03 a.m. “A dull noise […]. They are there, a few meters from the window. I can feel the dust kicked up by their pickup, the blade of their black eyes scanning our homes. I'm within range of their bullets. Strangled, hypnotized by the black turbans screwed on their heads. Those chins high and proud. They challenge us. Kalashnikov on the shoulder, ammunition on the belt. I waver. » Thus opens the first chapter entitled “End”.
End not of life, but of a life certainly constrained, where freedom managed to infiltrate a net with loose mesh. August 15, 2021. The Taliban have regained power. Like hundreds of other families, that of Khatera Amine must go underground. Barely breathing. Feeding yourself at the cost of a thousand dangers. And get used to this distressing and strict clandestinity. Because danger threatens everywhere and at every moment. Yes, Khatera Amine, her disabled sister and her parents tried to flee, as did her brother Suliman and his family. From now on, airports and borders are closed. Should we already find a visa or passport…
Reduced to simple objects
So Khatera Amine, a journalist like her mother, sends text messages. Maurine Bajac, a senior reporter in France, opens one of these bottles at sea. What follows is a story of friendship that develops through uncertain exchanges, linked to the mood swings of communication networks. . We discover, frightened and speechless, the fierce battle fought by Khatera Amine. Determined, she defends body and soul the cause of women whose freedom is violated on a daily basis. Secretly, miraculously, she manages to give writing and reading lessons to young Afghan women. Women that the Taliban want to reduce to simple objects.
“I am writing to you from Kabul…” is a lesson in courage. And if Khatera Amine manages to escape, she keeps her spirit in Afghanistan where so many women and men live recluse, despised, terrorized, under the yoke of dictatorship. There remains the breath of freedom.
Mary Charruau
“I am writing to you from Kabul…” by Khatera Amine and Maurine Bajac, ed. Litos, 312 p., €8.50.
