Witnesses of Mercy for Peace and Reconciliation

80 WITNESSING MERCY FOR PEACE AND RECONCILIAT ION appeal of personal example, and the contagion of success, however modest. I have a metaphor for my peace work, which is a small tree growing, giving fruit to others, giving shade to others, and giving support to others. I recognise that inspiring others to follow in my footsteps is the only real hope for a sustainable effort toward long-term peace. For me, religion is one of the most powerful social and cultural contexts of my life and work, and there- fore an invaluable resource for unleashing the moral imagination and peacebuilding capacities of my fellow Afghans. My faith, and not least my struggles with many of my male co-religionists, is at the heart of my quali- fication as a culturally sophisticated peacebuilder. As a peace activist in Afghanistan, therefore, I view religion as a fundamental tool for NECDO to gain acceptance and build trust in communities. Indeed, I explain that religion is part of a methodology for reaching out to a tradition of peace. Personally, I draw strength and inspiration from my faith in Allah (SWT), but a fluent understanding of local and regional religion is also an essential part of my work. As such, my core personal beliefs and drivers are embedded in my work. As a Muslim woman, I became inspired by the actual text of the Qur’an and what I considered to be its true interpretation, rather than the version of Islam that most local politico-religious actors endorse. Their version of Islam represses women and quickly imposes broad social restrictions during times of political instability. It was my firm belief in this understanding of Islam that strengthened my determination to teach women about their rights based on the Qur’an, and fortified my com- mitment to expand women’s rights. Both personally and professionally, then, I recognise religion as a necessary identity marker and a resource for my work in traditional communities saturated with religious sensibilities. I recognise that my own beliefs and sensibilities must be filtered through the lens of the larger religious society if I want to reach intended audiences. Afghan men and youths are the ones who should understand human rights and women’s rights and therefore a project was initiated that would involve imams in changing community attitudes and behaviours relating to women. Jamila Afghani at the US embassy, Kabul, in 2016, speaking on women’s rights from an Islamic perspective