Witnesses of Mercy for Peace and Reconciliation

81 WITNESSING MERCY FOR PEACE AND RECONCILIAT ION Not surprisingly, in the initial stages, imams were extremely reluctant to join. We put the information booklet in front of them so that, when they read it, they found that it was faithful to the Qur’an and the Hadith. I assured them that I was not undermining their faith and so imams participated in a series of workshops that reviewed both the Islamic perspective and international standards on human and women’s rights. Five informa- tion booklets were made available to the imams for free, and after several weeks of training, the imams promised to address women’s rights and distribute the booklets during the weekly Friday prayers ( khutbas ). I knew that this was progress, but I wanted to see what would happen next. I contacted the dormitory wing of Kabul University and asked students to volunteer to mon- itor the khutbas . Twenty-four students joined the effort and were briefly trained on monitoring and reporting. The monitoring revealed some real changes. Almost all of the imams at the 20 mosques addressed issues of marriage. A majority of them also talked about inher- itance issues and women’s rights to property. Only a few mentioned the women’s right to participate in polit- ical activities and processes. However, as time passed, more and more people at the khutbas began to engage. They wanted to discuss domestic violence, inheritance issues, a woman’s right to education, and the duty of a husband to provide material support to his wife and children ( nafaqa ). As time went on, things continued to change. After the successful implementation of the project, it was duplicated in 22 of the other 34 provinces and the work, starting with 20 imams, expanded to 6,000 imams across Afghanistan, achieving recognition inside and outside the country. I believe that those who are facing challenges can be pioneers of change in their society through com- mitment and continued struggle. I believe in mercy and love, which connect us to each other. Whether religiously or faith-inspired, I strive to con- tribute to the long-term goal of transforming conflicts and building peace in violence-ridden communities by drawing upon sacred texts, spiritualities, rituals and other religious practices. Integrating Islam into my organization’s peacebuilding initiatives is a central priority in my personal and professional life. With peace- building rooted in faith, I believe that we are capable of cultivating unexpected fruits, not least the inspiration to motivate local partners to follow in my footsteps. Jamila Afghani Jamila Afghani is founder of the Noor Educational Centre (NEC) and a member of the Tanenbaum Peacemakers in Action Network. Raised during the Soviet invasion of her country, Jamila began her peacemaking career as a social worker in Afghan refugee camps in Pakistan. In addition to addressing basic camp needs, she taught Qur’anic edu- cation classes through which many of the women learnt to read and write. After the fall of the Taliban, Jamila moved back to Afghanistan and founded the NEC in Western Kabul, the most war-looted and structurally damaged part of the city. NEC now provides hundreds of women, youths and children in Kabul, Ghazni and Jalalabad with classes in health, literacy, vocational activities, the internet, the English language and other specialised areas. This educa- tion has reached thousands of men and women through large-scale outreach projects around the country. In collaboration with the Women’s Islamic Initia- tive in Spirituality and Equality, Jamila has created the first holistic gender-sensitive imam training program in Kabul and the surrounding areas.