Dr Andrea Medovarski

Dr Andrea Medovarski, Dr Yar Sana and Pariwaush sana

Dr Andrea Medovarski Professor of Canadian Literature in a comment after a class presentation wrote: "Dr. Yar, you have very good oral presentation skills and your pacing and strategic repetition of key ideas made your section very easy to follow. You had clearly practiced to ensure your presentation ran smoothly and you backed up your ideas with some very good research. Your key task of situating Brand’s poetry within a global context was accomplished by raising some very valid points about her work and what it means for her to give up on ‘land to light on.’ As you rightly point out, this is not just ambivalence about Canada specifically, but about nations in general and their historical connections to colonial projects of various kinds. Comparing Brand’s poem to other poets was also very effective, but I would have liked to see you draw the connections more explicitly. There were numerous places where you could have made direct comparisons between the types of imagery or language used by Brand and the other poets. It might have also been more useful to only talk about one or two other poets in more detail rather than trying to cover four. Overall though, you established a very good foundation on which your other two group members could build." Dr Andrea Medovarski

Kaziwa Salih
Novelist, Poet, Human rights activist and Author of 8 books

By: Dr.Yar Sana Nikpai

Free lance writer

The Daughter of Kurdistan

Kurdistan is a land, the motherland for Kaziwa Salih I am writing about a steadfast, irrepressible and powerful lady, who passed all methodology of wrestling for the name of human and humanity. She was born in Solaimani, Kurdistan in a revolutionary family in opposition of Sadam Hossain’s regime. Her brother was killed, her father most of the time was in that regime’s jails, she was suspended from music college, accused of belonging to an anti Sadam revolutionary group and family.

This strong pressure from the Saddam regime couldn't affect Kaziwa’s determination, but her brother’s death changed her thought and methodology of fighting against despotism and dictatorship. She didn’t take weapons, to kill or be killed, she took a pen, stronger tool for enlightening and exposing the autarchy and fight for freedom more intensively.
“The dead of my older brother change many things in my life, made me a writer. I had written my first words for him , it was a four line poetry for his grave ,then my first story also was about an image of my mother while she was visiting my brother’s grave every week, and stacking on it ,hugged the grave and carrying till darkness of night ram her to come back”, said Kaziwa.

Kaziwa bring her two brothers Kardo, and Karzan to Canada to save their live and become their guardian. They were children when she brings them, now they are in college and she is a sister-mother” parents” for her brothers, which is not easy.
“My principles didn't permit me to leave my two young brothers there. I’m struggling for human rights and pace, how much I would be trustworthy if I was unable to do so for my family? How I can do so for other then? I didn’t want them to grow up in corruptions system, and violence environment, I didn’t want them to become part of it, didn’t want them become members of one of those corrupted parties there .In addition, I wanted to save them.”, said Kaziwa

Kaziwa has been living in Canada since 2003. I wonder at the magnificence of Canada, how it can fit in its land so much pain from every country. In Canada, Kaziwa writes and thinks about Kurdistan. The presence of Americans in Iraq changed the character of fighting for an Independent Kurdistan from revolutionary methods to deeply political, but Canadian Kaziwa prefers the new methods, “We always want to achieve our rights and freedom in a fair and democratic civilized method”, said Kaziwa.

In the period of Sadam Hossain’s regime Kaziwa and her family fought against the regime, even revolutionary and partisan’s ways. American brought down Sadam from the power, Iraq with the “democratic” federal regime and Kurdistan with autonomy, A Kurdish leader (Jalal Talibani) is a President of Iraqthat should make Kurds happy. What does Kaziwa think about it? “I’m hopeless about that issue, for several reasons, some of them that I can mention them is related to Kurdistan. It’s obvious that Kurdistan was a state; today Kurds are stateless, for one reason we have very rich soil”
She adds,” Our land is full of oil, gas, copper and other mineral resources. Those resources were motives for the division of our state. Today’s colonialism is even more powerful, they are dreaming of international state, and an international presidency, to bring them peace and democracy as they are saying, but to access our wealthy land, in the name of globalization. In that case, Kurdistan will not be independent as it’s the wealthier region in the area.”
Kaziwa is a Fiction and none-fiction writer, journalist, poet and human rights activist. As a writer, she has published 9 books and numerous of articles. 1998 ¬ - Published her first storybook called “The Wisdom of Being Gypsy “.” Zamwa” Press Company published first edition of this book, and Second edition by “NVAR” press. in 1994 she published her first literary work in “Sarmawaz” Magazine; in 1998 she wrote a book “The Route of distinction in political Islam”; in 1999 her book “Hawnaz & the Ladybug” was distributed in Kurdistan’s schools; in 2000 she wrote a book “Anfal from method to project”; in 2002 she published another book “Kurdistan women on the threshold of Globalization; in 2003 Kaziwa wrote two book “Children in the Instruments” and “Two Friends and Magician” for kids; in 2004 she published “Those unreadable letters before death” a collection of stories; in 2005 Kaziwa published her research book “The knowledge of Feminism and Kurdish society” and the last book of Kaziwa Salih was published in June, 2008 in Kurdistan.

Kaziwa’s journalist activities started in 1996 and in 1998 she was editor-in- chief of two Kurdish magazines, NAVAR, focused on civil society, philosophy and world political issues. And in 2000 she started publishing NWEKAR magazine similar to NVAR method
As a poet, Kaziwa writes more poems about life than love, but her capability can decorate love poetry as well. One of Kaziwa’s love poems called “A Heart from Paper” she prefers a paper heart to erase material treasure and draw “passion’s treasure”, as she saying in the second part:

“I wished your heart

Was from paper

I was drawing

Passion’s treasure

Can change your heart

To gold forever

Never get rusty

For other, for treasure, but

“You lose your heart

For me, for love

I lose my heart for you for love”

Not for treasure”

Kaziwa Salih is a feminist, human rights activist and involved in politics, related to her homeland, Kurdistan.

In 2001 Kaziwa was the only Kurdish girl ever invited to Egypt, she carried in her pouch the sorrow and grief of Anfal and Halabja(Kurdish genocide) and Karkuk to the Arab world, in order to built civilized dialogue. In September 2002 she participated in the progressive women congress in Egypt. In 2001-2002 Kaziwa attempted to discuss the Kurdish issue and introduce them to Kurdish Art and literature. In 2002 she was the first Kurdish woman invited to the “Arabic Summit Congress” in London for the Arab Presidents in the world.

Canadian Kaziwa works studies writes and lives very hard. When I ask about her activities in Canada, she says: “I’m totally busy with work to make a living and study; unfortunately my profession in Canada is useless. No one has attempts to writing vocation as an important domain for this country’s future, and for professional writer to live in paces and don’t feel preparing for trip she/he must to leave. These problems disabled my activities and make me ask every day, so what is reason of been survived? yet I feel this homeland, but don’t forget; I left my homeland to uphold my pen.” Does she uphold her “pen” and how? It is very interesting question, which I want to find the answer. “Canada gave me freedom of expression as a writer. But it also has taken the most important thing in my life; it has taken my identity as a writer”, said Kaziwa salih. But Miss Salih loves Canada. She loves “Not for pleasure” as she writes in her poem, “To gold forever”. She compares Canada with her Kurdistan and with an open mind, expresses her feeling and belonging to Canada as she said ,“Personally, I’m ready to sacrifice my soul for this land, just as I would do for my homeland. Canada has offered me a lot, it has saved my life. For the first time in my life I have an identity, it is a Canadian passport, while as a Kurdish we always suffered identity lose, it gives me freedom to walk the streets without bodyguards as I once did. It gives me rights as a woman.”
Yes, Identity, that’s the gold, which she lost in her motherland and found in Canada, identity as a woman and as a Canadian.

Farishta Matin

July 2008

Terror

Few decades ago

The flowers were blooming.

and the sun shining

The golden child graceful,

slender and hardworking.

But time changed and

sickness occurred,

children died before they were born

death came too often,

happiness faded away.

Death was cheaper than life

Hills and mountains glowed in blood

our pride killed everything,

though it wasn’t enough

Lucifer

Dark and mysterious angel,

powerful and invisible.

Most perfect creature God has created

with thoughts of violence, illness and genocide.

His vicious face and sinister mood

incriminating punishment and power till eternity.

Deep down the ground and away from light

Threatening the ones that fear no light.

Wisest of all who shows no mercy

Sinful.

Farishta Matin

July 2008

I AM Poem

I am a rose with no pricks

I am a bird with no wings

I am a pen without ink

I am a dream that never ends

I am screaming but no voice comes

I am a tear that is invisible

I am a spirit chained down

I am a road not taken

I am a fire that doesn’t burn down

I am the future with no present

Cat, Sparow and Me

To Murtaza and Mustafa, who had flown Calgary for a summer job to earn their university expenses.

Cat, Sparrow and Me

Yar Sana

July11, 2008

An Afghan saying:

“A cat carries its babies 40 times a night

to different places”.

I did the same.

A cat does it in villages.

I did it on continents.

A cat wants to teach

running, escaping,

hiding its babies from other animals.

I wanted to teach,

escaping from animalized people,

from war and warriors.

A sparrow flies above its nest with a hearty dream

to one day see its babies fly.

A sparrow brings food to the nest

and very fairly nourishes its babies

with the heartfelt desire

to one day see its babies

nourish themselves

I did the same.

The sparrow carefully pushes its babies from the nest,

to teach them flying.

I did the same.

Now my cat dreams and sparrow wishes have come true,

Now I know,

I was dreaming the hardest moment of my life

with the cat and the sparrow.

My babies

have flown away.

Profile of Yar Sana

By : Nikesh

Canadian journalist

and human right activist

Yar Sana: Fighting fundamentalism

Adversity couldn’t kill his determination

Yar Sana’s humility belies his educational achievement and activism. Although, Sana holds a PhD in jurisprudence and a Master of Arts in Law from the University of Saint Petersburg in Russia, he doesn’t like to trumpet them often.

Afghan born Sana, now a Canadian citizen, believes in action. And his life is indeed a testament of action and sacrifice for his family and community.

Along with his community activism and freelance writing career, Sana is now the editor of a monthly newspaper called “Andisha-e-Nau” dedicated to raise awareness among Afghan community in Toronto and beyond.

The life of Sana in Canada has never been an easy proposition. After arrival in Canada in 1997, he faced grim reality. Although he could read, write and speak three languages, he could not speak English when he landed to Canada.

“This was a huge limitation for me,” says Sana. However, he didn’t waste much time in making his choice. “After surveying government support mechanism as well as evaluating my situation, I faced the most difficult challenge of my life,” Sana reminisces.

He had two options; one is pursuing his personal academic development and another starting odd jobs to support his children’s education. “Considering my children’s future, I decided to start odd jobs to provide them the opportunity to education.” “But it was not easy.”

“I know how hard it is to transfer work habit from a scholarly writer to a mechanic; newspaper editor to a delivery man; attending university rooms to attending store rooms; opening a book to open a mechanic box; instead of writing sentences, tightening nuts, bolts or screws.”

“However, I knew what I was doing and it was this certainty of purpose that helped and still helping me triumph over all the odds.”

His choice of supporting his children’s education bore results. “My priority for my family paid off. Two of my sons are now in the university.” “I am very pleased about their progress.”

Although, he started doing survival jobs, his passion for working for the community of his country of origin didn’t die. Undeterred by the odds, Sana started a monthly community newspaper in Toronto in 2003. He is very vocal against all the wrong doings in the Afghan community in Toronto through his newspaper.

“The Afghan community in Toronto is governed by the people of Taliban mentality. There are just two organizations in the community who are taking money from the Canadian government and we don’t know where and how they are spending the money.”

According to Sana, only one tribe from Kandahar province has been grabbing all the government resources in Canada in the name of 25 different ethnic groups that makeup Afghan community.

It is not only the money; Sana is concerned about the activities of these organizations that are helping in “breeding fundamentalism in Toronto”.

“These organizations are misguiding new immigrants by using religion.” “When new immigrants come, these organizations enrol them religious courses and inspire them wearing Hijab.”

Sana thinks as Afghan society is not very well educated, the activities of some of these community organizations in Toronto are keeping the immigrants in the margins where they don’t have any opportunity to cultivate the secular values of Canadian society.

Sana says, he has been fighting this kind of religious fundamentalism through his newspaper. Maintaining his newspaper on the advertisement revenue, his time for the newspaper is completely free.

“We are making progress in creating some sort of awareness bubble around social issues. All around the world, our newspaper is known to the Afghan people.” “And in the process, we have created some foe as well.”

Not only in Toronto, Sana is helping to establish cultural organizations and publications in other places, including Afghanistan; “I helped them establish the newspapers there. And I go to these places at least twice a year to speak about social issues that are holding Afghan communities back.”

Sana says there are 40,000 Afghan people living in Ontario and all of them are aware about his activities. “With our limited resources, we are doing our best to help Afghan community aware about issues that are important for their engagement with the mainstream society.

The social activism of Sana derives from his secular view of life and the world. All through his life, Sana looked for dignity and value at the core of his heart. He never compromised with unscrupulous and power hungry people.

So, when he was approached to join Afghan government couple of times that included an offer to join the Government as an selected senator, he gracefully declined the offers.

“I didn’t want to be part of the gangs and criminals,” says Sana. “My dignity is more valuable than the status and money that comes with working for Afghan government.”

Freedom is most valuable to him. “Canada offered me a lot which is very valuable to me. The first value is freedom.” “It is freedom that kept me alive here in Canada, although I had to do odd jobs for survival, I hold the value of freedom dear to my heart.”

It is freedom that kept Sana going. In spite of a hard life, he did not stop using his professional and intellectual skills. Using his holidays and spare time, Sana has written 300 articles, and 3 books and 3 electronic books

Sana is a man of integrity. He holds secular views of life. Democracy and freedom are at the core of his heart.

Sana plans to expand his work through his newspaper after completing his Journalism course in Sheridan College. “I want to contribute to the creation of a secular democratic society by all the means that are in my commands,” says Sana.

“My fight against fundamentalism will continue,” he concludes.

By: Yar Sana

Genocide & silence

in American “Afghanistan”

Why genocide, why silence?

Amir Abdullrahman Khan (1880-1901), who could have been labled a sadist, enjoyed killing mass numbers of people-almost to the point of a genocide against the Hazaras, the Uzbeks and other ethnic groups. He eliminated them inmass numbersgave their lands to the Pushton tribes. The most vulnerablevictims the Hazara.

The Columbia Encyclopedia introduces Abd ar-Rahman Khan(äb'där-rämän' kän, khän), as the “emir of Afghanistan (1880–1901); grandson of Dost Muhammad. He opposed his uncle, Sher Ali, and was forced into exile in 1869. He was, however, recognized by the British as the emir in 1880, and he supported British interests.” 1

The history of Hazara’s genocide started in the period of Abdullrahman Khan at the end of 19 century, when Britain began tothrone and dethrone theAfghan kings from British India. Britainalways supported a Sunny Pushton government in Afghanistan. (I want to hear more about why this is the case.) “By sending Sunni clerics to every village in Hazarajat Abdur Rahman forced the Hazaras to attend Sunni mosques and to abandon Shiism. (I would like to hear more about the difference between these two faiths – and what’ underlying it. In other words is the situation the same as northern Ireland where my ancestors came from – where it has nothing to do with faith but is more about the fact that the Irish Protestants have all the money and the power?) He imposed tougher regulations on the Hazaras by forcing them to pay heavy taxes.”2

Genocide Watch International reported in (and say when) that the “Taliban have demonstrated their capacity for genocidal violence in massacres of civilian members of the Hazara Shi’ite ethnic minority in Mazar-e-Sharif in August 1998, Robatak Pass in May 2000, and Yakaolang in January 2001.”3 In Mazar-e-Sharif alone the Taliban killed between eight and twelve thousand Hazaras and Uzbeks.

The genocide of the Hazaras is continuing today by the Karzai regime in the presence of international forces in Afghanistan. Dr Rauf Roashan writes in his research article: “Any keen student of history would easily find a parallel between the era of the Amir of the late 19th century and that of contemporary times. And the parallel may extend also to the American Wild West era where guns ruled, Billy the Kid, local sheriffs, US marshals and gunmen of all sorts.”4

When the British were in India, King Abdullrahman Khan killed the Hazara. Now that the British are back in Afghanistan, Karzai continues the genocidal crime of his ancestors. The district of Behsood, in the province of Wardak in Afghanistan is a place of genocide, continuing on this moment.

The Geneva Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, from December 11, 1946, states that genocide is a crime under international law, contrary to the spirit and aims of the United Nations and condemned by the civilized world. Genocide is defined in article 1: “In the present Convention, genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, as such:

(a) Killing members of the group;
(b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;
(c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;
(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;
(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.” 1

Karzai is currently violating the dictates of the Convention in Behsood Afghanistan. “Acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group…”

Nomadic people from Pakistan come to Afghanistan with weapons and transportation, which ultimately is used by Taliban tokill Afghan citizens, who live and work in their own houses and land. The Taliban kills the Hazaras, who gave their weapon to UN group, which called DDR.

The Pushton President from Kandahar is helping the Pakistani Pushtons to settle in Afghanistan. This ischanging the balance of the Afghan population. In ofer to make Afghanistan more like Pakistan, the Sunny government is killing Shiites. Mass killing of ethnic and religious groups is obviously an action of genocide in Behsoom.

A Pushton political group called the “Afghan Milat”, is fighting to make Pushto the first language of Afghanistan. They are trying to turn the Afghan government into a full dictatorship.

They have contact with the Pakistani secret services “ISI” (Islamic inelegance or inter-Services Intelligence).

The want to settle the Pakistani nomadic peoples in Afghanistan and settle them in “Hazarajat” or Hazaristan(the land of the Hazaras).yet he was “elected” president of Afghanistan under a flag of western-supported “democracy”.

Karzai is involved in this crime, because: first, he’s President of Afghanistan, and he’s responsible for the security its citizens. He’s able to prevent this attack by Pakistani foreigners within his jurisdiction. He could command the army police to stop the crime or he couldask for help from international forces. But he’s doing absolutely nothing and avoiding his responsibilities. Karzai’s actions demonstrate that he is determined tocontinue the genocide:

1. Last year at this time Pakistani nomadic people attacked Behsood - 20,000 families became refugees, 13 people died and … thousnands of houses were destroyed.

Karzai was silent for two months. When the peoples’ complaints ended, Karzai’s spokesperson person declared that the nomadic people by the request of the president could leave Behsood. How could the president of a country ask outside killers to leave Afghanistan after a mass rampage of killing and destruction without recompense?

2. This year Pakistani nomadic people attacked Behsood again and the same killing and destruction happened as last year. And the process is continuing even now. Karzai is acting the same way that he did last year. He is turning the other way and allowing it to happen.

3. Three months before the Pakistani nomadic tribes came to Afghanistan, a mass demonstration took place in Kabul. Demonstrators, in a resolution, asked President Karzai to prevent the Pakistani attacks on Behsood. Karzai did nothing to prevent the attack, but he prepared to help the attackers. Before the war Karzai sent a Governor to the province of Wardak, who belonged to the Afghan Milat political group, which is inviting the Pakistani nomadic peoples to come to Afghanistan and kill the Hazaras.

Sources:

1. Columbia Encyclopedia

http://www.answers.com/topic/abdur-rahman-khan

2. Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amir_Abdur_Rahman

3. Genocide Watch, International complain to ends genocide. June 2001

http://www.genocidewatch.org/iceg/alerts/

4. Dr. G. Rauf , Amir Abdul Rahman, Karzai and the Wild West,

http://users.tns.net/~mroashan/politics/countrycorner/CCorner4/DR041104.htm

5. Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, Adopted by Resolution 260 (III) A of the U.N. General Assembly on 9 December 1948.