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Afghan Whispers: Lessons to Teach & to Learn

Farid Pouya · 14:54 · Central Asia & Caucasus

It is interesting that Afghan bloggers look at foreign countries such as Iran & Iraq and they try to learn and teach lessons for peace and happiness.

AfghanWarrior gives advice to people in Iraq to follow Afghanistan's example to encourage insurgents to put down weapons. He writes:

“The Afghan government started a peace and reconciliation program last year and offered amnesty for those Taliban and warlords who wanted to lay down their weapons and join the government. This program was very successful and for the last one year more than one thousand anti-government forces joined this program. So if the new Iraqi government starts the same program, I am sure many insurgents will lay down their weapons and join this program, and it will be for the benefit of the Iraqi people. The people of Iraq elected their government and parliament and I hope now that they work hard for their unity and forget Sunni or Shiite - they are all Muslims from one country and they are one nation and there should not be any difference between them, and if they keep their unity soon they will defeat the rebels and make a great country.”

Nikobad (Persian) talks about Ahmadinejad's decision to permit women to go to stadiums to watch football as a good example to follow. He says people want freedom but most important freedom is not about journals or media but living a free life. He adds still women do not go to cinemas or parks in Afghanistan.

Afghanistan Lord writes about mismanagement in country as a source of problems. Blogger says :

“People are all aware what is going on in this country. People aware of ANA (afghan national army) and police authorities who directly involved in poppy smuggling and mafia. The interior ministry bases and police bases are diverted to base of smuggling. The mechanism of new management and changes has made no sense in decreasing the number of victims against insurgents in the country. However they are trying to deny their inaccuracies but among the people this is not something like not hide from view. The victim increasing due to lack of an organized management and mechanism.”

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India: Engineer killed in Afghanistan

Neha Viswanathan · 11:16 · South Asia

The killing of an Indian engineer, Suryanarayana in Afghanistan by the Taliban militia is a shocking reminder of how fragile the situation is for Indians working in the country. The Taliban had demanded that all Indians leave Afghanistan within a specified time period if Suryanarayana was to be spared. However, even before talks could start, the Taliban killed Suryanarayana before the deadline lapsed. Dilip has a post on fundamentalism and religion.

These are the guys who killed Daniel Pearl in Pakistan, Sanjoy Ghose in Assam, Ken Saro-Wiwa in Nigeria, Ehsan Jaffrey in Ahmedabad, Rupin Katyal on IC-814, Darshan Kaur's husband Ram Singh in Delhi, my friend Autar Kaw's father in Kashmir, go down the tragic list. Murderous thugs all. Nothing religious about any of them; and if religion is not involved, nothing that we should respect in their assorted causes or reasons or goals.

The Arbit Council poses questions on what India's future steps, and where the responsibilites are. Ashok, who is also an Indian working in Afghanistan comments on the work safety situation and reminding us that this is the second time in the last four months that an Indian has been killed by the Taliban.

These 2 incidents reinstate the dangers of working in the Afghan-Pakistan border provinces like Kandahar, Qalat and Zabul. Unlike the Central and North Afghanistan where I work, these southern areas come under the Pashtu speaking belt and are Taliban strong holds. These are areas where even Afghans themselves (who speak Farsi) fear to tread. Unless the work is within an army camp or some secured cantonment its suicidal to take up jobs in these areas of tribal mindset.

Jagadish thinks that the Indian Government cannot be held responsible for the safety of the individuals in Afghanistan as working there is a risky business. Shoonya comments on what seems to be increasing bloodshed in India. Indian Capitalist comments on crocodile tears shed by Indians.

So much so that if an Indian faces a tragedy outside the country his plight becomes famous across India, but even if he suffers hell in the country, no one pays heed to his trauma. Thousands of Indians get murdered every year by sundry terrorists operating within the country and our generally verbose media never comes forward to televise live the plight of their families. Naxals kill tens of people every month.

Desipundit links to blogs with posts on the issue and there is an interesting discussion in the comments space.

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What is the world cooking?

Melissa De Leòn Douglass · 08:18 · Middle East & North Africa , East Asia

#1: From Malaysia & UK, Yang-May Ooi's Lit Blog
Curious Legacies: My GrandMother's recipe for Soy Sauce Chicken

Grandma left us many recipes for dishes that have been in the family for years. They are old-fashioned and labor intensive, involving a lot of chopping and slicing and marinading to get just the right texture and just the right taste. In truth, I don't think I have the hours it can take to make many of them in their original form in my hectic life in London. But I can say that the most useful recipe Grandma left me is not really a dish but an attitude of mind. It's about adapting and innovating, taking what is safe and familiar and making it your own, moving with the times but on your own terms.

So here is the recipe that is Grandma's legacy to me:

Take pieces of chicken, chopped garlic and ginger and place in an oven proof bowl. Mix in soy sauce and ginger wine and some pepper. Cover with a lid or tin foil. Put in oven and cook at 180 degrees for 1.5 hours, opening it in the last half hour to brown the chicken.

Serve with rice and pak choi fried with garlic and a dash of soy sauce.

Human input time: 20 mins. It certainly beats doing it the old fashioned way standing at the iron wok sweatily frying for ages and stinking up my home with grease and smoke! It tastes pretty good, too.

#2: From Jordan, Algeria, Ya Rayi Our Rai; MANSAF: The pride of Jordanian Cooking.

In Jordan mansaf, the pride of Jordanian cuisine and the national dish of the country is usually prepared for and served to esteemed guests primarily on special occasions such as weddings, birthdays, and anniversaries. The dish possesses an important symbolic function within social gatherings, it being offered as the ultimate to the honored guest.

Mansaf stands as the ultimate of Jordanian cuisine - a part of Arab gastronomy, which is one of the world's most sophisticated and elaborate cuisines. Jordanian food, although having some unique attributes, is part of this Middle Eastern distinctive culinary heritage, but stemming more from traditional Bedouin cooking.
A mansaf feast is taken seriously, and hours are spent in its preparations. A dish of lamb seasoned with herbs and spices, it is served on a large platter on a bed of rice in a tangy yogurt sauce and sprinkled with almonds and pine nuts. Traditionally, the yogurt used is jameed, a type of salted dried goat milk.
The main course of a mansaf meal usually begins with several varieties of mazza, or hors d'oeuvres and with several salads as side dishes. Bread, usually khoubz sh'rak, a large thin, round unleavened bread, accompanies every meal and a dessert or fresh fruit ends a meal. Lastly, comes the famous Arabic coffee without which no meal is complete. Continue reading this interesting edible essay…

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Voices from Zimbabwe and the Great Lakes

Zimpundit · 05:05 · Sub-Saharan Africa

Zimbabwe: As Nepal celebrated their revolution's success, envious Zimbabwean observers still trapped on the outside of democratic success couldn't hide their aspirations for the same in Zimbabwe. Nepal's revolution got Zimpundit dreaming,

“As I sit here looking at my computer screen I’m dreaming of Nepal. I so badly want the reality they are experiencing to be mine . I want to be able cower my despot into democracy too!”

Said Eddie Cross,

“Just been watching the celebrations in Nepal following the King’s decision to give in to popular demands that he restore the democratic structures in that country. It is very moving to see this massive commitment by simple, ordinary people in a very poor country demanding that they no longer be treated as feudal slaves to a totalitarian regime but be granted the democratic right to choose their own government.”

Eddie is convinced Zimbabwe is showing signs that she is readying for a revolution of her own

Manulite has a harrowing post about his friend Simon who is,

Much shorter than me, which of course is explained by the fact that he's much much younger than me. We both live in Zimbabwe so that gives us a lot in common. But Simon practically survives on the streets. Though he doesn't necessarily sleep on the street at night, his life is a life lived on the pavements of Harare's central business district.

He concludes,

I wonder if Simon can grow up to be a doctor, or a computer geek, with all the iPods, mp3 players, blackberry enabled cellphones and all that stuff? Will he even know such things exist? Will it be his fault when he ends up a thug or in prison? How many children out there are in a situation like Simon's? Surely someone's to blame… who?

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The Boycott from Both Sides of the Border

David Sasaki · 03:05 · Americas

It's a public holiday for the much of the world. In fact, I'm severely disappointed if you're reading this in anything other than pajamas.

Though International Workers Day (better known as “May Day”) was first established in the United States after the Haymarket Riot, government fear of spreading socialism caused then-President Grover Cleveland to adopt the September commemoration of Labor Day as the official federal endorsement. As a result, many - if not most - Americans did not know what May Day is nor what it celebrates.

That has changed this year, however, thanks to the Great American Boycott, or in Spanish, El Gran Paro Americano. Or “El Boicot.” Or, “A Day without an Immigrant.” Or, the “Nothing Gringo Boycott.” In fact, as we shall soon see, the titles for the day are as varied as its participants. Bloggers on both sides of the border have expressed conflicted feelings about the cause, which includes an international boycott against all products of American-based companies in a show of solidarity against the bill “H.R. 4437.”

Eduardo Domínguez of Monterrey, Mexico acknowledges in his post “Boicoteando” that:

Hay cientos de razones por las cuales estar a favor o en contra del mentado boicot que se haría en México a los productos gringos este primero de mayo.

A mi gusto, es cándido pensar que Washington se intimidará por un boicot de esta naturaleza, porque, seamos honestos, nos gusta lo gringo y a lo gringos lo mexicano (toda proporción guardada) y nadie quiere cambiar eso. Give me Mcallen or give me death. Eso del boicot pareciera ser un “Hoy no compro gringo. Mañana sí”. La verdad no hay mucha ganancia por ahi.

There are hundreds of reasons for those who are in favor of or against the boycott of “productos gringos” that will be held in Mexico this May first.

According to my own tastes, it's simplistic to think that Washington will be intimidated by a boycott of this nature because, let's be honest, we like what's American and we like Americans. Give me McAllen [a Texas border city popular for weekend shopping trips by Northern Mexicans] or give me death. All this talk of the boycott seems to be “today I won't buy gringo, but tomorrow sure.” Honestly, there's not much won in that.

Domínguez goes on to say that if Mexicans are serious about making social change, that they should start in their own country.

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