Nīlāb

by Mahshid Ajir

    About my story     I began writing this story, in the summer of 2001, after attending a meeting whose purpose was to seek help for Afghani refugees who were suffering from The Taliban's militant oppression. This meeting was held by an international relief group that was aiding Afghani refugees encamped within the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan.     In that meeting I learned that the American government had been helping the Moojahdin of Afghanistan to fight against Soviet Union. Financing, supplies, munitions, and weapons were allocated to them. Refugees from Saudi Arabia also joined the Moojahadiin of Afghanistan; Osama Ben laden was one of them. However, all the support was suddenly removed after the fall of the Soviet Union and the end of cold war. The United States left the poor Afghani people with a fanatic group of Moojahdin in charge, and their miserable lives were worsened with this new government. The Mojehedin become stronger with every day that passed, until finally the Taliban came to power. There were Saudi people in their cabinet who could not speak any Farsi or Pashto, the dominant languages of the region.     Learning these facts inspired me to spin a tale. I began a love story between a young American man and an Afghani girl. He fell in love with her during a dark, stormy night at a small train station in the middle of nowhere, and followed her into Afghanistan.     As my story progressed, the hero and heroine hid from cave to cave, when suddenly the tragedy of September eleventh occurred. This horrible catastrophe affected the plot and theme of the story thereafter. After the September eleventh tragedy, Afghanistan and all news about it became the top world news on all broadcast media. Many journalists were sent to Pakistan to report the news of the area. Following the crash of Kabul, they entered Afghanistan to interview with refugees on the borders. Much of my novel is based on the answers the people gave to the journalist, which was not translated correctly and was changed to what the journalists wanted, not the truth. Many days and nights I sat in front of the television, taking notes for my book, finally managing to write a story that is fiction bordering on truth.     The end of my story is a beginning for the poor Afghani people, who still suffer. Many are killed every day in Afghanistan,. Some how I should ended the story in the time that the peace is neither in Afghanistan nor in where else. Unfortunately; the cold war has been change to warm peace.     The people in midd1le east are fighting for the very basic human rights They want to be count as a human not as a school of sheep witch has to flow the Sheppard to mountain every morning and go back to born at night .and finally to the butcher shop to been killed under a lawful action. And nobody rise for revenge of them.     And so the vicious circle that is their life goes on.     While the shadow of another war grimes over Afghanistan, Palestine is soaking in blood of innocents. The new world order revolves around a warm peace as it lets go of cold war.     Despite numerous protests on the street of every major city of the globe, the oil campaign marshes on with an unequal war. No one whishes for the survival of brutal murderous regime of Iraq but an effort not backed by the United Nations will bare serious consequences in the near future for any stable peace. The lesson of Afghanistan sends a clear massage to the world foreign invasion never last nor leads to peace and prosperity.     Neelaab reveals poverty that entwines innocence. Truth is spoken by the unfolding events. Humanity is alarmed by the sacrifices encountered in Neelaabs' journey. Like ancient epics the blood of the poorest makes ways for the rich and powerful.

Paperback

First published January 1, 2003