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Some eight hundred Pakistani and Afghan women
gathered on 7 March 2002 in Islamabad’s Jinnah Stadium
as part of a unique event to symbolize solidarity between
the women of the two neighboring countries on the occasion
of International Women’s Day.
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Working together, they sewed a 90 meter
long embroidery panel consisting of 347 individual contributions.
Some expressed messages of hope in Urdu, Pashto or Dari
for the new Afghanistan that is slowing re-emerging
after years of conflict. Others showed doves, flowers
or symbols of peace.
Most of the Pakistani and Afghan women
who participated in the event came from Islamabad and
Rawalpindi, thanks to a mobilizing effort of the Pakistan
National Council of the Arts (PNCA) and the NGOs SACH
Struggle for Change and PROWESS.
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Two hundred of the Afghan women had traveled from refugee
camps near Peshawar, thanks to UNHCR. They claimed several
provinces of Afghanistan as their native land.
For Saadia, a young Pakistani college student, the
event provided her a rare opportunity to interact with
Afghan women. "I had very little idea of who they
are", she said, before adding that the gathering
would in her view contribute to a better understanding
between the two nations.
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A soon as the event ended, the embroidery panel was placed
on a UN plane to Kabul, where it is expected to be displayed
during International Women’s Day activities organized
there on 8 March. The Islamabad gathering, spearhead by the
UN Information Centre in Islamabad, involved all Agencies
of the UN System in Pakistan, with direct support from UNESCO,
UNFPA, UNHCR, WFP and WHO.
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