HELP US SUPPORT AFGHAN HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVISTS - IN FRANCE, IN THE WORLD AND IN AFGHANISTAn
Armanshahr | OPEN ASIA was founded in 1996 and has since worked tirelessly to support human rights, culture and arts actors in Afghanistan. In particular, we have organized two hundred debates involving more than 20,000 people in Kabul, Herat and other Afghan cities on subjects related to human rights but also to culture and democratic elections, initiated an International Women's Film Festival in Herat (a city without cinema!) and edited and distributed over 300,000 copies of books locally in Afghanistan.
Above all, our association has nurtured and supported a generation of young citizens committed to building another future for Afghanistan.
Today, we are heartbroken to see all of these efforts and successes jeopardized by the return of the Taliban, a possibility which had been of increasing concern to us for years. But we are ready to continue our efforts, in two phases. We aim to:
Ensure the protection of all our Afghan colleagues, friends and partners, whether they are in danger of death in Afghanistan, or facing new needs as refugees in France, in Europe and elsewhere in the world. We will provide material support but also assistance in terms of social and cultural integration. We want everyone to be able to continue their work outside their country, which requires a high degree of solidarity.
Relocate our activities from Afghanistan to France, through the implementation of the Afghanistan Project (temporary name) which will allow us to set up a physical structure in France so that Afghan human rights activists, men and women, are able to come together and help each other. In the coming months, we will work with them to resume our activities. These include: the International Women's Film Festival, Human Rights Week, debates, advocacy for respect for human rights in Afghanistan, and more..
All of this requires immediate financial resources that we currently do not have! In Afghanistan, we could work with our historical financial partners. In France and in Europe, and in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, we need your help to act autonomously and directly to support human rights defenders.