Hello from Kashmir! We've just managed to get online here in Kotlee, Azad Kashmir -- no internet connection in Bagh. Although, with the opening of our IT centre, maybe things will change...
Read on for my journal of an exciting few days for our project and Kashmir Earthquake Relief Fund.
Forgive any little inaccuracies please because we have done so much in such a short space of time.
Good Friday
We were completely shattered after a seven-hour flight and a long, hot drive but this was all made worthwhile when we arrived at Deerkhoat. It is the first time I've seen any of the five sewing schools set up in the summer of 2006 in the hill villages around Bagh, which is where we are working to rebuild the girls' college that was destroyed in the 2005 earthquake, killing more than 270 people. All our projects are based in that area.
How talented, how well organised and how confident the100 young women who greeted us are.Like all people, they have asipirations and it made me think more about the lack of opportunities for them, something I hope in asmall way may have impacted on or changed their lives.
The school has reinforced all the reasons why we chose education as the theme of our projects.
We got to the school and there was a big banner welcoming thedelegation, in particular the Lord Mayor of Sheffield, Coun Jackie Drayton. We climbed down the rocky hillside to where we could hear girls welcoming us on a PA system.There were so many women to see us that they could not get in the room. The first thing we saw when we went into the room was the colour of all the garments displayed on the walls. They sang Welcome Welcome to us and gave us gifts. The reception they organised was overwhelming and humbling.
The gifts they gave us included ornaments made of white plastic with holes in that are then enmbroidered with metallic thread. These are fantastic and very cleverly done.
The route up to Bierponi, the next school we visited, was breathtaking. We had our first of several Indiana Jones moments! We crossed several rivers and we had to get out of our van and wade through the river in the dark on the way back.
It looked like everyione from the village had turned out to greet us, something that happened everywhere we went. When we arrived we were all garlanded by students and then looked around and met the teachers. We went up on to the roof and had a photograph taken with staggering views over the valley to the mountain villages that most of the young women walk from to the school.
Then we went into a wooden meeting room and I spoke about the importance of education and how it enriches the lives of people and enables them to neet their needs and raise their horizons. I explained that this was also what the Heeley Asian women's sewing project that Kubra Assim, who set up the sewing schools for us, is the teacher of and I am treasurer, that 17women from this group are paying five pounds per month to maintain one of the schools. It's difficult because people assume that we are some enormous NGO instead of a small group of ordinary people who in a small way are hoping to deliver as much aid as possible by the direct links we build. It's quite clear that we are the only people going to visit these remote areas, so who else can they ask for the things they need, which range from computers to more sewing machines?
Saturday
We had breakfast with journalists from Bagh to update them on our projects and ask them to help in any way they could, as we were bewildered by some hold-ups in confirming whether we could rebuild the college on its original site or not. This is because a major part of the city will nowhave to be re-sited off the earthquake faultline. One of the speakers was Sheffield Star journalist Julia Armstrong, who is a member of the delegation and she said that journalists can play a role in asking questions about what is happening in the decision-making process. Incidentally, she is proud to be a member of Respect, one of four on this trip, but we are happy to work with anyone who is willing to help us highlight the hidden disaster of the earthquake. The extent of this co-operation has been shown by the fact that Jackie, the Labour Party Lord Mayor, was happy to join us on this trip. At the end of the trip she said, I think we agree on a great many things, which is correct, and her support for the project has made a real difference. She is a really nice woman and it's such a shame that she's part of the Labour Party, the party of war and privatisation of public services. Too many people like her should have left by now. *next post for rest of Saturday
