From Kabul to London – A Refugee’s Life

Review by Carrie Drummond

Most of us know something about Afghanistan today – Taliban atrocities and the dangerous work of British soldiers there. In her book, Shabibi Shah tells us about a different Afghanistan – the relatively peaceful and liberal country of her younger years. Then, the government encouraged both boys and girls to study. Shabibi attended Kabul University in the 1960s and met her husband Zafar there. After marrying, they moved in with his well-to-do extended family “who lived together in a huge bungalow, built behind a row of nine shops which belonged to the family. I remember that it had an enormously long, white marble corridor which was washed and polished every morning by the servants. All the ceilings were decorated with fine wooden carvings… The rooms were carpeted with Afghan rugs.” Two children were soon born; Shabibi became a college teacher; Zafar worked as a political journalist. The future looked bright.
But Afghanistan has a turbulent history and Shabibi describes in vivid detail how the Russian invasion and corrupt Communist regime tore their happy family life apart. In March 1983, to avoid imprisonment, Zafar was forced to flee to Pakistan. Two weeks later, Shabibi and her three children – the youngest aged only four months – made the hair-raising journey across the mountains to join him. “We were high up in the mountains on an ancient lorry whose wheels were inches away from a drop of several thousand feet, and by the time we stopped again I was numb with fear.”
Nor was Peshawar in Pakistan a place of safety. It was a dangerous, dirty frontier town, teeming with refugees and ruled by the repressive Mujahideen. Zafar was imprisoned for months and Shabibi again had full responsibility for her children. Simple day-to-day life became a struggle, especially for an educated woman from Kabul. “Now in the twentieth century, wearing perfume was a sin; laughing with a male relative was a sin; walking alone in the street was a sin; raising a chaderi to expose any part of the face and body was a sin. Women suddenly had no freedom at all.”
After a year and a half of living in the refugee camp, the family were finally granted British visas. They arrived in London in 1984. To this day, Shabibi Shah says she feels ‘displaced, torn between two countries.’ But I believe that by telling her story with such simplicity and passion, she has built a bridge between Kabul and London – for her children, for other first-generation refugees, and for every reader.

By N.N.Dee

In the cosy setting of Theatre Collection, which sits atop the 'Lord Stanley' pub on Camden Park Road, N. N. Dee chats with the theatre’s producer/ director, Shaban Arifi

Tell us a bit about yourself and this theatre.
I am Albanian and I came to the UK fifteen years ago. Two and a half years ago I set up this theatre with my Russian friend and business partner, Victor Sobchak. We do mainly European and Russian drama, highlighting the different cultures across Europe. We might also do the odd Japanese drama, but our focus is European culture. I produce and direct the plays and sometimes I also act.
What’s playing now?
The Brothers Karamazov, based on the novel by Fyodor Dostoevsky.
What’s it about?
It’s a story set against a modernising Russia and delves into the debates that surround God, free will and morality. It deals with the themes of faith, doubt and reason. We tend to focus on bringing novels to the stage and so our shows are not what you would find in typical theatres throughout London. Our aim is to educate.
What is your vision as a producer?
I want to express myself and different cultures. I want to share what I like in other cultures and what I don’t see in typical theatres. I see it as a way of being charitable – sharing what is good in other cultures with the general public.
You’re Muslim, but last year, you did a play entitled “The Life of Mother Teresa.” Wow!
Well, I’m a secular Muslim, so I’m not too caught up in religion. Besides, I think we should be tolerant because at the end of the day, we all believe in the same God. Also, Mother Teresa was much more than a religious woman. That she was a nun and therefore Catholic was incidental; she represented humanity in the world and I think that she spoke positively about all religions, so it was not at all taboo for me as a Muslim to bring her life story to the stage... and she is the pride of Albania, my nation.
As an Albanian, do you find it difficult to fit in, in London?
The good thing about London is that you fit in because everyone here is a migrant. There are some negative stereotypes about Albanians, but migrants have to do their bit. They have to work extra. We migrants have to see ourselves as ambassadors of our countries. Migrants have a duty to be good. Everyone should be good but migrants have to work a bit harder but achievement is not impossible.
Has the theatre won any awards or been recognised in any way in theatrical circles?
We get good reviews, for example... Sometimes we get a review and where, for example a British theatre might have got five stars, we might be given three stars, but that’s okay with me because it is still an acknowledgment.
Is there anything else that you’ve been dying to say on a public platform if given the opportunity?
Everything that I want to express, I do through my theatre productions. Just go to www.theatrecollection.net. Everyone is welcome.

Refraction: Moving Images on Palestine
Art exhibition at the P21 Gallery

By Kaitlyn Kennedy

“Is there anywhere more beautiful than Palestine?” the woman on the screen asked the interviewer this question as her eyes filled up with tears. I was immediately struck by her emotional connection to this geographical location, I knew nothing about. I watched as her eyes widened and fill with vitality as she described the colour of the oranges and the size of the bananas; the simple things in life we take for granted or overlook until they are gone. Until they are taken. She was asked, “Would you go back to Palestine if Palestine was free?” To which she responded, “Could any Palestinian not go back to Palestine?” I removed myself from the context of the video, the context of her situation, the context of the gallery I was standing in and I asked myself, “What would I do if I was forced to leave my home?” It is a painful thought. It is a painful reality for some Palestinians.
I carried that question with me as I entered the next room. Grey and bleak with two beautiful paintings by Mohamed Al- Hawajri, with Mike Hoolboom’s film Lacan Palestine playing in the background. I was introduced to maps demonstrating foreign control in the Middle East. Clips of British politicians urging for the creation of a strong Jewish state. I absorbed the propaganda of the past: Jews would better benefit the West than the Arabs. As I sat in the red bean bag chair close to the screen I divulged into the historic tensions of the land. Images of battle and war intermixed with scenes of everyday life: love, laughter, children. Children with toy guns, playfully aiming and shooting with perfect technique. Children that are surrounded by violence, despair and destruction.
On the stairway down to the lower gallery, the wall is draped with keenardphillips work, Palestine (2008). Towards the bottom of the stairs the Palestinian flag pops out of the large monochrome canvas. The tri-color flag that is symbolic of the Arab Revolt. A flag that was banned from the Gaza Strip by the state of Israel in 1967 following the Six Day War. In 1980 a law was created that banned the use of the four colors of the flag: red, white, black, and green from artwork. Any Palestinian displaying artwork that contained this combination of colors would subsequently be arrested. But I didn’t know this background information when viewing kennardphillip’s artwork. And yet feelings of pride and resilience were evoked from the image of the flag swaying.
There was an intriguing quote in another video titled Roof by Kamal Alijafari. I have searched the internet endlessly for the exact phrase and have failed to produce it, however it is just as poignant paraphrased. It was the idea that we never really leave home, we continuously drag it with us. I thought back to the woman who first introduced me to Palestine: her homeland, her love - and I thought about the pain in her eyes, the life drained from her face when she talked of being forced to leave. All she has are her memories, her nostalgia for her childhood in a land that was wrongfully taken away.
Through research I later made the connection that she was a refugee from the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict. The same year as the Dein Yassin Massacre that took place on April 9th, after the Untied Nations had proposed the division of Palestine into two separate states: Arab and Jewish with Jeruselum belonging to neither. A decision made by an organization foreign to the land. A decision made without the consent or regard for the people who lived there. Approximately 200 men, women, and children died. But this is just one of many violent attacks inflicted on Palestine. The narrative of their explosive relationship with Israel is one that is continuing to be written.
The people of Palestine remain occupied today. The themes of occupancy and oppression are apparent throughout the gallery. Khaled Jarrar’s Concrete performance produced the carved out volleyball present on the gallery floor. Images of him chipping away at the concrete wall dividing his community capture the frustration and helplessness of the situation. How can these barriers be removed? How can these boundaries be peacefully taken down?
The future of Palestine is unknown but its past and present is eloquently displayed in P21’s Gallery. I left not only feeling more informed and educated than when I walked in, but I felt a connection to the land, to the people, and to the struggles they continue to fight and endure.

The P21 Gallery is a London-based non-profit organisation promoting contemporary Middle Eastern and Arab art and culture with distinct focus on Palestine
Artists: Mohammad Al-Hawajri, Kamal Aljafari, Tayseer Barakat, Mike Hoolboom, Khaled Hourani, Khaled Jarrar, Josh Jones, kennardphillipps, Inzajeano Latif, Manal Mahamid, Laila Shawa, Nasser Soumi, Tarzan and Arab
Exhibition dates: 19th December 2012 - 16th March 2013
http://www.p21.org.uk

By Jerdenne Wilson 

The former territory of Palestine is situated in western Asia and is the area between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River. The main things that make up their culture are food, music, language, costumes and the people themselves.

The people consist of mostly Arabic speaking Muslims. However you will also find other religions such as Judaism and Sunnis. There are also people who speak American English and the ancient biblical language of Aramaic.

The Palestinians cook with a lot of herbs and spices and a popular dish to eat is Falafel which is made from primarily chick peas. It is usually made into burgers or little balls which can be eaten with salad and bread. Other popular foods to eat are humus and bread.

Embroidery is one of the most important craft for women in Palestine. Many weave their own costumes and the details on a garment can often depict status and identity amongst the different communities. Women wear veils with dresses with a Qabbeh which is a special embroidered chest panel whilst men wear turbans with Abayas which are long cloaks.

The most important occasions for music in the Palestine are weddings and other gatherings. Their music often involves Dabke which literally translates as foot-tapping and Qawwali which are devotional songs linked to religious observances. Their music has become very popular in the UK that it can be accessed on sites such as MySpace.

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