*Translated by Sara Pasino
VARESE – The dinner with traditional dishes organised last year at Schiranna by the Afghan Cultural Association had collected five thousand euros, allowing seventy families to eat for three months. This was announced on Tuesday, September 6, by the president of the association, Ilaha Mezaary, together with Dario Cecchin, president of the Circolo Acli Varese Centro. The charitable initiative will be repeated on Saturday September 10 at the feast of the Democratic Party. The proceeds of the event, which will start at 7.30 pm, will be donated to families with minors in Afghanistan who are experiencing serious difficulties. During the evening there will also be direct testimonies of Afghan women and Cisda that will illustrate the campaign #StandUpWithAfghanWomen!.
Evaluating the reception system
After a year from the return of the Taliban dictatorship and the arrival of Afghan refugees in Italy, Mezaary said: «It is a promise that has not been kept. We are in contact with very few Afghans, and the people who have managed to arrive in Italy are half of what we expected. As an Afghan Cultural Association we were faced with some unpleasant situations, in which the expectations of those who came to this country clashed with what they found instead».
«This is a problem that mainly concerns national planning», Cecchin said. «Moreover, many of them, after working with the United States or the United Kingdom, want to continue towards these countries. A more thoughtful and followed-up reception policy would have been necessary, a situation that is not limited to Afghanistan but concerns all foreigners. In Lombardy about 500-600 refugees were expected; in Varese 80 arrived and they were given an equal reception to asylum seekers. But often these are people who have studied and know two or three languages, they can be human and working resources for Italy. It is difficult to remove the blindfolds from the eyes».
The Taliban regime and the June earthquake
Surely everyone will remember the images of a year ago when, after the exit of international forces, the new Taliban government was established, which shocked an already wounded country even more, torn, forgotten. This has made the rights of Afghan women fall again in the deepest darkness. Moreover, in a country on its knees, hit by a devastating economic crisis, increasing poverty, the need for essential services and rampant terrorist crime, where 23 million people are at risk of serious food insecurity, on June 22 2022, an earthquake struck inland areas, killing 1500 people and injuring more than 3000 people. From last year, the Afghan Cultural Association of Varese and the local Acli, have decided to repeat the positive plan of solidarity». This year, Colors of the World Odv and Cisda (Coordinamento Italiano Sostegno Donne Afghane) have joined this solidarity project.
The food specialties by the Afghan Cultural Association
Mezaary said that the aim is «to bring together once more the Afghan community in the province and Varese’s citizens to hear the direct testimonies from the Afghans and discover how they are surviving these dramatic vicissitudes. At the same time we want to raise money to support the survival and basic needs of children and poor families remained».
«All this – added Cecchin – always with the precious availability of the Democratic Party of Varese which joined our project with its leaders, militants and volunteers and the provision of the structure of the area of Schiranna in Vigevano street».
The traditional dinner dishes, with fixed menu, will be cooked directly by the members of the Afghan Cultural Association: the fee to participate is 25 euros, with the possibility of vegetarian dishes, while for children under 12 years it will be 15 euros. Places are limited and reservations via whatsapp at numbers 335/7105221 (Dario) and 349/7511630 (Katia) are welcome to reduce food waste. The food specialities proposed are as follows:
- Kabuli palaw (basmati rice flavored with vegetables)
- Afghani murgh (chicken kebab)
- Qurma (curry beef stew)
- Borani bandjan (eggplant in yogurt and tomato sauce)
- Mantwo (vegetable ravioli)
- Firni (traditional milk cake)
- Chapati (typical bread)