Afghanistan has gradually become less of a news item. Since the fall of Kabul, which fell into the hands of the Taliban on 15 August 2021, the conditions for obtaining a visa for the foreign press have become increasingly drastic year after year. From now on, any journalist planning to travel there must provide the Afghan authorities with a detailed list of the topics they wish to cover during their stay, before obtaining (or not) their approval. Few succeed.
Iranian photographer Hashem Shakeri, however, managed to make several trips until 2023. He spent hours with each of the Afghans he photographed, taking the time to listen to them scrupulously and document their stories. The Persian language spoken in Iran, close to the Dari spoken by most Afghans, but also the cultural proximity between these two neighboring countries made his task easier. “In addition, we in Iran live under the yoke of a backward power. The same thing is happening to the Afghans now.” explains the photographer METRO from Tehran, where he lives.
His photographs, taken even in the most remote corners of Afghanistan, paint the portrait of a people deprived of hope, sometimes driven into exile as a last resort and still traumatised, directly or indirectly, by the wounds of decades of violence. This long and precious photographic work, entitled “A look into the abyss”, is the subject of an exhibition within the framework of the international photography festival in Bristol, England.
“No more ray of hope”
Among the people she met was a student who was preparing for the university entrance exam when the Taliban came to power. Unable to realise this dream, she chose, despite the risks, to teach girls in clandestine schools, forbidding them from any education after the age of 12. Less than a year ago she won a scholarship to study in Bangladesh, where she settled. Contacted by Hashem Shakeri, the young woman explained her decision: “No matter how hard I tried to stay in Afghanistan… There was no longer any glimmer of hope.”
Another 21-year-old Afghan woman was studying journalism at Kabul University when the Taliban regained power. With other women, she mobilised against the new repressive laws and, like dozens of other activists, was arrested. After spending more than forty days behind bars, she went into exile in Pakistan where she continues her activities in favour of women’s emancipation.
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