Afghan women footballers dream of World Cup
KABUL:
On a yellowing football pitch, next to concrete walls and razor wire, World Cup fever is running high for veiled Afghan women footballers who dream of scoring for their war-torn country.
Training sessions may be interrupted by US helicopters landing, but the women play hard, tackling each other to the ground under the scorching summer sun, wearing head scarves, track suits and long sleeves that cover everything except their hands and faces.
A few of the more daring players have swapped veils for baseball caps as they train next to the Nato headquarters in Kabul.
With the World Cup under way in South Africa, Hadisa Wali isn’t missing a second of the action. She predicts victory for Brazil but her football hero is Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid’s star Portuguese midfielder. Teammate Khalida Popal calls football “a passion” but a struggle for women, who were forbidden from sport and all public activities, including going to school, under the 1996-2001 Taliban regime.
“It’s hard to play football here. Some families refuse, they say this is not for girls,” she says.
“Sometimes, it just makes me cry. You have to fight to continue to play. It’s just like the Americans who fight against the Taliban,” she says.
Under the post-Taliban Afghan constitution, women are equal to men and handfuls have competed in overseas competitions, mostly in martial arts events.
But women’s groups say they remain the most marginalised and underprivileged group in the country, subject to violence and discrimination in the name of Afghan tradition. The war is another hindrance.
In the middle of training, the team suddenly races for the stands as – without warning – two US helicopters prepare to land on the pitch.
Due to safety concerns in Kabul, where Taliban suicide attacks are on the rise and facilities are few, women play on grounds attached to the general headquarters of the 142,000-strong foreign military in Afghanistan.
For Kawsaz Amine, who also plays in the national team, Argentina is well placed to win the World Cup.
“I want to become the Messi of Afghanistan,” she says with a huge smile.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 24th, 2010.
On a yellowing football pitch, next to concrete walls and razor wire, World Cup fever is running high for veiled Afghan women footballers who dream of scoring for their war-torn country.
Training sessions may be interrupted by US helicopters landing, but the women play hard, tackling each other to the ground under the scorching summer sun, wearing head scarves, track suits and long sleeves that cover everything except their hands and faces.
A few of the more daring players have swapped veils for baseball caps as they train next to the Nato headquarters in Kabul.
With the World Cup under way in South Africa, Hadisa Wali isn’t missing a second of the action. She predicts victory for Brazil but her football hero is Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid’s star Portuguese midfielder. Teammate Khalida Popal calls football “a passion” but a struggle for women, who were forbidden from sport and all public activities, including going to school, under the 1996-2001 Taliban regime.
“It’s hard to play football here. Some families refuse, they say this is not for girls,” she says.
“Sometimes, it just makes me cry. You have to fight to continue to play. It’s just like the Americans who fight against the Taliban,” she says.
Under the post-Taliban Afghan constitution, women are equal to men and handfuls have competed in overseas competitions, mostly in martial arts events.
But women’s groups say they remain the most marginalised and underprivileged group in the country, subject to violence and discrimination in the name of Afghan tradition. The war is another hindrance.
In the middle of training, the team suddenly races for the stands as – without warning – two US helicopters prepare to land on the pitch.
Due to safety concerns in Kabul, where Taliban suicide attacks are on the rise and facilities are few, women play on grounds attached to the general headquarters of the 142,000-strong foreign military in Afghanistan.
For Kawsaz Amine, who also plays in the national team, Argentina is well placed to win the World Cup.
“I want to become the Messi of Afghanistan,” she says with a huge smile.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 24th, 2010.