Kabul Peace House

A path to peace in Bamiyan and Beyond

by Connor Baldwin

The Kabul Peace House is a multi-ethnic group of young peacemakers that have worked since 2008 to spread the seeds of nonviolence across Afghanistan through engaging community projects. One example of their efforts is the Journey to Peace project. Through this, they created a network of representatives from all of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces that built relationships and raised awareness of nonviolence efforts in the country.

Unfortunately, since the fall of Kabul in 2021, the organization has largely disbanded. Most members have now evacuated the country due to safety and security concerns. Although they are scattered around the globe, many of the volunteers have continued in their efforts to promote nonviolent living and action.

We had the opportunity to catch up with a few of the members to learn about the lasting impact of their involvement working for peace in Afghanistan.

Zarghuna and Zekerullah are two of the original members of the group. They met Dr. Wee Teck Young, known as “Hakim” (which translates to “doctor”) in Bamiyan while he was providing medical services to rural Afghans impacted by the war. Beyond providing medical services, he also engaged youth in conversations about peace and nonviolence. Zarghuna remembers how the group provided her comfort when she lost her father. Zekerullah described his motivation for joining as a desire to stand up to the injustices his people faced after losing so much to the war.

Basir joined the group a few years later, after their operations were relocated to the capital city, Kabul. As an adult mentor to the youth members, Basir remembers this time as some of the most memorable moments in his life.

The following interviews show how the Kabul Peace House experiments with nonviolence in a war-ravaged country changed individuals, communities, and the environment.

Responses have been edited for clarity and brevity.

Hakim (with hand raised) interacting with youth in the Kabul Peace House school program.

When did you first meet Hakim?

Zarghuna: It was 2004 when Hakim came to Bamiyan, the central province in Afghanistan, and he connected with my uncle. At that time, he was seeking to rent a house and my uncle offered him a place to stay. Sometimes he would be over for dinner, and then I found out he was a very special, unique and kind person. I had lost my father two years prior to meeting him and at that time we had our own gardens. We had fields where we planted things like potatoes and Hakim was helping us.

Unfortunately, because of the cultural sensitivities, it was difficult for Hakim to be comfortable and people started spreading new rumors about him and us. They were asking, “Why are you welcoming and hosting a foreigner?” But eventually people realized they needed his medical services, so people were OK with having Hakim stay in the neighborhood. Eventually, as a student, I needed to improve my English, so I started meeting with Hakim regularly and he was teaching me English. At that time, he was also teaching me concepts including humanity, peace, and nonviolence — and they all touched my heart.

What were some of the reactions you noticed with your efforts in Afghanistan?

Zekerullah: The first event that we had was a peace stand. It was a group of us, probably 6–7 people, including Hakim. Our slogan was, “No to war” and “Go back to your home Yankees.” At that time people had assumed that U.S. forces were here to bring peace and prosperity. But year after year, people started noticing that it wasn’t the U.S.’ intention to bring peace to our country.

At the beginning there were challenges that came from the public and also particularly from the local politicians. We never received any support from politicians, some of whom were even against nonviolence. The whole idea of nonviolence was new. I remember some politicians even threatened us.

Down the road in 2015, we started a nationwide campaign sending out public calls and inviting the younger generation, reaching out to universities and public schools. We were giving lectures about the importance of peace and nonviolence. Then we noticed that the younger generations were more curious to learn more about these values. They were ready for a change.

In 2018 the Kabul Peace House hosted a group of peacemakers from all over the world that specialized in peace studies & nonviolence. This was the start of an effort to make the Kabul Peace House more sustainable — to transform it from a community to an institution. We started translating documents on peace and nonviolence into different languages spoken across the country. It was a couple of days before the fall of Kabul in 2021 that we finally got the certificate that would establish the institute.

Kabul Peace House members demonstrate for peace (left). Banners on display at the Kabul Peace House (right).

How did you help people understand what peacemaking is?

Basir: In the community, when we were talking about nonviolence, I noticed that the term was new to people and people were not welcoming of it. I had to contextualize it and give them examples of people from Afghanistan who were peacemakers.

Fortunately, one of Gandhi’s closest friends was from Afghanistan, his name was Bacha Khan. Together they did lots of nonviolence work. So while the term “nonviolence” was new, the act itself was not — Afghans were familiar with nonviolent actions.

So I dug into the history of nonviolence in Afghanistan. I was showing people that nonviolence is what our people have done throughout history. We started sharing events and people in our past who were committed to peacemaking. We began talking about Gandhi. We tailored our examples to the individual or community we were speaking to. We had to come up with creative ways so that people could relate to what we were talking about.

This was more effective than literally translating ‘nonviolence’ into our own local languages — people needed real examples from their own culture. These examples helped people recognize what nonviolence in action looks like.

What were some of your most memorable moments working for Kabul Peace House?

Basir: Every moment that I spent with Kabul Peace House was memorable from the very first moment I connected with them to the day I had to leave. But I am happy that I’m still connected to most of them.

We had 100 members, most of whom were active volunteers — similar to a part time employee. Of course, in the midst of the war, everyone has their own stuff: some had to work, some were students, some had two-hour commutes, some had to travel by bike or bus or taxi. But everyone was dedicated. They were always interacting with other people and encouraging each other saying, “yeah, we can do it,” always planning something creative. I made so many memories.

Guests pose at event with Mairead Maguire in Kabul.

Basir: The story behind this photo is that we had Mairead Maguire, the Irish Nobel Peace laureate, visit Afghanistan. I was her translator. This was an event where we brought together civil society, grassroots organizations, and survivors of violence from previous wars (civil wars, the Soviet invasion, and U.S. drone warfare).

We had people from different parts of the country share their stories about the negative impacts of war. And we had this blue scarf that represented the color of the sky, because if you fly over the sky, you don’t see any border on the planet Earth.

What is the significance of the blue scarf? What is the message behind it for the world?

Zekerullah: Of all the projects that we implemented, all the passion, all the love for peace and nonviolence is expressed through this blue scarf. To us, it was a symbol of the phrase “border free.” For instance, a bird flying over the planet doesn’t see any borders — it’s a human construct.

We wanted to invite everyone from all over the world to transcend our linguistic, geographic, and political borders and to share the message and join us in the campaign saying ‘no to war’ and ‘yes to nonviolence’ because nonviolence is a way to peace.

What is your message for young peacemakers in the United States and around the world?

Zarghuna: My message to young peacemakers or people interested in nonviolence is, “come, hold my hand, let me hold your hand and let’s work together to create a better world.”

Also, I want to add that part of my message to other peacemakers is communicated through my blue scarf that says, “border free.” Just like there is no border on this planet, there is no border in our hearts.

Border Free scarf created by Kabul Peace House. (photo from Justseeds)

The virtues that Zarghuna, Zekerullah, Basir and the rest of the members at Kabul Peace House learned through their experiments with nonviolence in Afghanistan are now being spread around the world. They strive to make similar impacts in their new communities as they did when they were in Afghanistan.

Currently, members are engaged in supporting refugees, doing permaculture work, serving as guidance counselors, and many more acts of public service in their new homes. They are using these activities to share about Afghanistan’s culture and introduce the values of nonviolence to their new homes. The members hope to return to Afghanistan one day and continue where they left off, nurturing the sprouting seeds of nonviolence that they started planting more than a decade ago.