Dr. Sima Samar (Afghanistan)

Photo by: OLIVIA HEUSSLER In the face of threats to her own safety, Dr. Samar has defied the Taliban's edicts that deny women and girls their basic rights to education, employment, mobility and medical care. Since 1989, Dr. Samar has been operating schools for girls and health clinics in many of the provinces of Afghanistan as well as in the refugee camps in Quetta, Pakistan. She has shown an incredible commitment towards assisting Afghan women in their struggles to end their oppression and to provide them with access to healthcare and education services. She is a strong advocate for the involvement of Afghan women in government and the reconstruction of civil society in Afghanistan.

Sima Samar was born in February 1957 in Ghazani, Afghanistan. As a child in school, she learned what it meant to be a minority in Pushtun-dominated Afghanistan. She is Hazara, one of the most persecuted of the ethnic minorities in Afghanistan that comprise some 17 percent of the population. Moreover, as a female in a conservative Muslim society, she was doubly second class. At 18, she married and began her medical education. She obtained her degree in medicine in February 1982 from Kabul University, the first Hazara woman to do so. Soon after came the Russian invasion, and as a doctor, she aided the anti-Soviet resistance movement, the mujahideen. When her husband was arrested in 1984, never to be seen again, Sima Samar and her young son fled to the safety of nearby Pakistan, where she worked as a doctor in a refugee camp in the small border town of Quetta. Thousands of refugees from war-ravaged Afghanistan lived there in appalling misery, particularly the women, who were forbidden to visit male doctors, venture from their homes to work or attend school.

With other women, Dr. Samar established her first hospital for women in 1987 and later in 1989 established the Shuhada Organization, a non-governmental and non-profit organization committed to the reconstruction and development of Afghanistan with special emphasis on the empowerment of women and children. Dr. Samar and her medical staff now run four hospitals and ten clinics in Afghanistan and another hospital in Quetta that provide much needed medical assistance and education for Afghan women and children. Worried about where the next generation of female physicians will come from, Dr. Samar also provides medical training courses at the hospitals she runs. She runs schools in rural Afghanistan for more than 20,000 students as well as a school for refugee girls in Quetta attended by over 1,000 girls. Her literacy programs are accompanied by distribution of food aid and information on hygiene and family planning. Services also include mobile health clinics and medical outreach workers who go door to door. Last year, the Taliban succeeded in closing two of her hospitals in Afghanistan but the others are still running.

Dr. Samar refuses to accept that women must be kept in purdah (secluded from the public) and speaks out against the wearing of the burqa (head-to-foot wrap), which was enforced by the Taliban. She also has drawn attention to the fact that many women in the area are suffering from osteomalacia, a softening of the bones, due to an inadequate diet. Wearing the burqa reduces exposure to sunlight and aggravates the situation for women suffering from osteomalacia.

Dr. Samar is also part of the international network Women Living Under Muslim Laws, which has links in 40 countries and a powerful voice at the United Nations. She received the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership in 1984.

News Release
Afghan Woman Physician Wins John Humphrey Freedom Award

MONTREAL, 05 July, 2001 — Dr. Sima Samar has been selected as this year's John Humphrey Freedom Award recipient for her efforts to strengthen the human rights of women and girls in Afghanistan and in refugee camps on the Northern border of Pakistan.

The Award, which is given each year by Rights & Democracy (International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development), includes a $25,000 grant and a speaking tour of Canada, and is named in honour of John Peters Humphrey, the Canadian who prepared the first draft of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It will be presented in Montreal on Monday, December 10, 2001, International Human Rights Day. Following the Award ceremonies in Montreal, Dr. Samar will also travel to other cities in Canada to meet with students, representatives of human rights groups, churches, government and the media.

In the face of repeated death threats, Dr. Samar defies the ruling Taliban's edicts that deny women and girls their basic rights to education, employment, mobility and medical care. From the time the Taliban took over Afghanistan in 1996, Dr. Samar has been operating schools for girls and health clinics in many of the provinces of Afghanistan as well as in the refugee camps in Quetta, Pakistan.

Dr. Samar obtained a degree in medicine in 1984 from Kabul University. She fled Afghanistan following the Russian invasion and worked as a doctor in a refugee camp in Pakistan, where in 1987 she opened a hospital. Today she runs four hospitals and three clinics in Afghanistan and another hospital in Quetta. Dr. Samar also runs schools in rural Afghanistan for more than 17,400 students as well as a school for refugee girls in Quetta attended by over 1,000 girls. Dr. Samar's literacy programs are accompanied by distribution of food aid and information on hygiene and family planning. Services also include medical outreach workers who go door to door. She is also part of the international network Women Living Under Muslim Laws, which has links in 40 countries and is a powerful voice at the UN.

Dr. Samar refuses to accept that women must be kept in purdah (secluded from the public) and speaks out against the wearing of the burqa (head-to-foot wrap). She also has drawn attention to the fact that many women in the area are suffering from osteomalacia, a softening of the bones, due to an inadequate diet. Wearing the burqa reduces exposure to sunlight and aggravates the situation for women suffering from osteomalacia.

"We hope that this international Award will help provide some form of protection to Dr. Samar who faces a real personal danger in providing health and education services to Afghan women and girls. Her courage inspires us all to continue to struggle for a peaceful resolution to the situation in Afghanistan" said Warren Allmand, President of Rights & Democracy, upon announcing the decision of the jury.

The international jury for the John Humphrey Freedom Award, which met in June to consider over 80 nominations from around the world, is composed of five members of Rights & Democracy's Board of Directors: Sofia Macher - Secretary General of the Coordinadora Nacional de los Derechos Humanos del Peru, a network of 50 human rights groups working to promote human rights and public education; Kathleen Mahoney - Professor of Law at the University of Calgary in Alberta and Chairperson of Rights & Democracy's Board of Directors; David Matas – Lawyer practicing in Winnipeg, Manitoba and former President of the Canadian Council of Refugees; Vitit Muntarbhorn - professor at the Faculty of Law of Chulalongkorn University in Thailand and consultant with UNICEF and other UN agencies on children's rights issues; and Willy Munyoki Mutunga - Lawyer, Executive Director of the Kenya Human Rights Commission and Co-Chair of the Citizens Coalition for Constitutional Change. Dr. Sima Samar was nominated by Sally Armstrong, Editor-at-large of Chatelaine Magazine in Canada.

Civil war broke out in Afghanistan in 1979 after Soviet troops invaded the country to back the communist government in power. Islamic and tribal groups opposed to the policies of the communist government and the Soviet occupation responded in an armed opposition, which was backed by the US and its European allies, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Iran. The Soviets withdrew in 1989 and the communist government fell in 1992. Despite the formation of an interim coalition government, political authority was weak and unstable and Afghanistan sank into chaos. At the end of 1994, a new political and military force, the Taliban, captured large areas of the country from the armed opposition forces.

More than one million civilians have been killed during the past two decades of civil war in Afghanistan. There are over 2 million Afghan refugees in Iran and Pakistan, making Afghans the largest single refugee group in the world. Outside political and military interference is recognized as a critical factor in the perpetuation of the conflict and human rights abuses. In response to criticism about its discrimination against women, the Taliban claim their policies are in accordance with Islamic law and Afghan culture. However, there are many Muslim individuals and organizations and countries who have disputed the Taliban's negative interpretation of Islam.

Previous John Humphrey Award winners are Reverend Timothy Njoya of Kenya (2000); Dr. Cynthia Maung and Min Ko Naing of Burma (1999); Palden Gyatso of Tibet (1998); Father Javier Giraldo and the Comision Intercongregacional de Justicia y Paz of Colombia (1997); women’s rights activist and lawyer Sultana Kamal of Bangladesh (1996); Bishop Carlos F. X. Belo of East Timor (1995); the Campaign for Democracy of Nigeria and the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights (1994), the Plateforme des organismes haïtiens de défense des droits humains (1993); and the Instituto de Defensa Legal of Peru (1992).

Rights & Democracy (International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development) is an independent Canadian organization with an international mandate. It works with civil society organizations and governments in Canada and abroad to promote human rights and democratic development through advocacy and capacity building. It focuses on four themes: democratic development, women’s rights, globalization and human rights, and the rights of indigenous peoples.

For more information:Augie van Biljouw at (514) 283-6073.

Acceptance Speech Delivered on December 10^th.

As I speak today, the future of Afghanistan is at a crossroads, particularly the future of women. With the removal of the Taliban from control, women finally may be able to regain our rights and Afghanistan may at long last have a chance for a peaceful future. But none of this is a certainty.

Finally the world is becoming aware of the plight of Afghan women. The media is now paying attention to the suffering that women have endured under the Taliban's restrictions. More people now know about the starvation and disease that have come from the drought, the fighting, and the overall lack of humanitarian assistance. The situation of women in Afghanistan has been deteriorating for the past two decades. It could not get much worse.

Under the Taliban, women in Afghanistan were banned from attending school, prohibited from working outside their home, and not allowed to leave their homes without the company of a close male relative or without wearing the full burqa. The punishment for violating these decrees has been harsh and included among other punishments public beatings, imprisonment, and even execution.

We hope with the new situation in Afghanistan that these restrictions will quickly become history and will never be repeated again.

Afghan women warned that what was happening with the Taliban and terrorism would not long stay within Afghanistan's borders. But our warnings were ignored and the tragedies of September 11 occurred. And, now the Afghan people are paying for a crime that they did not commit.

Afghanistan is a small very poor and underdeveloped country that has been at war for the last 23 years. Women in Afghanistan historically have had extremely low and secondary status to men because much of Afghan society still follows the patriarchal system of families. Dictatorship and misinterpretation of religion have further restricted the rights of women.

However, 35-40 years ago partial democracy was introduced into the country and a constitution was drawn up in which women were given limited rights. Under this constitution, women were granted the freedom of obtaining all forms of education. They could participate in elections as voters and as candidates. Despite the poverty, women had the same wage as men. In the 1960s, Afghan women made some progress in politics, education, and employment. We could choose what we wore, and we could move about freely. I, myself, went to coeducation schools from first grade school through medical school. Unfortunately, the majority of women living in villages saw little change in their daily lives, but women in the cities did.

Dr. Sima Samar with Katleen Mahoney and Warren Allmand Earlier today, Dr. Samar gave a press conference at Rights & Democracy's Montreal offices. Here she is seated with Kathleen Mahoney, Chairperson of the Board, and Warren Allmand, President of Rights & Democracy.

After the invasion of the Russians in the country, the constitution lost its efficacy and a state of war, havoc and destruction prevailed over the nation. Countries with political and economic stakes in Afghanistan began to fight a proxy war between each other in which some emerged as winners at the expense of the Afghan people. With the sole aim of defeating communists in Afghanistan, than none took exception to the trampling of the rights of Afghan women. Men victimized women even further with the claim of upholding Afghan culture and traditions and observing Islamic values. Even the UN and the so-called democratic countries indirectly supported this horrific maltreatment of women.

Women have been the main victims of the continuing human rights crisis in the country. Although neither of the warring sides respects the human rights of women, the actions of the Taliban were the most extreme. The exclusion of women from public life under the Taliban has taken its toll not only on women whose lives were destroyed, but also on society as a whole. Before the Taliban took over, women were the majority of teachers and the majority of health care workers. With the restrictions on women, the education system collapsed and the healthcare system was severely damaged, and the whole population suffered.

Despite the Taliban's restrictions, my organization - the Shuhada Organization, which I founded in 1989 - continued to provide health care services and educational opportunities to girls. I run 45 schools in Central Afghanistan, currently educating some 20,000 students. My high school for girls is the only formal girls' high school that continued to function under the Taliban. Because of our dedication and support within the community, the Taliban could not close the girls' schools in this part of Afghanistan. Their harassment was constant, but we kept the schools open and kept teaching the girls math, science, and other courses.

My organization also has 11 clinics and 4 hospitals in Afghanistan. One hospital in Bamiyan was taken over by the Taliban. Another one of my hospitals in Yawkolang was bombed, months after the Taliban massacred hundreds of ethnic Hazaras, including three of my hospital staff, when they took over the area again in January. My clinics and hospitals continued to provide health services to women, including reproductive health services such as contraception, despite the Taliban's prohibition and at great risk.

In Pakistan, I operate a hospital, clinic, and 4 schools for Afghan refugees. I also run a co-educational Science Institute that provides post-secondary training to become physician assistants, paramedics, and science teachers. I began this program to prepare young women and men to go back to Afghanistan to provide desperately needed health and education services. I hope now that my students can aid in the rebuilding of our country.

One of the reasons for the chaos, destruction, and oppression that followed the Soviet withdrawal was that the United States and the international community abandoned Afghanistan after funding and training the most radical extremists.

We hope that the United States and the international community will not forget Afghanistan again. We hope the U.S. and other countries will keep their new promises and provide substantial relief and development assistance to rebuild the whole system and economy in Afghanistan.

Sima Samar with Warren Allmand Dr. Samar fielding question from journalists.

Religion and culture have often been used as the justification for the denial of the rights of Afghan women. But in reality, the restrictions on women have nothing to do with the religion or culture of Afghanistan and everything to do with control and power. In fact, the first word of Islam was "Iqra" which means, "to read" and the first convert to Islam was Khadija, Muhammad's wife. Muhammad said himself that all Muslim women and men should be educated. Ayesha herself was allowed to ride camels and lead troops into battle.

In regard to dress, Islam does not specify a particular dress code to be observed by women. Afghan women usually do not have their faces covered. The burqa is neither Islamic nor is it an Afghan tradition.

Some humanitarian aid providers are of the opinion that we should not worry so much about girls not having access to education or we should not blame the Taliban because very few women were literate before the Taliban. The aid agencies use respect for culture and religion as an excuse for not supporting girls' education programs.

But, the reality is that the demand for education has always existed, but has gone largely unmet because of lack of resources or will power by the government.

My schools for girls in Pakistan and Afghanistan, for example, are over-enrolled because the hunger for education for girls is so great, but the resources are so limited. Very little money has been devoted to girls' education, and most of that only to primary education. Secondary and higher education are also desperately needed if we are ever to rebuild civil society in Afghanistan. We must also provide education for the boys. Unless real education opportunities are provided for boys the madrassas will continue to create generations of boys that know only the war mentality and the mentality of the oppression of women. The education of boys, along with the education of girls, is essential for the future of human rights, women's rights, and peace in Afghanistan.

To conclude, there is no acceptable justification for marginalizing Afghan women and violating our rights. Today, I am pleased to see that women have been given a role in the new interim government, and that the voices of women are at last to be heard in the country's decision-making process. The appointment of two women is a beginning, but it is not enough. I hope that I will be able to heal some of the wounds of Afghan women.

We have much work to do. We will not be able to do it alone. We need the support of the international community, including Canada. We need multi-national troops in order to disarm the different factions, to maintain stability and security, and to allow the government system to be re-established. Whatever government structure is in place, women'' rights must be restored. We need the commitment of Canada and the international community to make gender issues central in the reconstruction of Afghanistan.

I am honored to accept this prestigious award on behalf of the millions of Afghan women and children who are hungry, homeless, and traumatized. I will continue my work so that women's rights in Afghanistan will be counted as human rights and that girls will no longer be punished for having a notebook and pen in their hands.

News Release
Women's Rights Advocate From Afghanistan Tours Canada

MONTREAL - 28 NOVEMBER 2001 - Dr. Sima Samar of Afghanistan, this year's winner of Rights & Democracy's human rights award will arrive in Canada on Friday, November 30 to begin a cross-country tour from Vancouver to Halifax. She is to receive the John Humphrey Freedom Award at a ceremony in Montreal on December 10, International Human Rights Day.

Dr. Samar was selected for the Award in recognition of her brave work to promote the rights of Afghan women and girls. Since 1989, her schools for girls and health clinics in Afghanistan, and in the refugee camps of Quetta, Pakistan, have challenged the attempts of successive regimes to deny women their basic rights to education, employment, mobility and medical care. Today, Dr. Samar runs four hospitals and 10 clinics in Afghanistan and a further hospital in Quetta. Her schools in rural Afghanistan are attended by more than 20,000 students; over 1,000 Afghan refugee girls attend Dr. Samar's school in Quetta.

Speaking from Pakistan, Dr. Samar told Rights & Democracy this week that the departure of the Taliban from Kabul and other cities in Afghanistan is a welcome development. "But just because some women have removed their burqas does not mean that there is respect for women's rights," she cautioned. Only a democratic process with women actively involved can guarantee these rights, Dr. Samar said.

While in Canada, the John Humphrey Freedom Award laureate will be meeting with government officials, women's rights groups, universities and international organizations. She will call on Canada to play a leading role to promote respect for women's rights in the new Afghanistan.

"We wish for a broad-based government with the active participation of women, which will promote freedom and equal rights for women," Dr. Samar said. "This will only happen if the international community, with the help of a multinational force, helps Afghans to set up a transitional government, which would then organize free and fair elections. It is a long process, and it won't be easy, but we will not give up."

Rights & Democracy's President, Warren Allmand, has stressed the organization's support for Dr. Samar's efforts in this work. "We will be requesting that John Manley, as Minister of Foreign Affairs, do all in his power to urge all parties involved to ensure that Afghan women are part of the new government in Afghanistan, part of the peacebuilding efforts and part of the political and civil society reconstruction of their country."

Dr. Samar will visit Vancouver (December 1), Victoria (December 4), Edmonton (December 5), Calgary (December 6-7), Montreal (December 10), Halifax and Fredericton (December 11), Ottawa (December 12), Toronto (December 14) and Guelph (December 15). The Award ceremony will take place on December 10, at 5 p.m. at the Théâtre Gesù, 1200 Bleury St, in Montreal.

For further information: Mary Durran or Patricia Poirier at (514) 283-6073; cell: (514) 998-0536.

Rights & Democracy (International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development) is a Canadian institution with an international mandate. It is an independent organization, which promotes, advocates and defends the democratic and human rights set out in the International Bill of Human Rights. In cooperation with civil society and governments in Canada and abroad, Rights & Democracy initiates and supports programmes to strengthen laws and democratic institutions, principally in developing countries.

Rights & Democracy focuses its work on four thematic priorities: Democratic Development, Women's Rights, the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and Globalization and Human Rights; and two special operations: International Human Rights Advocacy and Urgent Action and Important Opportunities.

News Release
Afghan Woman Physician wins John Humphrey Freedom Award

For more information: Augie van Biljouw at (514) 283-6073.

News Release
Dr. Sima Samar Named to Transition Cabinet in Afghanistan

MONTREAL - 5 DECEMBER 2001 - Dr Sima Samar, who is the winner of Rights & Democracy's annual human rights prize, has been appointed deputy prime minister and minister responsible for Women's Affairs in the power sharing council that will take over on Dec. 22 and run the transitional government in Afghanistan.

"It's a very positive thing that women have a role in this interim government; it will be no easy task but at the same time it is not difficult to see and identify the great needs facing women in Afghanistan," Dr. Samar said in a statement today from Edmonton, where she is speaking as part of the cross-Canada tour organized by Rights & Democracy.

Dr. Samar acknowledged that it will not be easy to accomplish this task: "We will need a great deal of support and solidarity from women all over the world because the needs of Afghan women are so great. I hope that the women of Afghanistan will accept me in this new role as worthy of representing their needs and interests; it is a task I have not been elected to do. I hope I will be able to live up to their expectations and be able to deal with at least some of their wounds."

The international jury of the John Humphrey Freedom Award selected Dr. Samar last summer in recognition of her outstanding work to promote the rights of Afghan women and girls. Through her organization Shuhada, Dr. Samar runs four hospitals and 10 clinics in Afghanistan and a further hospital in Quetta, Pakistan. Her schools in rural Afghanistan are attended by more than 20,000 students; and more than 1,000 others attend her school in Quetta.

Dr. Samar will receive the award on Monday, December 10, International Human Rights Day, at a ceremony in Montreal. There will be a news conference earlier at 11 a.m. at Rights & Democracy, 1001 boul. de Maisonneuve East, Suite 1100 in Montreal.

Information: Mary Durran/Patricia Poirier (514) 283-6073

Affiliated Groups

Canada's National Coalition in Support of Afghan Women

Canadians in Support of Afghan Women
Hopedale Mall, 1515 Rebecca Street
Oakville, ON L6L 5G8
Tel: (905) 825-3622
hrcc@cgocable.net

Edmontonians in Support of Afghan People
c/o 101, 10010-107 A
Edmonton T5H 4H8
(780) 423-9675
jgurnett@emcn.ab.ca

Voice of Women for Peace, Guelph
45 Dean Avenue
Guelph, ON N1G 1K6
Tel: (519) 837-2915
kbrookfi@sympatico.ca

Women for Women Afghanistan
Bankview PO Box 32014
Calgary, AB Canada T2T 5X6
(403) 244-5625
WebSite: www.w4wafghan.ca
ListServe: www.egroups.com/group/w4wafghan

Dr. Sima Samar 2001 John Humphrey Freedom Award Recipient Canadian Tour -- December 1st >> December 15th 2001.

Dr. Sima Samar of Afghanistan -- 2001 John Humphrey Freedom Award Recipient Dr. Sima Samar has been selected as this year's John Humphrey Freedom Award recipient for her efforts to strengthen the human rights of women and girls in Afghanistan and in refugee camps on the Northern border of Pakistan. She will accept the Award in Montreal on December 10, 2001, International Human Rights Day. As part of the Award's cross-Canada tour, Dr. Samar will visit Vancouver, Victoria, Edmonton, Calgary, Montreal, Fredericton, Ottawa, Toronto, and Guelph. A detailed itinerary is a vailable below.

In the face of threats to her own safety, Dr. Samar has defied the Taliban's edicts that deny women and girls their basic rights to education, employment, mobility and medical care. Since 1989, Dr. Samar has been operating schools for girls and health clinics in many of the provinces of Afghanistan as well as in the refugee camps in Quetta, Pakistan. She has shown an incredible commitment towards assisting Afghan women in their struggles to end their oppression and to provide them with access to healthcare and education services. She is a strong advocate for the involvement of Afghan women in government and the reconstruction of civil society in Afghanistan.

On International Human Rights Day, December 10^th, and meet Dr. Samar during the Award Ceremomy to be held at the Salle du Gesù, 1200 Bleury Street, Montreal.

Seating is limited. R.S.V.P.: Tel. (514) 283-6073, or E-mail: avbiljou@dd-rd.ca
Refreshments will be served.

Preparations are now well underway for the cross Canada tour of this year's John Humphrey Freedom Award laureate, Dr. Sima Samar of Afghanistan. In the face of constant threats, Dr. Samar has defied the ruling Taliban's edicts that deny women and girls their basic rights. Since 1989, she has courageously operated schools for girls and health clinics in many of the provinces of Afghanistan as well as in camps for Afghan refugees in Quetta, Pakistan.

The John Humphrey Freedom Award will be presented to Dr. Samar in a ceremony on December 10, in Montreal at the Salle du Gesù, 1200 Bleury Street, Montreal, between 5 and 7pm. The award ceremony will feature Afghan musicians and food. Seats are limited to 400, so please RSVP avbiljou@dd-rd.ca. Dr. Samar will also speak in the cities named below. Please contact the local organizer for further details.

aturday, December 1 - Vancouver
Public Event 2:30pm
Contact Jan Cameron-Bakker of Women for Women in Afghanistan jacbakker@shaw.ca.

Tuesday, December 4 - Victoria
First Metropolitan United Church 12 noon
Victoria University 7.30pm
Contacts: Cynthia Callahan Cynthia.Callahan@gems8.gov.bc.ca or Helen Durie hdurie@pacificcoast.net of Women for Women Afghanistan.

Wednesday, December 5 - Edmonton
University of Alberta 7.30pm
Contact: Nancy Hannemann, International Centre, University of Alberta
Nancy.Hannemann@ualberta.ca

Thursday, December 6 - Calgary
University of Calgary 6pm
Contact: Janice Eisenhauer, Women for Women Afghanistan, at eisenhauer@praxis.ca
www.w4wafghan.ca

Friday, December 7 - Calgarybr/> Calgary Public Library 7pm

onday, December 10 - Montreal
Press Conference 11am at Rights & Democracy
John Humphrey Freedom Award Ceremony 5pm
Salle du Gesù, 1200 Bleury, Montreal.
Contact: Augie van Biljouw, Rights & Democracy avbiljou@dd-rd.ca

Tuesday, December 11- Fredericton
Centre Communautaire Sainte-Anne 7pm
Contact : Cynthia Kirkby, John Howard Society ckirkby@nb.aibn.com

Wednesday, December 12 - Ottawa
University of Ottawa 7.30pm
Contact: Josée Graveline, Faculty of Medicine jgrave@uottawa.ca

Thursday, December 13 - Toronto
The Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID)'s presentation of:
An Evening with Dr. Sima Samar
5:30pm-7:30pm
Contact: Association for Women's Rights in Development: erin@awid.org

The venue is now at: The Ontario Insitute for Studies in Education at the University of
Toronto (OISE/UT)
Auditorium
252 Bloor Street West, between St. George and Bedford Road on the North side of Bloor.

There is a parking lot directly under the building which is accessed from Prince Arthur, the first street north of Bloor, and a municipal lot on Bedford just north of Bloor Street.

OISE is directly on top of the St. George subway station and can be accessed directly from the station.

You can find a map to OISE at www.osm.utoronto.ca/map

Friday, December 14 - Toronto
J.R.R. MacLeod Auditorium at the Medical Sciences Building, 1pm,
1 King's College Circle, at the University of Toronto,
Contact: Members of the public who wish to book a seat can contact Salima Pirani at 416-813-4715 or salima.pirani@swchsc.on.ca, by 5pm Wednesday.

Saturday, December 15 - Guelph
Guelph Little Theatre, 176 Morris Street, Guelph.
Reception 6.00pm
Dr Samar: Talk and discussion 7.00 to 9-00pm
Contact: Kate Brookfield, Voice of Women for Peace kbrookfi@sympatico.ca

Unfortunately, this last public event in Guelph is cancelled as Dr. Samar was asked to return to Kabul earlier than anticipated. She apologizes for the inconvenience and thanks all those who have expressed support for her work.

The Shuhada Organization

Dr. Sima Samar runs Shuhada, an organization based in the small border town of Quetta in Pakistan. Its name in the Dari language means martyrs, in recognition of the sacrifices made by thousands of lives during the conflict in Afghanistan. Established in 1989, it provides much-needed medical assistance and education for Afghan women and children. For more information, visit www.shuhada.org

How to support Dr. Samar's work:

Tax receipts for donations over $25.00 will be issued by Rights & Democracy, in conjunction with W4WAfghan (Women for Women in Afghanistan) and all funds collected will be forwarded to her Shuhada organization. Here is the procedure:

All cheques for donations made payable to Rights & Democracy;
Write: for Women for Women in Afghanistan-Samar on memo line;
Mail all cheques to Calgary W4WA, Bankview, PO Box 32014, Calgary, AB, T2T 5X6. Women for Women in Afghanistan - Tel.: (403) 228-4622

Projects from Shuhada's 2000 Annual Report: Health Projects

Shuhada Hospital, Jaghori:
This hospital established in 1993 is well-equipped, offering such services as in-patient care with 50-bed capacity, an out-patient department, vaccination, laboratory, dressing room, x-ray, operating theater and delivery room. The hospital also offers nurse, mid-wife and health worker training courses depending on the availability of funds. It also serves as the administrative point for an outreach health service network of six basic health centers located in different villages. A daily average of 50 to 60 patients visit the hospital for treatment.

Shuhada Hospital, Behsood:
Established in 1997, this hospital has an operating theater, X-ray, laboratory, delivery room, an out-patient department and an in-patient department with 12-bed capacity. A daily average of 40-60 patients visit the out-patient department.

Shuhada Hospital, Yakawlang:
Started in 1998, this hospital has an operating theater, laboratory, delivery room, out-patient department and an in-patient department with a capacity of 10 beds. The only institution of its kind in the area, the daily average of visiting patients is 40-60 persons.

Shuhada Hospital, Bamyan:
Services and facilities offered by this hospital include a delivery room, a laboratory, an out-patient department and in-patient department with 5-bed capacity. A daily average of 40-50 out patients visit the hospital.

Shuhada Clinics, Lal and Sar-e-Jangal:
These two health clinics were established in 1997. A medical doctor and a female nurse provide out patient care in each of these clinics. These clinics are used as centers for providing family planning and personal hygiene information to villagers who remain isolated and largely illiterate. Minor health complications are treated at the centers while major cases are diagnosed and referred to the Shuhada Hospital, Yakawlang for advanced care.

Shuhada Clinic, Kabul:
This clinic was established in the poorest area of Kabul City in 1993 and since then it has been extending its services to women and children. The severe drought in central areas of Afghanistan produced a huge influx of refugees into the Kabul City and an increased number of patients. The Clinic is staffed by two medical doctors, and three nurses. A daily average of 60 to 70 patients visit the clinic daily.

Shuhada Clinics, Nahoor:
Two village health clinics were established in March 2000. These clinics offer out-patients care, laboratory and delivery room facilities. These clinics are staffed by a medical doctor, two female nurses, one male nurse and one laboratory assistant each. A daily average of 30-40 patients visit the clinics. These clinics are also used as centers for provide family planning and personal hygiene information to villagers who remain isolated and largely illiterate.

Shuhada Clinic, Quetta, Pakistan:
Also serving as the head office of the Shuhada Organization, the clinic was established in 1989. Currently the clinic operates on a self-sufficient basis rendering services to a large Afghan refugee population in the city. The clinic operates with an out-patient department, an in-patient branch with 17 beds, a delivery room, a laboratory and X-ray department, vaccination capability and an operating theater.

huhada Health Posts, Jaghori:
A qualified female nurse treats the patients with minor ailments at the clinic and refers the complicated cases to Shuhada Hospital, Jaghori. These health posts are also used as centers for providing family planning and personal hygiene information to villagers who remain isolated and largely illiterate.

Education

Schools administered by the Shuhada Organization in different areas of Hazarajat and Quetta City:

District	Province	No. of Schools	No. of Students	No. of Staff
Jaghori	Ghazni	23	11,233	393
Qarabagh	Ghazni	3	1,159	39
Malistan	Ghazni	4	2,111	73
Behsood	Wardak	5	1,897	68
Yakawlang	Bamyan	5	960	34
Shahristan	Orazgan	6	1,481	47
Quetta	Balochistan, Pakistan	2	1,116	57
Total		48	19,957	711

A further four classes of home schools are operating in Kabul city. A science institute has been established at Quetta City to provide higher education to students graduated from the above schools. This institute has two departments of Paramedic, computer and science. The institute currently has 12 students and is operated by 10 teachers.

Income Generation

Active over the past few years, this project involves free distribution of sheep among families headed by widows or by disabled men. In return, the recipients have to return a lamb and one kilogram of wool at the end of each year for five years. The lambs and the wool are redistributed among new recipients.

Construction

During the year 2000, Shuhada Organization implemented projects for the construction or the repair of many of the buildings currently accommodating the health and education institutions, the construction of various schools in Ghazni, as well as projects for the construction of protection walls and check dams.

Training and Capacity Building

Archive: Past Winners

2005: Yan Christian Warinussy (West Papua)
2004: Godeli�ve Mukasarasi (Rwanda)
2003: Mr. Kimy Pern�a Domic� (Colombia) and Ang�lica Mendoza de Ascarza (Peru)
2002: Ayesha Imam (Nigeria)
2001: Dr. Sima Samar (Afghanistan)
2000: Reverend Timothy Njoya (Kenya)
1999: Min Ko Naing and Cynthia Maung (Burma)
1998: Palden Gyatso
1997: Father Javier Giraldo (Colombia)
1996: Sultana Kamal (Bangladesh)
1995: Bishop Carlos F. X. Belo (East Timor)
1994: Campaign for Democracy (Nigeria) and Egyptian Organization for Human Rights
1993: La Plate-forme des organismes ha�tiens de d�fense des droits humains (Ha�ti).
1992: Instituto de Defensa Legal (Peru)

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Dr. Sima Samar (Afghanistan)

News Release Afghan Woman Physician Wins John Humphrey Freedom Award

Acceptance Speech Delivered on December 10th.

News Release Women's Rights Advocate From Afghanistan Tours Canada

News Release Afghan Woman Physician wins John Humphrey Freedom Award

News Release Dr. Sima Samar Named to Transition Cabinet in Afghanistan

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