Pictorials

David & Afghan Commander

Having fallen off the commander's horse, then being relegated to a donkey, we enjoyed a friendship that grew around the sharing of our stories together. They had built their village on the top of a high hill with no access to water. When asked why they had decided to do so, his response was simply, "The view."

A Soldier in the Resistance

How do you honour a soldier? It was remote. It was a place of contrast. I had a Canadian flag pin.

Northern Alliance Soldiers

Roads in Northern Afghanistan

Many villagers were resistant to food for work projects that included road building. "Why should we build roads when no one has a car?" Stepping into Afghanistan meant stepping back in technological time - to a rich period that is strong and courageous, while remaining simple and uncluttered.

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Remnants of War

Everywhere we travelled, we saw remnants of battle. Shell casings were common. So too were explosives that had failed to detonate. Land mines cluttered the hillsides, hidden from sight. Weekly they took their victims.

Internally Displaced People

Surrounded by undisclosed minefields, children wander freely. Aid agencies provided shelter and the people decided where to put it.

The Market

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What Should We Plant

Each farmer faces a dilemma. If they plant food, they cannot maintain the costs for other basic needs (blankets, clothing, fuel). If they plant poppies, they can purchase all that they need.

The Children

In some villages that we visited, there were no children two years of age and younger. They had not survived the previous winter. Villagers had begun to dismantle their homes to sell the beams in exchange for blankets. Yet that left them with inadequate shelter from the extreme winters. Afghanistan provided no simple solutions.

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Girls in School

What seems to be a point of normalcy for Western nations, was an historic event in Afghanistan. Girls were once again being allowed to study and learn. Those who chose to teach them, did so at great personal risk.

Poppies

When I asked him if he knew what he was planting, his answer was, "It is okay because no one here uses the seeds. We just grow them and they are all shipped out of the country."

The Mainstay of Nomadic Living

Herdsmen

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The Patriarch

Wild Poppies

These poppies cannot be used in opium production. They grow wild, in some places almost as far as the eye can see.

Shoe?

It was not uncommon for children to live through the winter months without shoes.

The Elders

Ice Caves

Without electricity, ice was made during the winter months and stored deep into the hillsides surrounding a village. In some cases, it provided villagers with ice through the end of August.

Food Aid

At one point in time, we were providing aid for over 800,000 people. Finding adequate storage space was difficult. This particular warehouse was in the middle of a major crossfire during a battle a year earlier.

Rationing

Each family had been displaced from their land due to fighting. Monthly they would come to compounds to receive rationed supplies of food and clothing.

Rationing Day

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Resistance in the Air

The Northern Alliance troops fought hand to hand against the Taliban. They actually began to see the possibility of winning the war under the leadership of a commander in chief who was able to bring the warlords together under one flag.

The Last Stand

This was the office of the Northern Alliance Commander in Chief. Protected by many bodyguards, he directed the tactical strategy against the Taliban. Rarely did he grant interviews. In this exception he allowed two reporters to interview him in this office. The cameraman's equipment was filled with explosives. They all died in the blast.

Hope Lost

The office of the commander in chief was destroyed by suicide bombers posing as members of the media.