We Talked About March 8 With Peace Ambassador of 2020 Dr. Zakira Hekmat
We interviewed Zakira Hekmat Afghan Refugees Solidarity and Assistance Association (ARSA) Founder and Peace Ambassador of 2020 Dr. on the occasion of March 8th. We would like to thank him very much for taking the time to answer our questions on a busy event day.
Hello Zakira, many years ago you had to leave your country Afghanistan and come to Turkey. However, you are a doctor and had a respected position in your country. Could you tell us a little about the reasons that led to this?
As you know, Afghanistan has been a country in the grip of war for many years. Still, 70% of the country's territory is under the influence of terrorist organizations such as the Taliban and Daesh. In addition, ethnic, sectarian and gender-based discrimination prevails under the influence of the traditional structure. This is a fact that everyone knows. Therefore, for nearly forty years, a significant part of Afghan people have been forced to leave their country and have become refugees in various countries of the world. I also finished high school when Afghanistan was under Taliban control. As a female student in Afghanistan at that time, I did not have the opportunity to study at university, so I came to Turkey. I went to medical school here. I got my diploma and I still practice medicine in Turkey.
When did you come to Turkey, where did you settle and how is your life here? We know that you are a very active person especially in the field of civil society, can you talk about these?
I came to Turkey in 2008. I settled in Kayseri. As I said before, I am a doctor. Since then, I have been working on a voluntary basis at the Afghan Refugees Solidarity and Aid Association (ARSA), which I am the founder of. In fact, I should point out that although the work of the volunteers who founded ARSA dates back to ancient times, the date our association became official was 2014. Today, ARSA has become an effective non-governmental organization operating in 52 provinces of Turkey.
Could you briefly tell us about the activities of ARSA?
As I said before, ARSA is an active association. It carries out many projects in cooperation with government authorities, local administrations, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and other NGOs. These projects are not just for Afghans. There are aspects that include Syrian, Iranian, Iraqi refugees and local people. In this way, we not only inform about known wrongs, but also carry out social harmonization studies. Finally, we have implemented many social responsibility projects that are beneficial and serve not only refugees but also local people, especially during the epidemic period. We have started an activity we call “Hardworking Hands” especially for refugee women. The main purpose of this activity was to make the invisible labor of refugee women visible and to generate income for them. We provided the raw material as an association. Refugee women had the opportunity to realize their skills in areas such as weaving, knitting, handicrafts and decoration.
Today, March 8, is International Working Women's Day. You are also a medical worker, so we heartily congratulate you on your day. What does March 8 mean to you? For example, was it a day celebrated in Afghanistan, did you carry out any activities related to March 8 in Turkey as an association?
International Working Women's Day was celebrated in Afghanistan as well as everywhere else. As Afghans living in Turkey, we organize various events on March 8 every year. This year, we held an exhibition event together with UNHCR. More than 600 products produced by refugee women had the opportunity to be exhibited within the scope of the "Hardworking Hands" project that I just mentioned.
What are your plans for the future? For example, would you like to stay in Turkey or do you hope to settle in a European country or the USA?
Turkey is now my second homeland. I received all kinds of support in this country where I came from at a young age. I went to medical school and became a doctor. Now I serve the people of this country. I don't want to go anywhere from this beautiful country.
Source: REFUGEENEWSTURKEY/TÜRKİYE MÜLTECİ HABERLERİ