“Rouen is a very beautiful city”, assures Assad, smiling. A year ago, after spending a few days in the French embassy in Kabul, he landed with his partner, Mina, in Normandy. For 10 months they have been living with Yves, in Rouen. Since then they have acclimatized and learned French. The latter assures him, in a short time their progress in French is dazzling. Very interested in French culture, a neighbor even gives them literature lessons.
In Kabul, Mina ran a bistro, the “Simple Cafe”. She would like to find a job in the restaurant or in a bar to continue on this path. Assad also wants to find a job. Previously, he was a journalist for an English-language website, “Kabul Now”. From time to time he still writes papers for a magazine, “OutlookIndia”.
Mother and sister cloistered at home
The news reaching them from Afghanistan is not good. Assad speaks weekly to a journalist friend there: “It’s difficult for him. He works as a reporter, but he doesn’t use his real name to protect himself. Afghanistan is going through very hard times. The problem of access to education is very serious. Almost every week there are suicides. The majority of those who commit suicide are young, and many are girls”. Mina, think a lot about his sister and his mother who remained in Kabul. In the past, they were used in his cafe, today they are cloistered in their house, and cannot work. Through articles on the internet, Assad would like to document the attacks of the Taliban regime on human rights. Neither he nor Mina have any hope of returning to Afghanistan.