Hell and Other Destinations by Madeleine Albright

Author:Madeleine Albright
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2020-02-19T00:00:00+00:00

Twenty

A Bigger Sea

LATE IN 1997, I traveled to a refugee camp in Pakistan about twenty-five miles from the Afghan border, not far from the Khyber Pass. The mountainous landscape was barren, with no trees or even shrubs to provide shade. My destination was a tiny school where a couple of dozen women and girls were waiting, among them a doctor and several teachers.

The women explained to me through interpreters how the Taliban in their native Afghanistan had prevented them from holding jobs, attending class, or even leaving their homes unless accompanied by an adult male. A girl described the death of her sister, who had leapt from a sixth-floor window to avoid being raped by men who had broken into her family’s apartment.

As we talked, I sensed the refugees’ nervousness. Many still had relatives across the border and feared that their willingness to meet with me could, if revealed, have severe consequences.

Later, I went outside to address a larger gathering of Afghans of both genders and varied ages sitting on rugs in a makeshift courtyard. The sun was getting low, and I could see along the camp’s perimeter the shadows of the marksmen who were protecting us. I told my listeners that the job of America’s secretary of state was to care about issues of war and peace and about whether people in need receive the food and shelter they must have to survive.

I said that I, too, had once been a refugee. Although I could not compare my experience to what they had endured, I did know that war is cruel and that life can be very hard when you aren’t able to live in the place you call home. I added that no country can become prosperous unless women and girls are allowed to go to school and are shielded from exploitation and abuse.

When I was done, I walked forward to say hello. The youngest were seated in front, cross-legged. I extended a hand, but the children were so small we couldn’t connect. I was afraid that if I bent over any farther, I would tip over. So, I got down on my knees and greeted them that way. Their fingers were thin and wiry; their eyes dark and haunting. I have not forgotten their smiles.

DURING MY FINAL year in office, the United Nations established the Millennium Development Goals, a set of ambitious benchmarks for the world to achieve by 2015. Among them was a commitment to eliminate gender disparity in access to education. Contrary to the expectations of many, that objective has since been reached due in large measure to progress in South Asia, where more girls than boys now attend primary school. In still-fragile Afghanistan, substantial gains were made when the Taliban were forced out after 9/11; however, much work remains to be done there and elsewhere. In many places, needed change has been slowed by security fears, the continued incidence of child marriage, a shortage of qualified female teachers, a lack of resources, and bias. Across the globe, an estimated 130 million girls who should be in class each day are not.

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