The War in Afghanistan has been a big topic for the last 10 years. Now the time is coming when the western troops will hand over the complete control of the military presence to the Afghan government.
Personally, I never looked at Afghanistan as a war. Wikipedia gives a clear definition of what a war is: “War is an organized, armed, and, often, a prolonged conflict that is carried on between states, nations".
My perception of the operations in Afghanistan, since the fall of the Taliban regime, is more associated to peace keeping operations. The Wikipedia definition seems to fit the reality: “Peacekeeping refers to activities that tend to create conditions that favor lasting peace.”
Sometimes, peacekeepers and warriors are the same people and walk on the same path, but with very different consequences. Peacekeepers and warriors can wear the same uniforms and helmets, carry the same guns, worry about the same landmines to assaults. But usually, warriors are celebrated with military recognitions like purple hearts and medals of honor, while peacekeepers are perceived as less aggressive in the beginning and celebrated less at the end of their mission.
In Italy, the Italian Army is perceived as operating a peacekeeping operation in Afghanistan, while in the USA, the media and politicians emphasized the word war, celebrating the warriors and defining a sense of victory or defeat associated to Afghanistan.
Ideally, I would like to replace each soldier in Afghanistan with one computer. ISAF has now 132,000 troops. In Afghanistan, there are 8 million students. If they were given 132,000 connected computers, it would be one computer for every 60 students.
I would also facilitate the distribution of World Film Production intended for educational purpose, and entertainment, in the full respect of the cultures of Afghanistan and the rest of Central and South Asia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
Film Annex started buildings schools in Afghanistan with Internet classrooms in February. As of now, we are working on our 6th school, Mahjoobe Heravi High School. Located in the city of Herat, Afghanistan, the school was established in 1350 (Afghan solar calendar) and counts 4000 female students. The incredible power of the computer installations and the work of the students goes well beyond the walls of the schools. Through the implementation of an educational software like Examer, the students can work with other international students and teachers from all over the world. They can create and share concepts and, with social media, re-shape the social infrastructure of Afghanistan, Central-South Asia and the rest of the world.
Online, children can share an incredible amount of data, information, videos, write blogs and participate to social, educational and gaming media. My 6-year old explains to me the new features and apps of a brand new iPhone, while my father refuses to touch it. It seems clear to me who is the though leader in technology and social media. The young generations have no limit for growth.
The Khan Academy is a pillar of inspiration and information but their technology is based on YouTube players and access. It's not an option in Afghanistan where YouTube is blocked. Consequently, we must find alternatives and solutions. We are working on our social media curriculum for educational purpose and we are implementing it in a safe, monitored, professional and non-offensive platform.
Film Annex has a very clear position in this matter. We are working along the side of peacekeepers and focusing on educational content. Nothing is of controversial and political nature, as our motto is: NO POLITICS, JUST INTERNET.
