In 2009 I was appointed President of the Jesuit Conference of South Asia (JCSA). This assignment launched me into JRS Outreach in Afghanistan, which was the only international outreach of JCSA. It functioned under the umbrella of JRS International. The JRS activities were well on track when I took charge because of the vision and hard work of the pioneers and collaborators. My job was to oversee its activities, assign Jesuit personnel and visit our men on the spot in Afghanistan and report back to JCSA the state of our outreach programs and their plans for the future. The country director would graciously facilitate all these matters for me.

 

The first thing I want to stress about JRSO is that only volunteers were assigned to this work because the post war AFG was neither safe nor secure. People were suffering from utter poverty, neglect, discriminations of all sorts, rampant violations of human rights and gender inequality. Many people would question me why we need to work in such dangerous situation. My only answer to them was that we as members of the Society of Jesus have made an option for the poor and the marginalized. The people of AGH are our immediate neighbors and they deserved our support at this critical stage of rebuilding their lives. When I met our men and collaborators in AFG, I always found them joyful and eager to carry forward the work.

 

The media often gives a skewed view of AGH people, as if all of them were dangerous and fundamentalist. My experience has been very opposite especially with our clients. They were warm, friendly, young people were intelligent and eager to learn, especially the girls and young women. Once I was present for the graduation function of a JRS program. I was surprised to see the young women on the stage putting up a play depicting their social situation and critiquing it! Many of them had picked up enough language and computer skills to do the online courses offered by JRS Online education programs. I am told that Bamiyan had almost 2000 of them profiting by them.

 

Let me conclude by saying that JRS O is for the brave, who are willing to go an extra mile, take a road less travelled, who believe that together with the AFG people we can make an all-round difference to the AFG society especially for women and children to rebuild their country. They will see the roadblocks as challenges and the problems as opportunities for love and service. I believe JRS is not a project but a trigger, a process! Thank you all from the bottom of my heart!

Edward Mudavassery SJ,

former President of the Jesuit Conference of South Asia