ABSTRACT
The electricity was out again as we sat in an Afghan refugee camp in Pakistan, sharing the glow and the warmth of the kerosene burner on a cool January morning. Zala, the RAWA (Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan) member who was my guide and translator, had only told me briefly about Salima, the woman I was interviewing. I knew that the serious-looking, 20-something woman wearing shalwar kamiz,1 the national dress of Pakistan, was a RAWA member based in Afghanistan. I knew that she had recently snuck across the border for clandestine meetings with RAWA members in Pakistan, and that she could tell me about RAWA activities and the RAWA community in Afghanistan. But in true RAWA style Zala hadn’t told me anything about Salima’s background or activities; even what to call her was unclear until a brief side conversation between Zala and Salima confirmed what name she would use with me. So I was asking Salima general questions about her life with RAWA when she nonchalantly mentioned her role in the covert filming of the infamous execution of Zarmeena.2
