Helping Afghanistan with 'my voice and my face': 'we must never stop reminding the world about what is happening'

UN Chronicle, Sept-Nov, 2004 by Anna Cataldi

At the end of a visit, we who are designated Messengers of Peace or Goodwill Ambassadors leave with our hands still empty and our hearts aching. But perhaps it is not quite in vain. Shocked by the first appalling pictures of the famine in Somalia in the summer of 1992, I asked my great friend Audrey Hepburn what could I do, and she answered: "I've asked myself the same question so many times, but realized that I was no longer young enough nor did I have the professional skills to help in the field. So I thought that as I was still a little known, maybe my voice and my face could be of service", she added with her innate modesty. "Each one of us has something to give. If you can write, then write. The most important thing is to raise awareness. We must never stop reminding the world about what is happening." Audrey is no longer with us; she died four months after her visit to Somalia, but her example, as someone said at her funeral, will be an inspiration to anyone wishing to devote themselves to humanitarian aid. Besides her courage, faith and great humanity, she also bequeathed to me those words that lift my spirits when I feel close to despair.

The moment of my departure from Kabul has arrived, though, unfortunately, two days earlier than scheduled. Leaving Afghanistan, a country in which I am a foreigner yet where without any logical reason I almost feel more at home than in my native land, always saddens me. I feel that I have seen, understood and done little.

Dan Kelly and his team, who have been with us throughout our journey, see us off at the airport. They all say: "Come back soon. The need here is so great, and the world, despite all the promises, is forgetting about us." This is both an invitation and an obligation. I will return to Afghanistan.

Anna Cataldi was appointed United Nations Messenger of Peace in 1998. She is an author, journalist and human rights activist, involved for more than a decade in human rights activities in war-affected countries and is a committed advocate on behalf of children affected by war.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]