Goftegu Public Debate

“From the fairy of arts to the monster of war” was the title of the 87th Goftegu(6th year), a bridge between the elite and the citizens, of Armanshahr Foundation,which was held in cooperation with the French Cultural Institute of Kabul in the Institute on 25 April 2012.

The 86th (6th year) Goftegu, a bridge between the elite and the citizens, of Armanshahr Foundation, marketing 8 March, women’s day, was held in cooperation with the French Cultural Institute of Kabul in the Institute on 11 March 2012 with the title of “Present and future of women in Afghanistan: challenges in safeguarding rights.” Most participants were women.

Armanshahr Foundation*, in collaboration with French Institute of Afghanistan, Transitional Justice Coordination Group, Women’s 50% Campaign, Women’s Political Participation Committee, Writers House, 8-Sobh Daily, International Media Service (I.M.S) and supported by French Embassy, Swiss Cooperation Office Afghanistan, Open Society is pleased to invite you to its 85th (year VI) public debate GOFTEGU.

The 84th (6th year) Goftegu, a bridge between the elite and the citizens, of Armanshahr Foundation, was held at the French Cultural Institute in Kabul on 24th November 2011 with the title of “People’s message to Bonn Conference.”[1] The meeting marked the approaching Human Rights Day, the National Day of Victims in Afghanistan and the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and it was organised in cooperation with the working group.[2] About 120 members of the civil society, students and human rights activists took part in the meeting.

The 83rd (6th year) Goftegu, a bridge between the elite and the citizens, of Armanshahr Foundation, marking the 15th anniversary of Armanshahr/Open Asia, was held at the French Cultural Institute of Kabul on 27th October 2011, with a performance by Master Wahid Qasemi, singer, composer, musician and music researcher.

The film had been chosen, because it portrayed methods of wiping out collective memory by burning books and controlling the public opinion on the one hand, and the people’s resistance and disobedience on the other, where the people burned among their own books but save them to defend the human experience and collective memory.

81st Goftegu Public Debate: Against Oblivion (screening of Fahrenheit 451 by Francois Truffaut)

The literary circles of Afghanistan have been talking about postmodernism with all its contradictions since 10 years ago. There are three groups that endorse, reject or critique it, mostly on a non-serious basis. There has hardly been a serious discussion of its relationship to war, traditions and fundamentalism.

The 79th (Year V) Goftegu public debate, a bridge between the elites and the citizens, of Armanshahr Foundation was held in cooperation with the French Institute Afghanistan and Physicians for Human Rights at the Institute’s amphitheatre on 21 July 2011 under the title of “In search of truth and justice, a study of half a century of crisis in Afghanistan” and to introduce to newly published books: ‘A Review of War Ruins’, and ‘A selection of Simorgh Stories’. The speakers were: Messers Stefan Schmidt (from Physicians for Human Rights), Alireza Rohani (Senior adviser at the AIHRC and Director of Law faculty Ibn Sina University), Rafigh Shaheer (Member of Parliament), Aziz Rafiee (Managing Director of Afghanistan Civil Society Forum.( About 60 human rights activists, students, academics and media representatives were present at the meeting.

Invitation to 78th Goftegu Public Debate: The Role of Citizens in Building a Peace of the Just