Edgar Comeros, Afghanistan project manager for the World Council of Credit Unions, recently shared this brief story of his travels in that country where a fledgling credit union movement is seeking to take root.
I am back in Afghanistan. Our trip from Kabul was very eventful. First, we had to turn back to Kabul after a two-hour drive. There were demonstrations, and things became very violent. They burned tires and an old bus on the highway, preventing traffic. Some demonstrators came to us and angrily asked if we were foreigners-particularly, Danish nationals. When we said we were Filipinos, we were directed to go back our way. We went to Kabul and left again early morning the following day.
After traveling for five hours, another demonstration blocked the highway, stopping traffic for around five hours more. Instead of driving back to Kabul, we stopped in a secure area and waited for the demonstrators to disperse.
On Monday in Mazar, the demonstrators were infiltrated by a suicide bomber. After the governor's speech, someone pretending to be a foreign journalist insisted on interviewing him. When he was granted an audience, he was frisked, and they found bombs on his body. They are now searching for his two other companions.
For more information on credit unions in Afghanistan and credit union projects in other parts of the world, visit the World Council at www.woccu.org.
