Tourism

We haven't gotten many pictures here, which is something we hoped to send home, of course. Pictures of people, of daily life, what it's really like here, compared to the bombs we see on tv.

But, the situation is such that neither of us have felt comfortable pulling out a camera.

And we are not tourists here. Afghanistan doesn't need tourists. It needs development, it needs work. Better to save the vacation time for after the work is done.

And what does tourism bring to a place, I wonder? Money, of course. Development, yes... but often in the form of large hotels where local people do not go. But of course it also brings roads, infrastructure. And it brings photographers.

I have witnessed here a form of picture-taking that made my stomach turn. I watched as two western women snapped their cameras at people they passed without a word - not a hello, not a "how are you", which every Afghan seems to enquire, just a click. This after hearing stories of hardships and distress, not to mention the environment all around them, which is full of the need for development and security.

What bothers me about this the most is the way it subjugates the photographed to the status of a creature in a zoo. The photographer acts as merely a tourist, enjoying the ride, while the photographed walks away to deal with the hardships of poverty and war. Is this the developed world's relationship with the developing?

And then here I come, wanting to "help". What does "help" mean? Sharing my skills? Promoting the need for others to "help"? I feel that it means empowering those less fortunate to take the first steps in their progress towards a better life. But there is a fine line between assistance and modern colonialism. For what does the developed world stand to gain from helping out those in need? Cheap labor? More natural resources? Or a sense of belonging in the human community?

Tourism is a form of relaxation and enjoyment, but to help others is a form of service. Photographs must serve a purpose towards that service, not for the photographed, but for those in need.

If we were here for longer, and I could talk with people here more about their needs, perhaps I could use their photographs to bring them further assistance... perhaps this can be a goal from now on.