CD: FREEDOM: A COLLECTION OF PATRIOTIC SONGS

All songs are in Dari and Pashto and are written and composed by RAWA unless otherwise noted

1. Prologue (2:47) (full text in English)

2. The School Paean (3:36) (Dari)

This has become the RAWA schools' song. Written and composed by RAWA, it extolls the benefits of education as the only way to open our eyes so that we can contribute to society and the future, and deems it our best weapon against ignorance, injustice, and cruelty. This song also rails against what the Jehadi and Taliban did to education, especially girls' education.

3. Mother (3:55) (Dari)

Mother = Afghanistan. This song is a lament about all Afghanistan has gone through and a pledge by the singers that they are willing to sacrifice themselves and their lives for the people and the country.

4. Homeland (4:20) (Dari)

Another tribute song to the land of Afghanistan, grieving for how it ahs been destroyed by the Jehadi and Taliban, and pledging to rebuild the country and the future.

5. Red-hot oven (3:24) (Pashto)

This song is in Pashto rather than Dari and its themes are similar to those of "Homeland"

6. Meena (5:12) (Pashto)

This is a Pashto language tribute to RAWA's founder and leader, Meena, and to keeping the flag of freedom waving high.

7. Freedom (6:24) (Dari)

This song is a Turkish melody, with new words by RAWA extolling freedom and democracy. It was written on the occasion of March 8th (International Women's Day) to commemorate women's oppression and resistance and breaking silence through our work.

8. Compatriot (4:38) (Dari)

This song calls on the Afghan people to rise up against oppression and invaders to resist destruction of the country.

9. Arise! (3:04) (Dari)

This is a Catalan melody by Lluis Llach who was/is a symbol of resistance in Spain under Franco, and who sang this song at Spain's liberation. He is also a RAWA supporter and gladly allowed RAWA to write new lyrics which are also about resisting oppression but note that Afghanistan is still captive even after the Taliban's fall from power.

10. Cruelty (4:00) (Pashaee)

Pashaee is a large but often-neglected ethnic group and language in Afghanistan, mostly from the mountains in eastern Afghanistan where their culture is very rural and agricultural with quite egalitarian gender roles. Quite a few Pashaee people are involved in RAWA and its programs, and many who have been educated in RAWA schools and then returned to their land have created positive changes there. The song is in Pashaee and is about cruelties towards women.

11. Breaking the Silence (3:47) (Dari)

The lyrics of this song are from a poem sent to RAWA years ago by an Afghan supporter in Sweden, again about women's resistance to oppression and about breaking silence. For international women's day celebrations RAWA created a melody for the poem.