The New Frontier

CULTURAL STEREOTYPES ARE BEING CHALLENGED BY MEN AND WOMEN IN ASIA – FROM EAST TO WEST

a viral video clip reminiscent of a scene from Tarantino’s Kill Bill, 20-yearold wushu teacher Sima Azimi, sporting a striking black and yellow satin karategi, leads her class of women trainees in their wushu workout on a snow-splattered hilltop outside Kabul in Afghanistan.

Donning pink uniforms – designed by a local tailor – with white hijabs, these young Hazara women, a mostly Shia group who speak Dari, are giving a roundhouse kick to gender stereotypes by practising this ancient form of kung fu, developed by the flying monks of the Shaolin Temple in northern China. This full-contact sport combines kick-boxing and sword fighting – with sabres and daggers.

Azimi is Afghanistan’s first woman trainer in wushu, which she learnt while living as a refugee in Iran. She has earned several medals in competitions, and aspires for her students to do the same: “My ambition is to see my students take part in international matches and win medals for their country,” she told the BBC. Azimi believes that girls can compete on an equal footing with boys.

But while martial arts have gained immense popularity in Afghanistan, women are still restricted from learning and practising them. “Some of my students’ families had problems accepting their girls studying wushu,” she says. “But I went to their homes and talked to their parents.”

“There are people who might oppose women improving themselves. But I love to fight against such stupidity and train in wushu,” she challenges.

The Wushu Warriors

group of South Korean soldiers in the army’s 25th Division regularly swap their army boots for ballet shoes in order to unwind from their duty patrolling the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) between North and South Korea.

The men don grey shorts, T-shirts and black ballet pumps, practising their plies and tendus – in order to relieve stress.

Every week, the 15 men gather for their ballet lesson, instructed by a ballet teacher from the Korean National Ballet company.

While most of the men had never danced before joining the programme, the initiative has been well supported, and has even produced a performance of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake. Lieutenant Colonel Heo Tae-sun supports the programme, saying that in addition to allowing the men to relax, the regular dance training improves their strength and discipline: “Ballet requires a great amount of physical strength and is very good for strengthening muscle, increasing flexibility, and correcting posture,” he told Reuters.

In an interview with the news agency, Kim Joo-hyeok, a 23-yearold sergeant, says that ballet has allowed him to de-stress in between guarding the border. “There’s a lot of tension here since we live in the unit on the front line, which makes me feel insecure at times,” he says. “But through ballet, I am able to stay calm and find balance as well as build friendships with my fellow soldiers.” Kim says he intends to continue with his ballet lessons when he is discharged from the army. ag

Danc ing in the DMZ