Our Story
The story of Bakhtar Institute started with an introductory get-together of three friends in a Café in Berlin, sharing their backgrounds, interests, and opinions with each other. The timing was important; it was just a few weeks after the fall of Afghanistan under the control of the Taliban in August 2021. Thus, out of many topics that the friends discussed, and in spite of having different individual backgrounds, it was evident that Afghanistan and the Afghan diaspora in Germany were the two important issues of common interest. Similarly, all the three had the same feeling that a professional research organization owned by people with Afghanistan backgrounds and focusing on research, education, and advocacy issues of Afghanistan and the Afghan diaspora abroad, particularly those living in Germany was highly needed. So, what was supposed to be an introductory chat between three individuals, ended with the decision of founding an organization, which is now the Bakhtar Institute.
Over the next weeks and months, and as the discussions and meetings continued, the efforts to bring in other individuals with the same interests and concerns were intensified. Some welcomed the idea but choose not to join; some humbly excused themselves due to having other priorities; and some others welcomed the invitation and, believing it was something they too were thinking of it for a long time, joined the group with pleasure. After almost 4 months since the first meeting, the number of group members reached the legal minimum of 7. Then, while the process of bringing in more people was given a pause, the work and, sometimes hot, discussions on the Charter of the organization intensified; opinions over the objectives and activities of the organization were shared; suggestions and arguments over the name and the logo were made; different standpoints were heard and respected; and at the end, each and every decision was made in a democratic way.
With the finalization of Institute’s Charter, the final decision to establish the organization was taken during the founding members’ meeting on the 28 January 2022. Consequently the registration and legalization of the Institue began; and with the final decision of Berlin-Charlottenburg District Court (Amtsgericht Charlottenburg-Berlin ) on 11 July 2022 the organization was registered on the Register of Associations (Vereinsregister) with the registration number VR 39723 B.
This is the very brief story of how Bakhtar Institute emerged. But this is just the beginning; it is an evolving story; the story of Institute’s development is yet to come.
