How much sacrifice do we need?

Swearwords from bleeding mouths,

Bullet holes in heads,

Rotten corpses on unnamed streets,

Faces full of anger and determination,

How much is the cost for reform?

Blood?

More dead bodies?

More bullet holes?

Or

Are smiles and roses good bargains for guns and bullets?

By Permata Hamid

In memory of Soleha

Dog yelps in Sahara sands

under helicopter roars;

wine-drenched dope stained

snapping lash he-whores:

"Women! Work for me!

Knock me up with beggar's bowl

game to take a swing

with your crap sinner's claws."

Not a drop of rain arrived

when her screams hit the sky;

Soleha fell to the ground

a bit of hope poured out

of her busted gut

looking up to heaven

for the shadows of her friends.

By Abidah El Khalieqy

Translation by Geoff Fox