Noshi Gilani (14 March 1964 / Bahawalpur, Punjab / Pakistan)

I am trapped in a jungle of voices
In which I cannot spread my wings
Even so, you insist that I take flight
You will not set me free
And are so offended by my point of view
That you stitch my eyelashes closed
You insist that I must explain the weather
Terrorise my feet with echoes of chains
You say that my desire to be free
Is too much for your precious jungle
Yet you set fire to the boat carrying my feelings
Surround this sea of feeling with desert sand
But listen!
Whatever happens ...
Suffocation, torture, desert or jungle
This prisoner breathes

[Translated by Nukhbah Langah and Lavinia Greenlaw]