Afghanistan: Women's Rights Under Taliban Rule

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Last month was a historic and tragic time in the long, battle weary past of Afghanistan. The ones suffering the most will be the Afghani women, who have experienced periods of freedom, education and almost equal status in society. Under Taliban rule, their lives will take a 180 degrees into the past with bans on music, dancing, going to school, forced marriage and sexual slavery. It is so bad that some women would rather die than to be wed to a Taliban fighter! In this post, we will explore what life will be like for women under the new Taliban regime, and why they would rather commit suicide than to live that sad, small and secluded life devoid of freedoms and education. 

Female Afghani soldiers

WOMEN'S RIGHTS TAKEN AWAY

On September 27, 1996 the Taliban seized control of Kabul, and previously Herat in 1994. They overtook the then current Afghanistan government and set up their own totalitarian dictatorship that ruled with an iron fist. They set up a gender apartheid that took away the rights of women to the point that even basic human rights were removed. 

Women were basically put on house arrest. They had no opportunities for work, education, visibility or even access to healthcare. There was even rules on women leaving their homes only accompanied by a close male relative!

Some of the Taliban rules that were strictly imposed on women were:

  • Women were forbidden to be in paid employment
  • Schools for girls were closed down and women were expelled from the university 
  • Women were forced to wear a burka (chadari), a long veil like garment that covers the whole body and only has a small, mesh covered slit for the eyes
  • Women and girls were prohibited to be examined by a male doctor, and at the same time women were not allowed to work as doctors or nurses
If a woman would go against a Taliban decree, she would be subjected to heinous punishments. It was common to be publicly flogged, beaten, or even killed. After international outcry, the Taliban made some slight ''progressive'' changes. They allowed women to work as doctors and nurses, but the wards were segregated in the hospitals. 

Afghani women wearing burkas

A few brave women also ran secret home schools for girls in Kabul, and some other cities. However, these women were putting themselves in the face of danger by doing this. They risked death! 

WHO IS THE TALIBAN?

We will cover a more in-depth look at the Taliban regime in a later post. For now, we can take a brief note of their history. 

The Taliban were originally comprised of young men who studied the teachings of Islam. They were called mujahideen (Soldiers of God.) At first, their intent was good. They defended small villages against pillaging so called ''war lords''. However in 1980s, during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, the CIA, in a secret operation based in Pakistan, funded these insurgent militia forces with billions of American dollars. In 1989, there was a civil war in between these different faction of the mujahideen, and the Taliban were the ones that emerged on top in 1994. 

The Taliban is mostly made up of  people who have Afghani descent but have not really lived in Afghanistan. They have grown up in refugee camps and have been brainwashed in ultra-conservative, extremist religious bases, called madrassas, in Pakistan. 

Only a few countries formally recognised the Taliban as an official government. These were Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates. Other international governing bodies condemned the Taliban and did not officially approved of them as a ruling faction in Afghanistan. 

One of the main sources of income for the Taliban was illegal opium trade. And another was an oil and gas pipeline that goes from the Caspian Sea region through Afghanistan to a port in Pakistan. 

These days, the new Taliban regime insists that they will bring drug trade to a close and get rid of the opium fields. Considering that this is major source of income, producing up to 39% of the world opium trade, it's highly unbelievable. 

THE WAR ON TERROR AND CURRENT TIMES

In 2001, after the horrible events of 9/11, the US sent troops to Afghanistan and started the Afghanistan War. They effectively beat the Taliban and forced then to retreat. This caused a catalyst for change and women and girls had their rights back again. You could see women walking in the street without wearing burkas or accompanied by a male. 

Unbelievable! Fashion in Kabul in 1969

Women returned back to work, they went to university and schools for girls opened up again. 

Now, the 20 year long war on terror has come to an end and US has started to pull out all troops and personnel, along with all the allied countries. On August 15, the Taliban took over Kabul and this led to the collapse of the current Taliban government. The President, Ashraf Ghani, abandoned post and fled the country to UAE. He said he did this to preserve his own life. 

With the collapse of the government, the Afghanis fell in a deep state of despair as the Taliban once more took control and emerged as victors. The scenes from Kabul Airport that has filled our news screens and media for the past few weeks shows a sad picture of how desperately people have been trying to flee. 

Chaos at Kabul Airport 

Almost immediately, after the Taliban swept in power, women scrambled home from their jobs and educational places and were basically under house arrest. The shelves were emptied of burkas, and a dark cloud fell over the country as women and girls fear that the freedom they have enjoyed for the past 20 years will be once more snatched away.

THE AGONIZING WAIT

Now, the women of Afghanistan are playing an excruciating game because they are waiting to see what will happen under this current Taliban rule. The Taliban regime has promised that they will not go back to the restrictions that were put in place in the old days. 

At the beginning of August, in the first news conference given by the Taliban since they took control of Kabul, the official spokesperson, Zabiullah Mujahid, tried to reassure the women that their rights would be respected. "Our sisters, our men have the same rights... They are going to work with us, shoulder to shoulder."

Zabiullah Mujahid

A lot of women, especially the ones that held high power positions such as judges, police officers, soldiers or government officials, are showing their feelings by trying to flee the country any way they can. The majority do not trust what the Taliban are saying, even though they are on a charm offensive to show that they have turned politicians overnight.

Already, the Taliban have informed that women could not hold senior positions in the new government. As well, that only female nurses and teachers are allowed to continue working, and all other professions should stay home. 

PROTESTING ACTION

A lot of brave Afghani women are taking a silent stand against the Taliban regime by continuing to go to work, or going out without an escort. They are scared and unsure what could happen to them, but they are actively taking a stand against being oppressed again. 

In the beginning of this month, there was even organised mass protests in Herat, Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif. Taliban security reacted violently and were ferociously beating the women attending these protests. 


While a fearful time, this is also the best opportunity for Afghani women to stand up for themselves as now all international eyes are focused on how Afghanistan is run under the new regime. The Taliban need money, international recognition and maybe leveraging women's rights for that may be the key. 

CONCLUSION

There is no doubt that Afghanistan is facing one of the greatest humanitarian tragedies we have experienced in modern history. The next few weeks and months will determine the fate of millions of people who have been displaced, scared and are unsure of what to expect tomorrow. The world, undoubtedly, will keep an eagle eye on the Taliban and react in turn.

In my opinion, as well, the Taliban needs to remember that most of the Afghanistan population is younger and they have grown up in the freedom of being able to work, study and build a life for themselves. Especially the young women who have tried very hard to study and have a good career will not accept that all they have worked for has gone to waste in a puff of smoke. 


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