Afghan Women Under the Veil of Fear

Oppression, marginalization, and educational deficit – it is not simply a matter of mere prejudice, but the violation of basic human rights, of which Afghan women are being deprived. Today, many often envision Afghanistan as a suppresser of women’s rights where the mothers of the nation are forced to live as “voiceless shadows”. But it hasn’t always been this way!

“My aunts went to University in Kabul, but the Soviet invasion changed everything, “ said Horia Mosadiq, an Afghan human rights activist.

In December 1979, The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan to support its communist government and secure its geopolitical interests in the region during the Cold War, taking over major cities of the country. With the Soviet-Afghan war ceasing in 1989 and the brutal massacre of over 3 million Afghan citizens taking place, Afghanistan, the once-thriving country, was left in ruins. It crippled the social, economic, and political aspects of the country, and ultimately paved the way for the emergence of al-Qaeda and the rise of the Afghan Taliban regime.

But perhaps the most afflicted were the Afghan women who were not only deprived of their socio-political rights, but of their voice, their freedom, and their access to education!

Afghanistan, with a score of 3.448, according to the 2024 Global Peace Index (GPI) is among the world’s most hazardous nations for both residents and tourists. Under the Taliban’s extremist interpretation of Sharia Law, it is now impermissible for a woman to leave her house without the presence of a male chaperone, pursue speech or political interest, access healthcare delivered by men, and wear clothes that are perceived as ‘revealing’ or ‘scanty’.

Afghan’s Economic Conundrums and Taliban

The burqa, once holding immense religious significance for Afghan women, has become a symbol of their invisible existence. With oppression lurking in its every corner, Afghanistan no longer has the right to consider itself a free or independent nation. For instance, a woman in Kabul, had the end of her thumb cut off due to wearing nail varnish. Why are the very women of the nation who have prayed for its success, longed for its freedom, and helped sustain it, now subject to such inhumane oppression that they are denied basic human rights? Why is their gender taken into consideration when providing them facilities? Isn’t this a far greater concern than those we have encountered before?

With the Taliban banning girls’ secondary education, nearly 75% of the women in Afghanistan are forced to leave school by the young age of 11. Hence, enrolment rates have significantly dropped, child marriages have increased and domestic violence is experienced by 9 in every 10 women.

“First, we thought the ban on us going back to the universities would be in place for only a few days, a few weeks, or mostly a couple of months, but now it has been over a thousand days, and this makes me feel I would never be able to go back to studies,” Nafisa Saeedi told FairPlanet.

Consequently, under the Taliban regime, women’s employment rates have drastically dropped. In 2022, female employment was estimated to be roughly 25% lower than in 2021, before the crisis. They are banned from working in the government sector, teaching the opposite gender and judiciary, largely confining them to domestic roles. Nooria Safi, the director of Women’s Capacity Building and Development and Board Member of the Afghan’s Women Network, reported that she had faced innumerable challenges ranging from harsh beatings to death threats due to her role as an activist. Why suppress women when their diverse abilities can enhance the workforce? Why continue marginalizing them for something that is beyond their control?

Moreover, considering that teenage Afghan women have to carry the burden of an entire household, polygamist husbands, and illiteracy, the rates of psychological trauma, anxiety, and distress have greatly risen. Life has become a nightmare of despair for many as the Taliban have normalized forced displacement, abduction, and arbitrary detention, determined to persevere with their poorly interpreted version of Sharia Law, which is far different from the fundamental principles of Islam.

With every act of oppression they encounter, Afghan women yearn for a liberal Afgha­­­­­nistan and the education that many often neglect today. In their pursuit of a brighter future, notable Afghan women have advocated for their rights, namely, Jamila Afghani, Mary Akrami, Shukria Asil, and the list goes on. Recent accounts have shown Afghan women singing across social media platforms to protest the latest violation of their rights, which would have been a crime in their homeland. Additionally, for the past two decades, Women for Afghan Women has worked to protect the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan. So why choose silence when we can speak up for a better life for these women? Why remain silent when we have the power to end generational marginalization?