AFGHAN STUDENT ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON

Women's Rights in Afghanistan

By: Gina Aaf

Afghanistan has been in the headlines of newspapers around the world since the invasion of the Soviet Union, in 1979. Since and before that time, the country has gone through many phases in its social, political, and economic developments. But it is clear that the continued civil war of approximately twenty years has taken a toll on the lives of Afghans in the country and the refugees outside. Recently the news has centered on the women of Afghanistan and the injustice that they have suffered. According to the media, it seems that this injustice has just began. Since, prior to the take-over of the Talibans, all the western media was interested in was the struggle of the people against the Soviet-backed government and the heroic Mujahedeen, mainly men. To understand the depth of the problems surrounding Afghans women today, one must examine the history and the culture that has reinforced this form of subjugation. The media also ignores what women are doing to fight back, for it is much easier to show them as victims. An observation of the women’s movements in and around Afghanistan will show that even though limited, Afghan women are demanding their rights, as part of a society which hopes to recover from a devastating history.

Today more and more it is the women who have to work to support their families as the men are killed during the war or rendered incapable of work. This is difficult in a culture that has resisted the advancement of women in education and fields that involve critical decision making. These are generalizations that give an idea of what the situation in Afghanistan is for women. Not all of the population thinks this way. Even the assumption that it is the religion that shapes this way of life is false. The religious discussion is too complicated to delve into here, but it is safe to assume that while the religion affects the culture, it is primarily the historical culture of Afghanistan that explains the role of women. As culture is bound to change, there has been many cries for equality, mainly scholars and political activists. There are those who do not adhere to this doctrine and view women equal and essential to the growth of a society. this is especially the case with those who supported the modernization of Afghanistan. Development and modernization was on the minds of many of the Afghan leaders in the twentieth century. Before the invasion, the country’s economy was based on agriculture and the majority of the farmers were self-subsistent. The majority of the population lived in villages and in extended families. Both women and men worked in the fields and enjoyed the fruits of their labor with the others, in the community.

For many Afghan women, things could not be worse than the current way of life. Those in Afghanistan suffer under the rule of the Taliban and those outside are subjected to the harshest conditions to survive. Widows, or those women whose husbands are unable to make a living, are feeling the brunt of the cruelties imposed upon them by their situation.

The acting education minister of the Taliban explained, at a religious meeting with the public, " that a woman is like a ‘rose, you water it and keep it at home for yourself to look at and smell. It is not supposed to be taken out of the house to be smelled’"¹, they do not claim to be anti-feminist.

Evidence points to the fact that women’s schools and hospitals were closed completely. A new hospital has opened with no running water, electricity, or heating system. Women were laid off from all jobs, including those at a badly needed limb factory, where men and women worked to make limbs for mine victims. Women are not allowed to exit their homes without the accompaniment of a man, and this is impossible for the widows or those whose husbands are disabled. There is no confirmation of pay received from the Taliban for the compensation of the lost income. Women are physically abused by the Taliban for not abiding with the rules, and their children suffer with the mothers confined to home stay. Rape and murder still occur in the areas controlled by the Taliban, despite reports of complete safety since the Taliban takeover.

For the majority of Afghan refugees, in addition to the discrimination of Iranians and Pakistanis, the Afghans have to deal with the danger they have created themselves. The ethnic fighting and factionalism does not stop at the borders of Afghanistan. Women in refugee camps are also confined in their homes and fear for their lives daily. The ideas that gave birth to the Taliban movement, more than two years ago were constructed in and are alive in the refugee camps. there are very few jobs, especially for women; and those who have lost their families have also lost their support network. Women activists who try to change the situation are often targets of isolation, harassment, torture, and even murder. As the men find their identity and place as the fighters of freedom, the women, isolated by the cruelties of the war, are struggling to make sense of the situation.

Women Organizers and Organizations:

Through all the atrocities that has befallen Afghan women, they have been repeatedly portrayed as victims. But it must be made clear that, despite all the dangers, they do fight back. Their organizations are often threatened and there are many that can not withstand the pressure of the suppression that is forced upon them. But those that fight on are strong and provide a light of hope.

The Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA) are a non-violent group of women that have been active for over a decade. They build hospitals and schools in Pakistan. they fight to expose their conditions to the world. Another group with similar activities is the Afghan Women’s Council (AWC). It is currently headed by Fatan Gilani. They provide HealthCare and education for women. they were one of the groups active in fighting for the banning of land mines.

There are other organizations and women who are acting against their suppression. Tajwar Kakar started by organizing women to resist the invasion of the Soviets. In Peshawar, she opened Lycee Malalai, a secondary school for girls, and is an outspoken fighter for women’s rights but cautions the Afghans "must move within Afghan culture and not borrow too much from the West. The women have enough to inspire them in their own culture."² Her references are to the many women that started the revolution against Soviets and that are dead, defending their country and freedom.

It is hard to know about movements inside the country, since there is virtually no form of communication with the civilians inside. But most of the movements that are alive today and have found an access to the media were formed in Afghanistan, most of them prior to the Soviet invasion. The uprising against the invasion was primarily a women’s movement in the urban areas and a religious one in the rural. Women also played a major role in the support of the Mujahedeen and their struggle.

In the future, it will be interesting to see how Afghan women will fare, since currently they are under a government that puts them as objects to be admired at home and someone who has no place in greater society. Today the international society is taking a closer look at the status of women in Afghanistan, and the next movement to emancipate these women may look vastly different.

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1. Bid

2. Lorch, Donatella, "The Next Aghan War." Ms. April 1989. Pg. 84.

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Afghan Students Association of University of Washington

Created by: Najeeb U. Qasimi

June 10th, 1998 11:55:00 AM

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