What does the future look like for Afghan women?
This weekend the Afghanistan capital, Kabul, came under the feared control of the Taliban almost two decades after they were driven out by US troops. Despite US analysts predicting that the takeover would occur across the next few months, their almost immediate gain of control sparked immense international uproar. Although Afghan security forces were well prepared to defend themselves against the Taliban militants, they were quick to back down after the Taliban had begun to take control following the withdrawal of US troops as early as the 6th of July. Globally, people have voiced their opinions on the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan and many have been appalled by the horrific scenes being shown in the media. However, it is easy to argue that the women of Afghanistan fear the worst right now, after two decades of fighting for their rights, they are now in constant fear over where their destiny lies.
Who are the Taliban?
Photograph: Wali Sabawoon/Nur Photo/Getty Images
Emerging after the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan in the early 1990s, the predominantly Pashtun movement was made up of former Afghan fighters previously known as the Mujahideen. They are believed to have first started in religious seminaries in Northern Pakistan and had the collective aim of instating an extremist version of the Sharia law whilst removing any foreign influence in Afghanistan. Nearing the end of the decade, it was estimated that they had control over more than 90% of Afghanistan.
Following their takeover of Kabul in 1996, the group inserted many harsh rules which limited the freedom of women specifically. This included the removal of their rights to have an education, travel alone, and have the choice to wear head-to-toe coverings amongst many other things. TV, music, and non-Islamic holidays were also banned under their rule.
This significantly changed after 9/11 where over 2,700 were killed in an attack led by the al Qaeda leader, Osama bin Laden. After the attack, it was suspected that the Taliban were sheltering the al Qaeda forces in Afghanistan, which led to a US-led international offensive being launched on the country. This resulted in the ousting of the Taliban from power and the installation of an Afghan government. Even after the troops had relinquished the Taliban’s control, they still performed attacks on people in the country, especially targeting women of importance.
In 2020, the Taliban and the Trump administration signed a peace deal after many years of negotiations. The deal included the removal of US troops as well as the release of some Taliban prisoners. It was also ensured that they would prevent any group or individual from using Afghanistan to threaten other countries around the world. Biden however, did not have to follow the same deal made by Trump in 2020. The deal had an escape clause mentioning that the US could withdraw from the deal if peace talks between the countries failed- which they did. Knowing this, Biden decided to stay committed to the deal, but delay the complete withdrawal of troops from May to September. Advisors in the Pentagon claimed that renegotiating was a valid option, but Biden said in a televised address that “The choice I had to make, as your president, was to either follow through on that agreement or be prepared to go back to fighting the Taliban in the middle of the spring fighting season”.
Subsequently, Biden’s decisions have been heavily criticized with many claiming that he blindly abandoned the women of Afghanistan, and put them in severe danger to avoid sending more of his troops.
What is the history of Afghan women?
Photograph: Wikimedia Commons
In Afghanistan, it could be argued that women’s rights were developing at the same pace as many other Western countries until major unrest in the country saw their rights slowly being taken away. Prior to the 1970s, women had a right to vote in 1919, almost the same time as those in the UK, and gender segregation had been removed in the ’50s. The Taliban rule in the 1990s effectively removed any progress which had been made for women by subjecting them to an extremist version of the Sharia Law. This involved policies such as their removal from education and the workplace, showing themselves in public without being completely covered, going out without a male chaperone, and their rights to access healthcare administered by a man. When the US troops intervened it was Kofi Annan who notably said that “There cannot be true peace and recovery in Afghanistan without the restoration of the rights of women”
Over the past two decades, there has been major progress in the fight for women’s rights in the country. Women now have the right to have an education, wear a burqa only if they choose to, and have the freedom to move without having to be watched over. In 2003, the government ratified the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, which requires states to incorporate gender equality into their laws. Success also followed in 2004 when the Afghan Constitution stated that women and men are viewed as equals in the eyes of the law, and then again in 2009 when a law was established to protect women against violence and forced or under-aged marriages.
This has led to women having an important and stable position in the country for the first time in two decades. It is estimated that a record number of 65% of females are participating in education, as well as there being 27% of the seats in Afghanistan’s parliament reserved for women, and them making up 22% of the workforce. Even though it had been previously unheard of for women to be in political positions, the country now has over 200 female judges and 400 females in law enforcement. However, this progress is now under severe threat.
What does the Taliban takeover mean for the women and girls in Afghanistan?
Photograph: Wakil Kohsar/AFP/Getty Images
Despite Taliban officials promising to grant women’s rights, their words have been met with great skepticism by not only the women in Afghanistan but across the world. The majority of the population has never experienced life under Taliban rule and many fear that they now will. Signs of their repressive regime have already been witnessed in the country as women have been forced out of their jobs, removed from education, and many will now be forced to wear the burqa without choice.
Pakistani activist Malala has voiced her worries on Twitter saying "We watch in complete shock as Taliban takes control of Afghanistan. I am deeply worried about women, minorities, and human rights advocates. Global, regional and local powers must call for an immediate ceasefire, provide urgent humanitarian aid and protect refugees and civilians." Her words carry truth for the women of Afghanistan as they now fear for not only their safety, but their livelihoods which many have worked so hard for.
The same fears were also shared by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday as she explained that “We are deeply concerned about reports regarding the Taliban’s brutal treatment of all Afghans, especially women and girls," and that "The U.S., the international community and the Afghan government must do everything we can to protect women and girls from inhumane treatment by the Taliban.”
However, many believe that the women of Afghanistan have been abandoned by the US and the other countries that followed their withdrawal. They now worry that their future is in question as long as they are under Taliban rule.
