The War on Women: Afghanistan Under the Taliban
Image: Sara Perria (Financial Times)
Published July 6, 2023
By Nikki Sadat
On August 15, 2021, Kabul fell to the Taliban — and with it, the devastating elimination of women’s liberties began. The new Taliban regime initially promised to honor human rights obligations under Sharia Law. However, they swiftly implemented oppressive measures that stripped women of their rights.
These include a strict hijab dress code and mandatory face coverings in public. Women in Afghanistan are now banned from entering parks, fairs, gyms, and communal bathhouses – pressured to stay home. They are prohibited from being in public without a male chaperone, called a mahram, which generates an absolute reliance on male relatives. Women are also excluded from careers in public office, the judiciary, international aid organizations, and NGOs – including the UN office in Afghanistan. Furthermore, the support network for women who experienced gender-based violence has been dismantled and perpetrators have been released from prison. Women have lost mobility, the right to bodily autonomy, and agency.
Most perilously, the Taliban has eliminated women’s right to education. In March 2022, the Taliban rescinded their initial promise to reopen girls’ secondary schools. Later in December 2022, the Taliban’s Ministry of Higher Education declared that women would be excluded from universities. The ban on womens’ and girls’ education beyond primary school is still in place. The Taliban’s severe erosion of liberties serves as a reminder: women’s and girls’ rights can be taken away at an alarming speed.
As Afghan journalist and women’s rights activist Mahbooba Seraj told the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, “We are erased. Today the human rights in Afghanistan does not exist. Women of Afghanistan do not exist for the Taliban.” The Taliban has effectively waged a war on women.
However, many Afghan women have launched a subtle counterattack: secret schools to continue girls’ education. Underground schools can now be found in Kabul and other Afghan cities – some estimates reaching hundreds. Both The New York Times and Washington Post journalists have made visits to these schools and reported on their effectiveness and strength. Basements, homes, living rooms, and bedrooms have been transformed into spaces to continue educating girls. One woman, 25-year-old Hamida, revealed to the New York Times that at an underground school in Bamiyan teachers pooled money together to buy whiteboards and pens and every family contributes whatever they can. Many of these schools are also supported by SRAK, an Afghanistan-based organization. Other secret schools for girls exist due to the willpower of former teachers in rural Afghan communities.
Women in Afghanistan have met the Taliban’s complete elimination of liberties with defiance. Even now through the withdrawal of international aid, Afghan women-led resistance in the form of secret schools continues to educate girls. These efforts of fierce feminism prevent the Taliban’s complete erasure of women. They resist.
However, defying these human rights violations requires the participation of the international community. Afghan women should not do it alone. Los-Angeles based nonprofit, Miry’s List, is just one example of how local initiatives make a real impact. Their mission is to provide direct aid and intense support for resettling refugee families in the first 12-18 months of relocation. Through their online platform, Miry's List connects families with specific needs, ensuring that assistance reaches those who need it most. They also offer educational and employment support and connect refugees with opportunities for language learning, skill development, and job placements. Another particularly unique program, their New Arrival Supper Club, empowers and employs female-refugee chefs by hosting pop-up dinners. Miry’s List has distributed over $250,000 worth of earnings to these women. The Pacific Council is also proud to have partnered with the New Arrival Supper Club for a wonderful event to learn from resettling neighbors over the universal language of food. Miry’s List is a support system for newly resettled refugee families, fostering human connection and community in Los Angeles.
Evacuate Our Allies (EOA) and its Operation Center (Ops Center) is another actor that disrupts human rights violations in Afghanistan. Born at the Pacific Council on International Policy in August 2021, the EOA Ops Center now operates under Human Rights First. During the U.S.’ chaotic attempt to evacuate Afghanistan, the Ops Center provided necessary communication through a 24/7 hotline number, an email inbox, and Whatsapp. The broader EOA coalition, founded in May 2021, consists of human rights, religious, and refugee organizations collaborating closely with veterans and frontline civilians. EOA is a connection center – an example of how civil society emerges to supplement faults in government structures. They still advocate for the evacuation of all Afghans eligible for the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program to U.S. soil. Additionally, they urge the Administration to pass the Afghan Adjustment Act, which would create a pathway to permanent legal status for Afghans resettled in the United States. Local networks support the devastating situation in Afghanistan, pursuing unique methods of resistance.
The Taliban has launched a devastating war on women, committing gender persecution on all fronts of life. In the wake of this indescribably violent attack on women’s rights, local efforts and resistance do make a difference. They are a defiant defense. From underground schools in Kabul to refugee aid in Los Angeles, these efforts represent heartwarming and fierce initiatives to support the women of Afghanistan. Local operations contribute to global support of human rights and equality. They matter for Afghan women.
Volunteer or donate to join Miry’s List in empowering newly resettled refugee families in Los Angeles.
To learn more about the organizations above, visit Human Rights First and SRAK.
______________________________
Nikki Sadat will graduate from Middlebury College this February with a major in International and Global Studies and a minor in Political Science. She can speak Spanish, Farsi, and is currently learning Italian! As a Pacific Council Fellow this summer, Nikki is writing an editorial series that examines women's rights and roles in international conflict — including in Afghanistan, Iran, and California's Indigenous communities.
References:
The New Afghanistan, Through The Eyes of Three Women
Timeline: Taliban crackdown on Afghan women’s education, rights
‘War on women’: Taliban curbs on Afghan females a ‘crime’
The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Pacific Council.
