Increased Hostility Towards Women's Rights Activists In Afghanistan
Women gather to demand their rights under Taliban rule during a protest in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sept. 3. Photo: Wali Sabawoon/Associated Press
Women’s rights in Afghanistan are in a state of deterioration, amplified by tensions from the Taliban who regained control of the state in August 2021. Throughout November, four prominent women’s rights activists were arbitrarily detained by the Taliban. Hundreds of women’s rights activists, fighting for the right to allow girls to receive an education, are now in the Taliban’s custody.
From September to November 2023, the Taliban arbitrarily arrested and detained four prominent women human rights defenders: Parisa Azada, Neda Parwani, Zholia Parsi, and Manizha Seddiqi. Amnesty International issued a statement on December 7, urging the Taliban to stop punishing women protestors. According to Amnesty International, none of these women had access to regular family visits or lawyers and are at risk of ill-treatment and torture. Neda and Zholia’s family members have also been arrested.
Since August 2021, women have been protesting for “bread, work, freedom”, a recurring phrase of resistance. The Taliban responded to these protests with torture, detention, and violence. Many of the women detained are protestors and others linked to the running of underground schools. The Taliban also terrorized the families of female protestors in an attempt to silence civilian backlash.
A small group of Afghan women protested near the presidential palace in Kabul on September 3rd, demanding the protection of equal rights for men and women from the Taliban. Photo: Wali Sabawoon/AP
Malala Yousafzai, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, shared a speech on December 5 encouraging individuals to make gender apartheid a crime against humanity. Yousafzai’s speech took place in Johannesburg, on the 10th anniversary of Nelson Mandela’s death, condemning Taliban militants for making “girlhood illegal”. Since United States-led troops pulled out of Afghanistan in August 2021, Taliban rulers have banned girls from pursuing a high school education.
The vulnerability of women’s rights has further been exacerbated by the 4.6 magnitude earthquake that occurred in Afghanistan on December 8th. The European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations have intervened to allocate €156.5 million in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan. Funds provided by the EU in 2023 aim to provide critical relief assistance by allocating resources including emergency food assistance, healthcare and nutrition, education, and access to clean water and sanitation facilities. The World Food Programme estimates that 25% of pregnant and breastfeeding women will require life-saving nutrition support in the next 12 months.
The explicit violations of international human rights laws against women in Afghanistan are of grave concern. Between July 2022 and July 2023, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAM) reported that half of the human rights violations in Taliban prisons involved torture or other cruel, inhumane, and degrading treatment.
Once women are detained, they disappear for long periods of time, and are found to be in a physically and emotionally fragile state upon their return. Some women were arrested with their young children, subjected to abusive conditions and at times torture. Human Rights Watch reports numerous cases of detained women activists every year.
As a response to the arrests and detainment, activists in Afghanistan took to home protests. Yet, civilians engaging in home protests against the government also face arrest. Activists claim that they feel suffocated, unable to voice their opinions to fight against the oppression that women are subjected to. UN Women highlighted the fact that women have been banned from going to parks, gyms, and public bathing houses. They have been stopped from pursuing education beyond the sixth grade, and are silenced from speaking out about their adversities.