In the 12 months since coming to power in Afghanistan, the Taliban have taken away almost all the freedoms that Afghan women have won since radical Islamists took power two decades ago.
From the moment the group took the capital, Kabul, on August 15 last year, many women feared the impact the new government would have, and would soon discover that many of these fears would come true.
A series of decrees and official guidance notes formally imposed strict restrictions, although the manner in which they were implemented and implemented was irregular with some regional variations.
Below, we look at some key moments in Afghanistan over the past twelve months when women’s rights and liberties have been undermined, sometimes more subtly by official decrees issued by the Taliban leadership, sometimes by one-off changes to some rules.
May 21, 2022: TV presenters need to cover their faces
Nine months after the Taliban took over, the TV presenters were told to continue broadcasting with their faces covered. TV Tolo presenter Yalda Ali posted a video on social media the day after the announcement, saying that all her male colleagues were also wearing face masks in the air to protest the new instructions.
“They are indirectly putting pressure on us not to be on TV,” a journalist living in Kabul, who asked not to be named, told the BBC.
“How can I read the news with my mouth shut? I don’t know what to do now, I have to work, I’m the breadwinner of my family.”
TV Tolo presenter Farida Sial told the BBC: “It’s okay to be a Muslim, to wear a headscarf, to hide your hair, but it’s very difficult for a presenter to shut up and talk like that for two or three hours.”
May 7, 2022: Taliban makes veil mandatory in public
Afghan women are required to wear full-face veils for the first time in decades after a new Taliban decree.
Any woman who refuses to abide by the new rule can see her male guardian imprisoned for three days. The Emir also states that they should only leave their homes “in cases of necessity” and that male relatives will face consequences if these guidelines are not followed.
“It breaks my heart that people on the street want me to cover my face,” Soraya, a small business owner, told the BBC days after the decree was announced.
He said Taliban officials went to women’s clothing stores in Kabul to check what the workers were selling and whether the tailor-made garments were appropriate in length.
“Even the tailor I visited told me to cover my face before speaking to him.”
College student Fereshtah says her classmates obey orders out of fear. “They told me they would wear a full veil because their parents warned them about the consequences of not covering themselves.”
May 3, 2022: New restrictions for female drivers
Taliban officials in Herat are telling driving instructors to stop teaching women and giving them licenses.
The head of the city’s Traffic Management Institute, which regulates driving schools, told AFP news agency the change was announced orally.
The Taliban leadership denied any such decision had been made, but many local restrictions have been gradually introduced over the past year.
March 23, 2022: Girls are exempted from secondary schools
The country’s Ministry of Education made an abrupt turn by excluding girls from secondary schools the day before the start of the new school year.
The Taliban’s central leadership reversed an earlier announcement by the same ministry, saying a “comprehensive” and “Islamic” plan was needed to allow girls to return to school.
The decision sparked protests in Kabul and widespread condemnation abroad.
“My dream was to go to university and become a doctor,” said Mahvash, a 17-year-old student from Takhar state.
Middle school student Rohila told BBC 100 Women that she watches the news every day, hoping to hear news about the reopening of schools in her area. For months, she watched her brothers go to class while staying “behind” at home.
I am very sorry that we have been deprived of this basic right to education just because we are women.”
“My dreams of investing in education now seem futile,” he complained.
February 3, 2022: Female students attend some courses at the university with gender discrimination
Some public universities reopen to male and female students, but the genders are segregated in separate classrooms. In Herat, men and women are instructed to attend classes at different times during the day.
Education officials said they wanted gender-segregated classrooms with mandatory headscarves for female students and a curriculum based on Islamic principles.
“I felt very anxious, the Taliban were guarding the building when we arrived, but they didn’t bother us,” Rana told BBC 100 Women on her first day back at school.
At smaller universities, students share a classroom but maintain physical distance.
“A lot of things looked normal as before. Because our university was small, men and women were in the same class – the men were sitting in the front and we were in the back,” Rana said.
Others looked more skeptical. A university student at a medical school in the town of Mazar-e-Sharif told the BBC that “going back to university is no longer a priority”.
“We’re starving… I need to buy books and clothes, but we don’t have any money.”
January 2022: Taliban officially begins mandatory hijab campaign
The Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Evil is posting posters promoting the use of veils and face coverings in Kabul.
In Dari, Pashto, and Arabic, the campaign reads: “Based on Sharia [o direito islâmico]A Muslim woman should wear a headscarf”.
The posters depict two types of headscarves that are considered acceptable: the first, the black veil that covers the face, and the second, the blue veil that covers the face.
26 December 2021: Women banned from traveling alone
A Taliban directive orders Afghan women wishing to travel long distances by road to provide a male escort to accompany them.
The Ministry of Encouragement of Virtues and Prevention of Evils stated that women traveling more than 72 km must be accompanied by a close male family member, and vehicle owners should refuse to ride women who do not wear a head and face veil.
“I felt so bad,” says Fatima, a midwife living in Kabul.
“I can’t go out alone. What should I do if my son is sick and my husband is unavailable? The Taliban took away our happiness… I lost my independence and happiness.”
September 17, 2021: Female journalists banned from work in Kabul
The International Federation of Journalists said female professionals have been largely banned and 153 media outlets, including newspapers, radio or TV channels and websites, have been shut down since the Taliban takeover.
Anisa Shaheed, who works for TV Tolo and is considered one of Afghanistan’s leading reporters, was one of many journalists who decided to leave the country.
In 2021, she was named Journalist of the Year and the “face of free speech” by Afghanistan’s Free Speech Center network, and was named one of the BBC’s 100 Women of the Year.
“At the height of displacement and despair, I hope to see Afghanistan in peace. And to one day be able to return to my homeland, home and work,” he said.
September 19, 2021: City government employees told to stay home
The Taliban government is telling Kabul city government officials to stay at home.
They are announcing that female employees who cannot only be replaced by men, including design and engineering departments and female public restroom workers, must return to work temporarily.
September 17, 2021: Ministry of Women’s Affairs was dissolved
Just a month after coming to power by force, the new Taliban administration is eliminating the country’s Ministry of Women’s Affairs.
The ministry’s office plaque was replaced by a plaque from the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Evil, a force known to beat women, known for placing so-called morality police on the streets under the group’s last government. They were considered to be people who dressed “modestly” or were seen outside the home without a male guardian.
Employees working at the Women’s Affairs Ministry complex told the BBC they were locked outside the building.
“There will be nothing left for the women,” said one worker.
“We all have responsibilities to our family… We are polite and don’t want to be confined to the house.”
September 8, 2021: Taliban declares women’s sport ‘unnecessary’
Afghan women were banned from organized competitions after the Taliban’s deputy head of the cultural commission, Ahmedullah Wasiq, said women’s sports were “neither appropriate nor necessary”.
“In cricket, they may encounter a situation where their faces and bodies are not covered. Islam does not allow women to be seen like that,” Wasiq told an Australian broadcaster.
Professional women’s cricket was on the verge of a breakthrough in Afghanistan when Kabul was taken over. Now many athletes are abroad but promise to continue the sport.
Sahar played for a local football team for three years. But when the Taliban took control of the country, she went into hiding with her family before being taken to another country.
“My football family, friends and teachers were really big,” he told BBC 100 Women.
“I had to stop playing and I was so upset. I cried when I looked at my clothes, my boots and my ball.”
“I have a lot of hopes and dreams for the future… I want to be successful so that girls don’t say they can’t play football.”
September 7, 2021: Taliban announces an all-male cabinet
The Taliban declared an all-male cabinet made up only of members from their own ranks.
The previous government had four female ministers and two female governors were serving in parts of Afghanistan.
September 5, 2021: Taliban split women’s rights protest
Taliban officials dissolved the latest demonstration that brought together dozens of women demanding the right to work in Kabul.
Group members who seized power also used tear gas and pepper spray to control women’s protests in the capital and Herat.
Activist Razia Barakzai participated in some of the first women’s rights protests in Kabul.
“I felt like I had to do something and didn’t wait for others to take action. Despite all the risks, I decided to demonstrate,” he said.
“We were attacked around the palace gate on the first day we went out. However, we were able to continue demonstrating because the eyes of the media were on us.”
“I hope one day we can see an Afghanistan that is the dream of these free-spirited women seeking justice,” Razia says.
*The names mentioned throughout the article have been changed to protect the identity of the interviewees.
source: Noticias
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