The eradication of support systems has surged violence against women under the Taliban
For years, various forms of violence have plagued Afghan women. Victims of violence naturally demand support, reparation, and justice. Women had access to justice in the past when institutions existed to address their grievances. However, with the return of the Taliban, there is no institution or legal support to defend them.
In Afghanistan’s traditional society, women rarely know their legal rights. Sometimes, due to patriarchal mores, they view violence as men’s right. As a result, most women endure mistreatment until they are utterly desperate. Violence against girls from birth is common in traditional Afghan families, with men asserting their masculinity and dominance through violence.
The fight against these harmful traditions has been ongoing in Afghanistan for at least a century. Social reforms during the reign of Amanullah Khan and until Zahir Shah raised awareness among certain segments of society about the requirements of modern life. This led to some improvement in family relations and women’s rights among specific social classes. The PDPA regime introduced social reforms to lift restrictions on women, which were deemed excessive by society and contributed to the rise of extreme religious and traditional reactions that have persisted to this day.
The most recent attempt by the people of Afghanistan to create a society where women have basic rights occurred in the two decades between the first and second Taliban regimes. After 2001, legal reforms promoted women’s participation in social, economic, and political affairs. Government institutions to support women were established. Women gained legal access to offices, institutions, markets, and society, and their participation in education, work, governance, trade, and investment was encouraged.
Women were educated about their rights so that they could recognize that many of the oppressions imposed on them under the guise of tradition, religion, or family were the product of patriarchal and anti-women social and political systems. Due to their lack of awareness, women accepted these harmful traditions. Some women became familiar with new legal concepts and values through women’s rights organizations, and they began to file complaints and seek justice for the violence they faced. Over two decades of the republic, support organizations addressed thousands of cases of violence against women, and at least men were given warnings and awareness about women’s rights, which led to gradual changes in their misogynistic behaviors. Over time, women’s lives experienced positive changes.
For women who were aware of their rights, support from governmental and non-governmental human rights organizations helped reduce the violence they faced. Even women with less education or those living in remote areas were occasionally able to access women’s rights institutions and report the violence they experienced. Most abused women were married and faced violence from their husbands for various reasons. Beating women was a common form of violence, particularly in rural areas. In many cases, the victim’s family either did not support her or was unable to do so, which led women to seek help from women’s rights organizations, often turning to the Ministry of Women’s Affairs.
Due to the limited judicial resources and the traditional nature of society, women’s rights organizations, including the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, tried to address violence through education and non-judicial means, such as mediation. For example, in most cases, when a complaint of violence against a woman was received, the Ministry would organize a mediation session between the spouses. If the abused woman agreed to mediation, the Ministry would obtain a written guarantee from her husband that he would not continue to beat her. The written guarantee included the signature and fingerprint of the local council representative from the couple’s residence. The fear of legal consequences and potential punishment from the government reduced violence against women. If the violence were severe, the perpetrator would be referred to the court and punished.
The return of the Taliban has brought a profoundly negative change for many segments of Afghan society, especially women. As soon as the Taliban took control, the doors of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs were closed, followed by the dissolution of all women’s support organizations. The Taliban overturned many court rulings related to domestic violence and, in some cases, reopened divorce cases and decided in favor of ex-husbands. Women’s rights activists, judges, and prosecutors have faced revenge, and some women who previously fought for their rights have been harassed and abused after the Taliban’s return.
Over the past few years, the misogynistic Taliban have openly issued medieval and inhumane decrees against women, officially depriving them of their most basic rights, including education, work, recreation, and freedom of movement. Women have fallen into deep poverty due to being confined to their homes and, as a result, are subjected to increasing violence within their families and communities. The widespread unemployment of young men has also led to more conflicts between spouses. Now, abused women have no place to file complaints or seek justice, no institution to support them, no one to sympathize with them, no centre for gathering, no hope for growth, and no court to request separation or divorce. Women who face violence no longer even have the right to enter a government office to seek justice.
Mohaddesa Hosaini is a freelance writer who has previously worked for women’s support organizations in Afghanistan.
