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“Zan” means woman in Farsi, which is Afghanistan’s major language.

The regime currently in power wants to make women socially invisible. So, in response, we chose “Zan Times” as our name. It is our time to speak truth to power and reclaim our autonomy.

No. While Zan Times is a women-led media organization that focuses largely on women’s rights issues in Afghanistan, we also cover a wide range of topics, especially in the human rights field. In addition, several men work at Zan Times, and writers from the LGBTQI community collaborate with us on a regular basis.

Yes. Zan Times has an active team of journalists who are working in several provinces of the country.

No. It is not safe to report from Afghanistan. The Taliban regime is actively hostile to journalism. Journalists are regularly beaten, arrested and tortured by the regime. There is severe repression of the news and censorship in Afghanistan.

Our colleagues use pseudonyms (pen names). They hide their identities within Afghanistan to avoid being detected by the Taliban. To minimize the risk of our journalists and sources being identified, we also use their pseudonyms within our newsroom.

Zan Times was started in August 2022 through the volunteer work and personal savings of a team committed to reporting the truth about human rights violations taking place in Afghanistan.

To continue our work, we obtained grants from organizations that support media and press freedom, as well as donations from our readers and supporters.

We want to emphasize that we are independent in our editorial policy and the stories we cover. We do not allow any gifts, funds, or grants to influence our editorial decisions.

There are many ways you can support Zan Times:

• Donations: you can make a one-time donation or sign up for a monthly donation. If you are based in the United States and want to make a tax-deductible donation, please contact us at info@zantimes.com
• Newsletter: Sign up for our weekly newsletter and receive weekly updates on the human rights situation in Afghanistan.
• Spread the word: Share our work on social media and invite your family and friends to become part of our support community. We count on your help to spread awareness about the situation of women in the worst country for women.
• Volunteer: If you are a media professional and have three hours a week to support our team, please reach out to us at info@zantimes.com

Yes. Zan Times is open to partnership on news stories covering Afghanistan.

1. If you have a story idea, our team on the ground can investigate and provide raw or edited reporting for your story idea.
2.  If you are interested in covering Afghanistan but are not sure about what topic, then reach out to us. We have plenty of story ideas to share, and can also offer guidance in how to shape and refine your topic.

Through this email: partnership@zantimes.com

Zan Times is a non-profit organization registered in Canada. Its office is located in Edmonton, Canada.

Through this email: info@zantimes.com

Through this email: opinion@zantimes.com

We started our work in August 2022.