Being subject to discrimination, violence, sexual abuses, confinement, economic dependence, the current day world is still long way back from where it should be or have been in terms of women’s emancipation. To voice their challenges, the UN, and its member states observe women’s international day.
When other nations are trying to liberate women of the centuries-old odd and women-unfriendly traditions and cultural clutches, women in Afghanistan still lives in the armpit of these highly suppressive and inhuman traditions and clutches.
We have a ministry with name of Women’s Affairs, but its in name only, as the ministry can hardly boast of any clat, but what it can do is arrange seminars on awareness, where usually participants are from well-off families, who never have experienced how to be a poor woman caught in the whirl of challenges in a country where getting justice is still a distant cry. Women’s rights issue, their protection, and the struggle to give them the world they deserve is not a no-brainer rather it’s really too much challenging job, that need long strategies and toughest actions by the government, international community, and citizens of the country.
Women’s representation in politics and the parliament is worth appreciation what is missing is dedication and the hold of a diehard mindset which has been mould by the US, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan that is jihadism. They heavily invested in creating and promoting this mindset as each of the player saw good opportunities in it. The one wanted to contain the iron curtain of then USSR. The second one wanted to counter the influence of Shia Iran, which is why Wahabite Islam was heavily supported. And the third one saw a good opportunity to destabilize Afghanistan and suppress the voice of Pashtun nationalism and irredentism. All of the three players succeeded, but at the cost of irreparable damages, millions of people killed, thousands others left with permanent disabilities, infrastructure ruined, education destroyed, and on top of that bred a mindset which is not only suppressing women, hurling acids at their faces, killing innocent civilians, but has become a threat to peace of the world. The US has come to reap the whirlwind, where as Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are seen nowhere here to reap their whirlwinds rather contrarily Pakistan still clings to a deleterious strategy and its still investing in the same mindset and scheme. Until this mindset prevails, Afghan women will remain suffering.
It doesn’t mean this paper holds religion responsible for the plight of Afghan women, but it condemns the use of religion against women’s rights, the same religion that declared share in bequeath and inheritance some 1400-year back when Arab pagans used to bury their daughters alive. At that time it was a biggest revolution. However, now these diehard elements are hell-bent in divesting women of their fundamental rights. Share in inheritances is nowhere in practice, but yes, girls are sold like commodities, take heavy walwar (a bride’s price), they are swapped, and cases of forced prostitutions have been reported. Where is our Afghan honor? Where is our national pride? And where do we stand as a nation and where do stand other nations of the world? To liberate them, first this mindset has to be defeated which makes you feel as if women are sub-humans and moreover the current set up has to translate its promises into reality as just hollow vows are elusive and never give good results. Besides that the next government must foster a lager female representation in politics, decision making and make women independent in real sense. The nee is women’s role should be re-organized in peace negotiations, governance, defense forces, and other sectors. Should this happen and we will be in a newer world.
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