Afghan women, girls deserve better

Banned: An Afghan schoolgirl in an empty classroom in Kabul on Dec 22. Last week, the Taliban ordered women to stop attending all classes and barred them from most fields of employment as well as from parks and gyms. — AP

THE decision of Afghanistan’s government to exclude young women and girls from schools and institutions of higher learning is shameful and hugely disappointing.

Women and girls in the country are now being denied the basic human right to education. Since the ban was imposed by the Taliban government last week, between 850,000 and 1.1 million girls have had to stop attending classes.

According to the United Nations, almost 80% of Afghanistan’s economy is informal and dominated by women. Taking education away from girls and young women almost guarantees that there is little to no chance of Afghanistan’s economy and society recovering from decades of conflict much less progressing.

Afghan women have not only been banned from educating themselves but also from working with non-governmental organisations. The Islamist rulers justified this ban by saying that female NGO workers had broken dress codes by not wearing hijabs.

Women NGO workers are the main breadwinners in their households. By not being allowed to continue their work, these women will be unable to support and provide for their families. Furthermore, if NGOs are only allowed to employ men, this could mean that Afghan women would have less or no access to aid directly, consequently exposing them to financial dependence and the inability to support other women and girls.

Excluding women and girls from education and work has no credible justification and has no parallel anywhere in the world. These discriminatory policies not only affect Afghanistan women and girls but Muslim women globally. When one Muslim woman’s right to such basic needs is challenged, it calls into question the freedom and rights of all other Muslim women worldwide.

The world is failing Afghanistan’s women and girls. Beyond making statements, the international community hasn’t taken any action to help them or hold the Taliban responsible for their misdeeds and unfulfilled promises. Instead, United Nations organisations have forbidden their women employees from attending meetings with Taliban “ministers”.

The international community needs a plan and strong leadership to address the situation in Afghanistan, both of which are currently lacking. World leaders must refuse to participate in any form of engagement that privileges the Taliban over the rest of Afghan society. Aid donors and foreign partners should make sure that, whenever the Taliban are invited to negotiations, engagement is only offered when the government can show efforts are being made to include Afghan women in all levels of society and to treat them with respect and equality that reflect women’s contributions.

The international community must stay engaged with the matter and should not give the Taliban even a moment to relax; sustained pressure will eventually help to get women back to school and accessing work.

Reversing the immense harm caused by decades of unsuccessful policies that encouraged awful outcomes in Afghanistan will take time and effort. But a good place to start is to transition to a policy approach that both empowers and celebrates the nation’s women who can add immeasurably to nation-building efforts.

SIMRAATRAJ KAUR DHILLON

Research and advocacy analyst

Bait Al-Amanah

Bait Al-Amanah is a think tank that researches governance and democracy, economics, security and other national issues.