Afghani Women and Girls
Girls and Women in Afghanistan
If you are an American citizen, you have the freedom of speech, religion, press, petition, and assembly. If you live in Afghanistan, and you are a woman or girl, you would know that you do not have much (if any) freedom. During the Taliban rule, girls could not go to school because it was made a law that you could not open a school for girls. Some courageous women, living in Afghanistan, illegally opened schools because they thought that it was unfair that girls could not have the same education as boys. During the Taliban rule, if girls tried to get an education, they risked being beaten by the religious police, or worse. Many parents and family members were warned and/or killed for letting their girls go to school. People found most of the girls eager to learn and they thought (and still do think) girls should have the same rights as boys.
Equality According to the Taliban
How would you feel if you could not leave your home without a male relative by your side? Besides being properly escorted when leaving home, women must also wear burqas. Can you believe that in Afghanistan, if women are not properly dressed or escorted, they can be beaten or killed? All of this unfairness has come to be because of the Taliban. Because of the take over by the Taliban, Afghani women and girls do not have equality, are not treated fairly, have lost their jobs, and cannot legally be educated. A law was made that male doctors are not allowed to examine women. This was a problem because most female doctors were forced to stay at home. This leads to the conclusion that women are not getting the health care they need. The Taliban believe that the only way to redeem women's safety, self-respect, and freedom is to give up their jobs and stay at home. A law was made by the Taliban that windows of female's houses had to be painted incase somebody passed by and looked through. Believe it or not, before the Taliban takeover, Afghanistan women and girls were:
- 60% of teachers at Kabul University
- 50% of students at Kabul University
- 70% of school teachers
- 40% of doctors
Women's Hopes...faded
- 87% of Afghanistan woman are unable to read and write
- Only 30% of girls, living in Afghanistan, have access to education
- Every 30 minutes, an Afghanistan woman dies during childbirth
- One of every three Afghanistan women experience physical, psychological, and/or sexual violence
- About 60%, or more, of the girls who live in Afghanistan, are married before their legal age
- Out of all the countries in the world, Afghanistan has the highest violence rate against women