Behind Closed Doors: The Reality for Women in Afghanistan

Women and girls have lost almost all their rights in Afghanistan, and the world isn’t angry enough.

Afghanistan has set the harshest restrictions in history. Afghanistan is currently under

Taliban rule, and their restrictions violate over 30 universal human rights laws. Girls and

women can face imprisonment for signing, reading, showing their faces, looking at a man

and interacting with another woman in public.

Girls in Afghanistan are banned from education past primary school, and many of them are

then being forced into underage marriage. An estimated 28% of girls and women aged

between 15 and 49 were married off before their 18th birthday, according to UNICEF, and

reports show girls as young as 20 days old are promised for marriage.

They also can’t access basic medical help. Women are not allowed to be seen by a male

doctor, but with women being barred from education, there’s no one to see them.

In some areas, like Kabul, women have been forced to hide to the point of having to have

windows covered so that they can’t be seen from the streets.

But it’s not just about being invisible; men can commit violent crimes and rape and face no

consequences, or worse, accuse a raped woman of ‘moral crimes’ if she has been sexually

assaulted and risk being stoned to death for adultery. A woman in Kabul has had the tip of

her thumb removed for the ‘crime’ of wearing nail varnish.

What is happening in Afghanistan is gender persecution and a crime against humanity.

So what can we do?

Financial support. If you can spare even a few pennies, there are many charities across the

world trying to get girls out of Afghanistan and into full-time education. The charity Revive

Afghanistan lets you sponsor a young girls education, or the Malala fund, which not only

helps spread awareness but also tries to get young girls back into education.

Spread awareness. Talking about the issue is key to getting any movement going. Educate

yourself on the issue and spread the word, whether its through social media, blogs like this

one or simply word of mouth, the more people know, the better odds we have of getting girls

and women to safety.

Contact your government officials. For too long, our governments have sat idly and ignored

the issues of fellow human beings. Push your local leaders to promote charities that help

women and children in Afghanistan get to safety, increase funding and humanitarian aid.

Girls in Afghanistan deserve the same rights and opportunities as all of us, so get involved

today.

Written by, Nat Synak

Here are links to some charities;

Malala fund

Revive Afghanistan

UN Refugee Agency

Afghan Aid