Author: Sayed Hussain Hussainy

The women’s narrative campaign aims at gathering and sharing stories of women from all over the country to find their common pains. The idea sparked based on the claims that there is a difference of view between urban and rural women with regards to their demands and their definition of constitutional rights. In an interview with CSHRN, Atiyah Mehraban said that the Taliban and even some foreign countries claim that only urban women are concerned about violation of women’s rights and their meaningful representation in the peace talks. Therefore, they initiated the campaign to find out the validity of such claim. CSHRN: What is the ultimate result of the campaign? Mehraban: We have worked on the fundamental rights of women, the first of which was the right to education of women and was highly appreciated. We also worked on the right to work, civic activity and political participation. Currently we are working on the rights of war victims. We found that most women are aware of their right to education. However, since issues such as political participation and civic activism have not been discussed in many areas, they are less known to women. In general, according to our findings, no woman in any province has expressed disregard for the right to political participation and the right to education. CSHRN: How can your campaign act as an effective movement for achieving their rights? Mehraban: Unfortunately, in the last two decades, efforts to protecting women’s rights have been mostly treated as projects. Although some significant progress is achieved, sincere efforts have not been made to ensure preserving women’s rights. For instance, the fact that a woman in the capital of a province is not aware of her fundamental rights indicates that efforts to protect women’s rights have been superficial. Though…

Most CSOs activists argue that maintaining the republic system must be preserved as it can best guarantee human rights, especially those of women. Talking to CSHRN, Rahmatullah Shariati, a civil society activist, and University Lecturer said that the republic system, as a safe platform, can ensure women’s constitutional rights. CSHRN: What is your assessment of the peace talks so far? Shariati: Lack of agreement on a joint agenda for peace negotiation is a serious concern. Despite the goodwill of the Afghan negotiating team, the Taliban are not acting in good faith that undermines the process. CSHRN: What will be the possible results of the talks, given the Taliban’s history and views of women? Shariati: Despite the prevalence of democracy in the last two decades, the Taliban still pose serious threats to women’s rights. In the case of a power-sharing agreement, women’s rights and their political participation will be challenged by the Taliban as the group is opposed to the democratic environment. CSHRN: How will women’s presence affect the Taliban’s views? Shariati: Their presence is effective, but their participation in a quota system is very low. Although the male participants in the team also support women’s rights; however, it is important for women to represent themselves. The Taliban men, who are present on the battleground are more dangerous to women than their negotiators. Women’s active and broad engagement in the peace talks will also draw international attention to Afghan women. CSHRN: Would it be acceptable if more restrictions are imposed as the result of the peace talks? Shariati: If both parties are equally determined in establishing a ceasefire and restoring peace, they should retreat from their maximalist positions. For example, restricting women’s education is never acceptable; however, separate education would be an alternative, provided that peace is restored. Otherwise,…

Many women activists believe that women’s rights achieved with great difficulty should not be restricted if the Taliban share power with the government after a peace agreement.In an interview with the CSHRN, Ms. Fariha Nasiri (pseudonym) said that women have gained their rights through many sacrifices and these rights should not be ignored.CSHRN: What is your assessment of what has happened so far in the peace talks? How much can we hope for a positive result?Naseri: It has been almost two months since the beginning of the peace talks, but according to the media, the negotiating teams have not yet finalized the agenda. Therefore, it is too early to talk about the outcome.CSHRN: Given the Taliban’s background, especially with regards to women, what will be the social and political presence of women after the peace talks?Naseri: Since the formation of the Taliban group, the members of this group have never believed in or respected the rights women. The fact that no woman is included in their group shows that they do not care about women’s rights. With their participation in the government, women will be deprived of their rights. Women will not be able to continue their activities freely. The first impact of these restrictions will be to make women depended on men, they will impose this by creating rules to not let any women travel without men. But, since women in the years following the fall of the Taliban have achieved great success, I hope they do not remain silent in the face of the restrictions imposed by the Taliban and fight this situation by creating effective movements.CSHRN: Can the presence of women in peace talks affect the Taliban's anti-women approach? Do you think the Taliban will change their position for any reason?Naseri: The presence of women…

The structure of traditional societies, especially extremism, has been cited as one of the main obstacles to women’s activities. Radical extreme views have led to educational problems for women. In an interview with the CSHRN, Ms. Karimi said that women activists face various obstacles.CSHRN: Please explain these problems in more detail?Karimi: The situation is difficult for employed women. For instance, if a woman posts her photo on social media, she will be perceived as bad by the people of the society. Recently, we had an awareness program in one of the districts. After the program, my photos were posted on social media and a number of people insulted me in the comment section. This is problematic to women’s activities, because most families do not allow their family members to share their photos and activities on social media. This may not seem as a major challenge, however, many female civil society activists, and those engaging in legal activities, have quit their jobs because their photos or contact numbers were shared on social media. What is more concerning is that lately, a group called ‘Hizb ut-Tahrir’ who have extreme mindsets have started their activities in the province. Another case that has happened recently is that employed women are threatened by men with their faces covered. Barriers to women’s activities in Badakhshan have increased and prevented a large number of women from working.CSHRN: What is the legal status of women in Badakhshan?Karimi: Badakhshan is one of the most remote provinces. The situation is normal in the center of Faizabad and women with their low literacy are somewhat aware of legal issues, but the situation in districts is worrying. In some districts, although there is school, young girls are prevented from going to school due to the security issues. Women in these districts…

Maryam Moradi is studying law and judiciary. She said she chose this field not only out of interest, but also because as a woman, she wanted to gain a better understanding of values and social rights.Despite being aware of the existing problems in the patriarchal atmosphere of the country both in  social and governmental levels, she decided to study law and judiciary since she experienced t devaluing ignoring women’s  problems such as harassment,. “Women will grow more in a society where there are more threats against them. The greater the pressure on humans, the more successful they will be.” She believes.Ms. Moradi adds that by studying in this field, she wants to increase the level of women's participation in the judiciary and law. According to her, one of the reasons for the low level of women's participation in political and social affairs is that this group does not achieve high levels of education.Although she has high aspirations s for her field of study and her career plans, she has not been able to decide about her plans after graduation because of the fear of the Taliban’s presence in the government. “The presence of the Taliban in government will affect the fate of women. Perhaps, they will completely exclude women from politics and society.” Said Ms. Moradi.  She hoped that the peace negotiating team would not ignore the rights and values of citizens, especially women, as well as their achievements in recent years.  She added that women should also advocate for their rights.Ms. Moradi said that in the Taliban’s view, when a woman becomes powerful, she becomes aware of her rights and, as a result, gains the power to advocate for her rights and does not accept injustice. Therefore, they always try to exclude women from society. She added…

Following the start of the peace talks and the rise of concerns about the disregard for women's rights during the negotiations by a number of women's rights activists, some have argued that no group should determine women's rights. Women should define their demands and freedoms themselves.In an interview with the CSHRN, Mr. Kavah said that any discussion with regards to women might cause restrictions to their freedom. Therefore, women themselves should define their freedom. “Women should be recognized as part of the society and have access to their rights. The ultimate result of negotiation should not deprive women of their liberty.” Said Mr. Kavah. CSHRN: Given the current status of the peace negotiations, what can we expect?Kavah: Since peace negotiation is at its preliminary stage, drawing any conclusion is early. However, there still remains concerns with regards to citizen’s freedom, especially women. I think that these concerns should be addressed in the peace talks.CSHRN: Given the capacity of the negotiating team members, can these concerns be addressed?Kavah: I think the negotiating team is very diverse in terms of ethnicity, gender, level of knowledge and awareness, and the level of their relationship with the community which is promising. On the other hand, very active and prominent Afghan women are involved in these dialogues who can boldly reflect the various concerns of the citizens. In general, I believe that this team, given its diversity, comes from a society experiencing two decades of freedom, and its members will defend these freedoms.CSHRN: One of the concerns that women's rights activists have mentioned many times is that the women in the negotiating team are mostly members of political parties and may only speak for the interests of these parties. What is your opinion?Kavah: I think these concerns will exist until the end of the…

Since the selection of members of the peace negotiation in Doha, not only the disproportion between male and female members of the peace delegation is under question, the absence of civil society representatives from the peace talks is also highly worrying.In an interview with the CSHRN, Ms. Saqib added that despite the efforts to integrate women into the composition of the peace delegation, the absence of civil society representatives, journalists, and other women's groups is alarming. "Although the female members of the negotiation team are committed to women's rights, they primarily represent various political parties, and priority for them would be their political interests" So if the composition is not revised, the rights of women will remain at stake. " The imbalance in the number of male and female representatives in the composition of the negotiating team is also one of the issues that have been criticized by some experts, said Ms. Saqib. War and peace are usually masculine. Despite the fact that women are heavily impacted by war, they are usually marginalized in peace discussions. "Women can play an important role in peace negotiation as they constitute more than half of the population and they are the main victims of war. If women's role is ignored, the peace settlement will not be sustainable. "CSHRN: What are women’s expectations from peace negotiations?Saqib: First and foremost, women expect that a ceasefire is agreed upon. And, the right to participate in social, political, economic, and educational activities are among women’s other demands. Finally, they expect that a mechanism is in place which protects the human rights of women.Ms. Saqib argues that corruption and unsafe working environment are among other challenges that women expect to get rid of in the post-peace political system. "Corruption and unsafe working environment sometimes force women…

As a teenager with a tremendous desire to work, Wahida found herself living in a remote village dominated by the government’s armed opposition. Her neighbors not only discouraged girls who worked but also threatened them. She said that those challenges not only discouraged her to work but rather made her more determined. Belonging to a family with a political and military background, Wahida constantly faced objections for disgracing the reputation of the family by working out of the home. Following Wahida’s persistence to work out of home, her family decides to leave their ancestor’s land and move to Kabul where she could achieve her goals. While in Kabul she still feared her kin’s vengeance. Despite her young age and her relative’s disbelief in her, she moved forward with determination starting with participating in a short-term training course to work in media. She was so young that the person in charge of the training center jokingly said that you want to be trained for children's programs? In her first experience on a live radio program, she avoided using her real name to the audience and used “Hila” as her pseudonym. Wahida now called “Hila” worked as a radio presenter for several years. In order to avoid financial dependency, she walked the distance between her school and the radio office. Upon her graduation from school, she decided to become a reporter. A media office in Kabul was running a training program for journalists those days. Wahida joined the program. After three months of training and mentorship, she became a journalist. She joined a media outlet and worked for four years now using her real name. While she was preparing reports on corruption and war the victims, she received death threats. Nonetheless, Wahida continued her work and received a medal from…

Although Bamyan has always been mentioned as one of the safest provinces in the country, especially for women, it seems that in some parts of the province, insecurity and extreme ideology have become a serious problem for women and girls in this province. Zakia Rezaie, Bamyan's Director of Women's Affairs said that in some districts of the province, girls are not allowed to study above the primary school level. She added that about forty-seven percent of girls in Bamyan now attend school, but the number of dropouts of female students in high school level in some districts increases each year.In an interview with the CSHRN, the Director of Women's affairs in Bamyan said that they have special programs of increasing girls’ participation in the education sector. But their programs are hampered by insecurity in some districts sometimes. "The Bamyan Department of Women's Affairs, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, is holding an annual campaign to increase the enrollment of girls in schools. We are making the necessary arrangements with security officials before the program is implemented, and if it is impossible to eliminate the risk, we do not often visit some of those insecure areas."The feeling of not being safe not only bothers women in insecure districts and villages of Bamyan, but it also troubles working women in unsafe working environments.CSHRN: What problems do Bamyan women have at work?Rezaie: Some women complain about physical and psychological harassment. Also, due to the traditional structure of society, some offices are male-oriented making the working environment difficult for women. Moreover, women suffer from a lack of facilities which are recognized as their rights in the law. For instance, there is no kindergarten in some offices for their children. Despite these challenges, women in Bamyan have achieved significant milestones in the…