The Women of Afghanistan: Past and Present Challenges (original) (raw)
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Women in Afghanistan: A Historical Study
Afghanistan is a landlocked country with Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, China, Iran and Pakistan as its neighbours. It is a small country in the benign protection of the Hindu Kush and the great Himalayas with its rugged hills and sturdy people who, till yesterday appeared to be leading a sleepy and indifferent existence under the tyrannical feudal dynasties. Afghanistan has remained geographically, religio-culturally and commercially intimately connected with the neighboring countries. The issue of gender has been utilized as an instrument to serve the centralized state‘s larger political agendas, rather than to meet the basic needs of the majority women. It is true that in both the 1964 and 1977 Afghan constitutions ,women and men were recognized as equal before the law and women were given equal rights and privileges, but in practice ,patriarchy and tribal social conduct continued to dominate gender related relationships.
2003
In this paper, through the history of women in Afghanistan, I want to locate the position of women in the future by lessons learnt from the past. Given Afghanistan's current situation of poverty, political disenfranchisement and social disarray, I argue that these very deficiencies could be maneuvered to favor the empowerment of women by redefining her role in the family and the community. Afghanistan's social development can only be ensured through democracy and the reduction of poverty, the success of both being assured through full participation of women, especially in rural Afghanistan. In this paper I would like to trace the history of women in Afghanistan for three main reasons. One, to show that women in Afghanistan were not always oppressed by fundamentalism as occurred under the Mujahideen and the Taliban. Second, to go back into history and reflect on regimes and politicians to show that women's issues were an integral part of national construction agendas even...
Models and Realities of Afghan Womanhood: A Retrospective and Prospects
UNESCO, 2006
In order to conceptualise what human rights can signify for women in the dominantly rural society that is Afghanistan, it is necessary to understand the models and stereotypes available to them in recent history and how these have been reworked in every day life. Theirs is not an isolated situation occurring in a vacuum; it has to be understood in relation to the developments in the Indian sub-continent from the British Raj onwards as well as the spread of present-day Islamism. In the context of what may well be Asia's most tribal and patriarchal society, the resistance to Western modernization is unique in a country which could have been, alongside Turkey, at the avantgarde of progressive Muslim nations as early as in the 1920s. All efforts by reformist kings from the early 20th century onwards were doomed and when the communist government attempted to introduce an egalitarian society and implement women's rights after the April revolution of 1978, acute civil strife ensued. This generated full-scale war when their Soviet allies came to the rescue and the US, through their assistance to fundamentalist groups, turned this into the last conflagration of the Cold War.
Afghans lived in Afghanistan for thousands of years. Of all of the ethnic groups, the Pashtuns are the largest followed by Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks and others. Throughout the 20th century, Afghanistan continued to be a country dominated by tribes and men continued to have ultimate control over women. But it is true that from the 19th century and through the twentieth century many rulers of Afghanistan attempted to lessen women's restrictions in the country. Until the 1970s, the 20th Century had seen relatively steady progression for women's rights in the country. Afghan women were first eligible to vote in 1919 -only a year after women in the UK were given voting rights, and a year before the women in the United States were allowed to vote. In the 1950s purdah (gendered separation) was abolished; in the 1960s a new constitution brought equality to many areas of life, including political participation.
The Emancipation of Women in Afghanistan imminent
From a global perspective the Beijing policy and other various international instruments used to promote the position of women still need to translate into positive changes in people’s daily lives, especially in developing countries. Women still remain at the lowermost of the social hierarchy with reduced access to land, credit, health and education. Although some of the covenants the Afghani government have sanctioned preserve property and inheritance rights, women are still deprived of those actual rights. Compounding the condition are setbacks such as war which is destroying the lives of women, preventing some of the development improvements women may attain. As a result, poverty in Afghanistan continues to clothe a woman’s face, which is disturbing that 20 years after Beijing and other international instruments, Afghani women are much poorer. Strategies recommended include empowering women to positions of authority, improving girl’s education, reinvesting the current economic policy and dealing with patriarchy, including the war and displacement. At large, the government needs to work hard in making emancipation of women an actuality, since women are still talked as minors.
William and Mary journal of women and the law, 2014
Cultural and religious practices are critical to explaining Afghanistan’s dreadful reputation concerning the preservation, protection, and promotion of women’s rights. Those advocating misogynistic practices assert that the calls for reforms challenge their religion and culture, while also claiming that many women’s issues exist within the private realm. Accordingly, they assert that reforms that aim at addressing disempowerment are not vital to the state and go beyond the established limits of state authority. Building on feminist legal theory, which distinguishes between the public and private spheres, I argue in Afghanistan misogynistic and discriminatory practices stem from contrived cultural and religious norms. Using the notion of state strength, this paper advances the idea that the discourses countering the lack of official action in ending discrimination must emphasize that unless women’s role in contemporary Afghan society is strengthened, the state will continue to remain...
Women in Afghanistan: Miles to Walk before Equality is Achieved
2006
A holistic assessment of status of women in Afghanistan in 2006 reveals that the status of women continues to remain depressed and discriminated in crucial areas like healthcare and education (literacy 34 percent). However, in terms of political participation and rights guaranteed by afghan constitution there have been positive gains. The survey findings shows that around 50 percent of afghan women are not in favour of wearing burkha and are ready to shed their conservativeness associated with it use. Similarly, more afghan women are enjoying the rights to equity guaranteed by the constitution as only 25 percent of respondents said that gender equity exists only on paper. Though women’s movement is currently sporadic and yet to take firm roots, but their fight to restore and strengthen womenfolk in different regions of the country indicates a positive step in the long march towards improving the status of women in Afghanistan. The key areas that needs immediate addressable for improving the gender empowerment are healthcare, education and discrimination. The government of Afghanistan should make a concerted effort in partnership with civil society for their overall upliftment and advancement as guaranteed by the constitution.
Gulsah Gures, "Gender Equality and Women’s Rights in Afghanistan"
Gulsah Gures, "Gender Equality and Women’s Rights in Afghanistan", Afghanistan's Security in 2014: Domestic, Regional and International Dimensions, Caucasus International, Vol. 3 • No: 3 • Autumn 2013, http://cijournal.az/post/caucasus-international-vol-3-no-3-autumn-2013