A report has released that a teenage girl was found dead after being kidnapped in Nahor District of Ghazni province. Her parents said that the girl, who was engaged, received threats from three men who live in their village alleging that the intimidators were involved in the crime. Her old mother, who had turned obsessive after her daughter’s death, urged the judiciary board to take a serious action in this regard and do not free the murderers with impunity.
Nahor is a remote village in Ghazni district, where women work hard from dawn to dusk twenty-four/seven. Women and men work side by side on the farms. Additionally, women babysit while working on the farms and grin and bear it. Moreover, violence against women takes place every now and then. As a result, it is remembered vividly when a man shot his wife dead a few years ago and also killed his cousin claiming to be in contact with his wife – the claim which remained unsupported by documents.
Violence and violation of rights weighs heavily on women. As long as women are deemed inferior and looked down upon, human rights will lack substance. As long as outmoded ways of thinking prevent women from making a meaningful contribution to society, progress will be slow. As long as the nation refuses to acknowledge the equal role of more than half of itself, it is doomed to failure.
The violence against women can occur in both public and private spheres of life and at any time of their life span. Many women are terrified by these threats of violence and this essentially has an impact on their lives that they are impeded to exercise their human rights, for instance, the fear for contribution to the development of their communities socially, economically and politically.
On 13 November 2014 – The United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women, Rashida Manjoo, has called on the Government of Afghanistan and the international community to adopt sustainable measures to address the causes and consequences of gender-based violence in the country.
Wrapping up a nine-day official visit to the country, Ms. Manjoo warned in a statement that violence against women in Afghanistan continues to be a source of deep concern, despite positive legislative and institutional developments brought forward amid a situation of insecurity throughout the country.
“Accountability for all crimes committed against women and girls, the empowerment of women, and the transformation of society, need to remain a focus for the Government of Afghanistan, independent State institutions, civil society organizations and also the international community,” she stressed.
Moreover, Manjoo noted with concern that many women and girls continue to lack access to the formal justice system. Her investigation also found problems with corruption within the justice system as well as distrust concerning the ability of the courts to appropriately adjudicate matters related to women’s rights. These factors combine with societal pressure to push women and girls outside of the formal justice system to resolve disputes.
Afghan women and girls are reluctant to report crimes of violence. Manjoo reported several reasons, including “lack of knowledge of the law and its protective remedial provisions; fear of reprisal from the perpetrators and family members; financial and other constraints, including the lack of freedom of movement; and fear of being treated as criminals instead of victims, when reporting crimes committed against them.”
Elzira Sagynbaeva, the representative of UN Women in Afghanistan, said violence against women and girls remains endemic. "It constitutes a serious violation of human rights impeding women’s full realization of their civil, political, social, cultural and economic and development rights," she said in a statement on November 25.
Despite the situation of insecurity throughout the country, it is clear that there have been legislative and institutional developments. This is a reflection of political will in addressing the promotion and protection of women’s rights which is further reflected in the appointments of women in high level positions. However, such developments should not detract from the fact that violence against women continues to be a source of deep concern in Afghanistan. Currently, there is no comprehensive and coherent data collection mechanism to enable either government or the public at large to fully grasp the magnitude of the phenomenon in the country. Despite government agencies and civil society organizations collecting statistics, these estimates are disputed, depending on whom one speaks to or receives information from. The lack of effective interpretation and implementation of laws and policies requires attention by the government of Afghanistan, as does the issue of the allocation of appropriate resources to enable sustainable solutions.
It is rightly said, “For every woman and girl violently attacked, we reduce our humanity. For every woman forced into unprotected sex because men demand this, we destroy dignity and pride. Every woman who has to sell her life for sex we condemn to a lifetime in prison. For every moment we remain silent, we conspire against our women. For every woman infected by HIV, we destroy a generation.”
The National Unity Government has to end the political and social challenges of the Afghan people. Insecurity and sufferings are disheartening our people with each passing day. Yet, the government has turned a blind eye to the social problems. Hope the new government breaks the deadlock and put their electoral agenda in practice as soon as possible and prioritize the elimination of violence against women.