Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Friday, March 29th, 2024

The Causes of Violence against Afghan Women

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The Causes of Violence against Afghan Women

In Afghanistan, women are the most vulnerable segment of the society. For decades, they have suffered from violence, deprivation and misbehaviors stemmed from wars and the dominant conservative attitude towards them. In general, the widespread violence against women can be examined in two different but related contexts. First, the women have suffered from the deeply-rooted violent conservatism in the Afghan society and a culture based on male-dominant traditions. Second, the long-lasting wars and adverse security conditions have affected all vulnerable segments of the society, most severely the women. The over-a-decade efforts for promoting women’s rights and improving their conditions have had considerable impacts, but enormous challenges are still remaining.

Obviously, the most important reason behind the widespread violence against women is the fact that the Afghan society is deeply conservative. The common view to women as the inferior gender can be attributed to the Afghan conservatism. The widespread domestic violence and violent behaviors against women are closely related to the conservative attitude of the male members of the families to the women. Male family members usually seek superiority in form of guardianship over female members. Inevitably, efforts from the male in seeking superiority result to conflicts in the families and consequently violence against women. The major reason behind the attitude of violent domination of male members over the women and girls in the families is the traditions, flawed interpretation of religion and the low rate of literacy in the society. Therefore, the Afghan women have long suffered from domestic violence and discriminations in the male-dominated Afghan families.

In this context, women’s rights are systematically violated, their legitimate freedoms and rights are severely restricted and they usually have less say in decision-makings. Due to the conservative attitude and lack of respect and commitment to women in the war-torn country, girls and women encounter discriminations and violent behaviors in workplaces and public areas on a daily basis. Despite considerable progress in the cities, the status of women in the remote villages and rural areas remains distressing. Still, a large portion of women and girls are deprived of accessing education and work opportunities due to the dominant conservative culture.

Moreover, Afghan women have been deprived of their basic rights and freedoms as they have been treated as an inferior class in the society as well as the families. For instance, for a typical Afghan girl, particularly in rural areas, it has been less likely to have the permission of her family to go to school, university or workplace, virtually leading to her deprivation from opportunities critical for a better life. In more conservative areas, a girl has no say about her preference or endorsement for marriage while the male members of the family have the final authority in making decisions.

The decades of war and violence have played a major role in violation of women’s rights and limitation of their freedoms. In fact, the women have been direct victims of war and instability, and the most affected segment of the society during the past decades of wars. They have suffered from wars and subsequent displacements. The militant groups still target the women activists as well as the women and girls who go to schools or work outside. The insurgents continue to target women activists and school girls to discourage them from their social activities and attending public schools. Despite extensive pro-women campaign during past fourteen years, there are many cases of violence against women on daily basis. Time and again, there are reports of shocking cases of violence against women such as honor killings, rapes and tortures.

Despite all progresses made during past 14 years, there are still concerns for probable setbacks in women’s rights. Many wonder about what would happen when foreign troops completely withdraw and how it would affect the status of women and the hard-gained achievements of the past over-a-decade. Despite the substantial gains, there are still potential dangers threatening the minimum achievements in this regard.

Despite all concerns about the future, the fact is that Afghanistan has changed and the status of women in Afghanistan has considerably improved since the fall of the Taliban in 2001. The programs aimed at improving the life conditions of women have worked and helped in reshaping public opinions towards the women. The government-led policies and strategies towards promoting the rights of the women have been effective – though insufficient. The government is continuing to provide support to the media, human rights organizations, women activists and other women’s rights advocates. The collective efforts of the government of Afghanistan and the international community have helped to encourage other parties in the society to step in the campaign for the cause. Human rights organizations and women activists bear the brunt the campaign against extremists and in the conservative society.

Public awareness campaign for promoting women’s rights has been the most major driver for change. But it has not been carried out with potent momentum which could benefit all parts of the society. Public awareness gradually changes the conservative mood of the society and makes it ready for embracing new ways of life and accepting a new set of rights for the women. In order to carry out such public awareness, general education is the key. By generalizing education to the far-reach corners of the country, and to all parts of society, Afghans will be able to fight conservatism. In addition to that, the women now have direct and active involvement in the campaign, giving them a voice and the energy to make their voice heard.

As a result of the efforts, the conservative Afghan society is opening up for embracing new status and rights for the women in post-Taliban Afghanistan. In recent years, the situation has much improved as the collective move towards the goal of a violence-free society for women impacts the society. While there were almost a-zero percent of girls in school during the Taliban era, there are now millions of girls going to schools and universities, which virtually would change their life as well as the attitude of the society and that of families. During the Taliban regime, the women of Afghanistan were fully banned from working outside and in public services and were forced to stay indoors. They were forced to be accompanied by a male relative when going out, visiting relatives or shopping. But now, they are memories of the past.

Today, there are women presenters in the media, women teachers at schools and universities and women lawmakers in the parliament. This is a clear sign of what is going on in Afghan still-conservative society. The fact that millions of girls are going to universities is indicating that the country is changing, though not at a fast pace, but is moving in the right direction. All the events and developments are indicative of change for the women and that the deeply conservative society is opening up for embracing new values and standards of life values for the women. 

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