By Thalia Kattoura | Staff Writer
After being overthrown by a US-led invasion in 2001, the Taliban reclaimed its rule over Afghanistan once again in 2021. Although their government is not officially recognized, the Taliban succeeded in enforcing regulations across all sectors. Many of these regulations pertain to imposing restrictions on women – especially in the academic sector. While the Taliban did guarantee that women will not be prohibited from receiving an education, many suspected otherwise.
In fact, the Taliban government’s gradual infringement on their promises to promote women’s rights peaked in December 2021 when they decided to cast women out of universities across Afghanistan.
Zamzama Ghazal, a fourth-year medical student, received the news of the education ban during her sister’s graduation ceremony. Ghazal attested that “instead of celebration, there were tears and grieving. All girls were crying, hugging, and consoling each other.”
As worded by Obeidallah Basheer – an educator at the American University of Afghanistan – “this is gender apartheid. This is nothing short of that.”
However, the history between Afghanistan and the Taliban dates back, with many elements that provide context to the reality lived by women today.
Afghanistan During the First Taliban Rule
After the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in 1996, they imposed restrictions on women, denying them access to healthcare, education, and employment. Schools for women had to close, thus disallowing women from obtaining an education. Working women could no longer partake in the professional sector, rendering them unemployed and unable to fend for themselves. The Taliban also banned them from receiving medical treatment from a male doctor, and they could not receive any from a female doctor. As a result, their health was compromised and devoid of consideration.
The Taliban also banned women from using public baths, required them to wear specific clothing, and only allowed them to leave their homes with a male companion.
In 2001, the USA and its allies invaded Afghanistan and ousted the Taliban from power. The subsequent years included efforts to restore women’s rights – by internal and external contributions – which accounted for numerous constitutional and institutional advancements. The Afghan Ministry of Women’s Affairs was established, along with a new Constitution that reinstated women’s legal and social rights.
Afghanistan During the Second Taliban Rule
Upon seizing their power again in August 2021, the Taliban began to impose strict regulations on women.
When it comes to the education ban, they gradually prohibited women from attending secondary schools, then primary schools, and following that with universities. Moreover, teachers and professors reported that the Taliban forces had threatened them with physical violence if they continued to teach women and girls.
Referring back to the Taliban’s former rule, the restrictions placed on women are extensively similar. The phenomenon prompted numerous political upheavals across the nation, which inevitably echoed through the international community. People worldwide protested in unison against the regime, responding to its efforts to isolate women from their fundamental human rights. The citizens of Afghanistan revolted in academic institutions and on the streets.
A global awareness of Afghanistan’s historical context as an occupied nation – and how the Taliban’s rule still produces the same oppressive regulations as its former rule – is essential in confronting the injustices faced in the country.
After all, to quote an Afghan citizen:
“Afghan society is like a bird with two wings. If one wing is cut off, then society will not function.”
— An Afghan elder, interviewed by Sima Wali of Refugee Women in Development