Can you picture yourself
in the following scenario: You are forced to wear a garment that
completely shrouds your body with only a small mesh opening through
which to see. You can not leave your home unless accompanied by
a male relative. You must paint the windows of your dwelling to
hide yourself from view.
Of course you can't,
that is if you live in the United States. It is almost too incredible
to believe. You are free to dress as you please, free to travel
where you please and you have the right to control your own body.
The women of Afghanistan however, are as near to slavery as we
can imagine. They can not be employed, they are forbidden to attend
school, they are forced to wear the Burqa; they can not even wear
white socks and their shoes may not make noise when they walk.
If they break the Taliban's rules, such as not wearing a Burqa
to completely cover their body, they will be beaten. Women have
been fired at for leaving their homes to receive medical attention;
if they are caught stealing, even if it is to feed their starving
children, their hands will be amputated.
In June of 1997, Amnesty
International warned that "women in Afghanistan were being denied
the most basic and fundamental human rights, including the right
to freedom of association, freedom of expression and employment."
Before the Taliban came to power in 1996, women played a prominent
role in the health professions, government and teaching. In fact,
prior to that time, 60% of the professors at Kabul University,
70% of school teachers, 50% of civilian government workers and
40% of doctors were women as were the majority of healthcare workers.
Women who once worked
and contributed to the support of their families have become destitute.
According to Zohra Rahsekh, a Physicans for Human Rights researcher
in an interview on Voice of America (Aug.28,1998), as many as
40,000 widows in Kabul have put on their Burqas to go beg on the
streets of Kabul in order to feed their children.
Lastly, but of great
importance, women and girls are prohibited from being examined
by male physicians while at the same time, female doctors and
nurses are prohibited from working. They have thus been precluded
from medical care. Women and children die of curable ailments
due to lack of treatment.
Many women and children
are fleeing the country. Seventy-five percent of all Afghan refugees
are women and children. Conditions for refugees are not much better
than in Afghanistan. The conditions in which these refugees fight
for survival are horrific: there is little food while many families
have no more than plastic sheets for shelter and with little sanitation.
The women and men of
the US can do their part to ensure that when the war in Afghanistan
is over, any new government that may be formed will recognize
the basic human rights of women. Farahnaz Nazir, the founder of
the Afghan Women's Association, warns that there is little difference
between the rules for women under the Taliban and the Northern
Alliance.
The United States must
proceed with caution to be sure that all segments of the new society
are protected. Contact congress and let your representatives
and senators know that the repression of Afghan women must not
be allowed under any new ruling alliance that we support.
Women must be allowed
to return to work and school and must be represented in a possible
new government. They must no longer be subjugated. Freedom for
the Afghan people must mean "all the people."
Editor's Note:
Text
of Laura Bush's White House November 17th radio address about
The
Taliban's War Against Women and Children
For three in-depth
reports on the status and plight of women and girls under Taliaban
rule,
(1) Read and view the
video available at CNN: Under
the Veil
(2) The Feminist Majority's
has maintained a long running campaign to help Afghan women and
girls: Stop
Gender Apartheid in Afghanistan.
(3) In 1995, Amnesty
International published a report about the status of women in
Afghanistan: Women
in Afghanistan— A human rights catastrophe
Betty
Soldz is an author, educator and consultant in the field of aging.
She facilitated workshops and discussion groups for the University
of California Berkeley Retirement Center. Betty is one of the co-authors
of Wise
Choices Beyond Midlife: Women Mapping the Journey Ahead.
She is Past-President of OWL/CA (Voices of Mid-life and Older Women)
and is Chairperson of 50+ and Strong: An Alliance for Women's Health. For
the past 11 years, Betty volunteered with the California Health
Insurance Counseling and Advocacy Program (HICAP) of Legal Assistance
for Seniors and is active in the struggle to protect Medicare and
Social Security. She is now Newsletter Editor and a member
of the Coordinating Committee of Greater
Boston OWL and volunteers with the Friendship Circle Program of
SHOWA College, helping visiting Japanese women students experience
"real" American life. Betty can be contacted
at: Milbet@aol.com.
