8th March 2022, International Women's Day

March 8 International Women's Day is a historical day which is celebrated every year around the world to support women in different situations. In recent years, Afghan private and public institutions have also symbolically celebrated this day to support Afghan women. Kabul city, the capital of Afghanistan and other cities of the country collapsed and fell into the hands of the Taliban regime, Afghan women and girls are facing both the collapse of their rights, dreams, and risks to their basic survival.

The Taliban have banned women and girls from secondary and higher education, and altered curricula to focus more on religious studies. They dictate what women must wear, how they should travel, workplace segregation by sex, and even what kind of cell phones women should have. 

Afghan women were among the most oppressed women in the world, but with the rise of the Islamic Emirate, women's problems have multiplied. Women currently do not have access to any of their basic rights. They are severely deprived of education, travel, work outside the home, and are not even allowed to leave the home without a legal guardian.

Violence against women has been a consistent feature of life for many Afghan women and girls. Rates of violence are extremely high and more than 90 percent of Afghan women and girls experience abuse and violence in their lifetime. The international community that are pushing Afghans further into desperation every day catches them between Taliban abuses and actions.  

Domestic violence is another concern for Afghan women, which has risen more than ever this year, but the biggest concern for Afghan women right now is the uncertainty of their future as women in the Taliban Emirates lose their political and legal status altogether.

A large number of women become homeless in the country and the collapse of the previous government has taken away women's political, financial and employee opportunities and made their position vulnerable in society. The Taliban have more problems with women than any other extremist groups and it seems unlikely that women at this time will be able to live a humane and peaceful life and not bow to the burden.

Critical services for women and girls must continue to be delivered, and this requires female aid workers who are able to access communities and create safe spaces for women and girls. Women must be allowed to work and to move freely, and girls must be allowed to continue to go to school.