The Taliban, an Islamic fundamentalist group that returned to rule Afghanistan a year ago, dispersed a women’s protest in Kabul this Saturday (13) with gunfire and rifle butts. The demonstration demanded the right to work and education, but was violently interrupted after five minutes.
About 40 women, who chanted “Bread, work and freedom!”, were walking in front of the Ministry of Education, when members of the faction, dressed in military uniform and armed with assault rifles, blocked the way and started firing bursts from several seconds.
According to the AFP agency, one of the members simulated a shot at the protesters, who sought protection in nearby stores, but were attacked with butts. Journalists covering the movement were also repressed.
Protest participants carried a banner that read: “August 15 is a dark day”, referring to the 2021 date of the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul.
“Unfortunately, the Taliban who are part of the intelligence services came and fired in the air,” said Zholia Parsi, one of the organizers of the demonstration. “They dispersed the girls, ripped off their banners and confiscated the cell phones of many of them,” she added.
Munisa Mubariz, who was also at the time, vowed to continue fighting for women’s rights. “If the Taliban wants to silence this voice, they won’t be able to. Let’s protest from our homes.”
​Women’s demonstrations to demand rights are increasingly rare in the Afghan capital, especially after the arrest earlier this year of some organizers.
After returning to power in August 2021, Islamic fundamentalists gradually ended the freedoms women had gained over the past 20 years following the fall of their previous regime. The first time they were in power, from 1996 to 2001, extremists banned women and older girls from studying and working. Now they are being kicked out of most government jobs or given pay cuts and stay-at-home orders.
Despite the narrative of moderation in the beginning, the Taliban returned by imposing a series of restrictions on society, many of which were designed to subject women to their fundamentalist conception.
In the latest restriction, announced in early May, the government issued a decree, approved by Taliban Supreme Leader Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada, making it mandatory for women to fully cover their bodies and faces in public.
The Taliban said they preferred the burqa, the usually blue veil that covers the entire face with mesh to hide the eyes, which was already mandatory under their first government. However, he indicated that he would tolerate other types of veils showing only the eyes.
The group also determined that unless they have a compelling reason to leave, it’s “better for women to stay home.”
The United Nations and human rights groups have criticized the restrictions. Human Rights Watch on Thursday called on the Taliban to “reverse their horrible and misogynistic decision” to ban women from education. “It would send a message that the Taliban are willing to reconsider their most heinous actions,” said Fereshta Abbasi, the NGO’s Afghanistan researcher.
