Afghan Women's Freedom To Choose: A Right To Marital Choice

Women's rights in Afghanistan have fluctuated over the years, depending on the regime in power. In 1977, under the Republic of Afghanistan, a civil code was introduced that gave women the right to choose their spouse. However, this right was taken away when the Taliban seized control in 1996 and imposed severe restrictions on women's freedom and civil liberties. During this time, women were barred from working, denied education, and forced to wear face coverings in public. After the Taliban was overthrown by the US in 2001, women's rights gradually improved, and they regained legal equality under the 2004 Constitution. However, when the Taliban returned to power in 2021, they once again imposed strict limitations on women, including restrictions on their access to education, employment, and freedom of movement. While the Taliban has made assurances that women's rights will be respected, their policies and actions continue to limit women's autonomy and opportunities in Afghan society.

Forced marriage

While child marriage is illegal in Afghanistan, with the minimum age of marriage for girls set at 16 or 15, these laws are rarely enforced, especially in rural areas. Girls as young as 9 are being sold into marriage, often to much older men, and the decisions are made by men with little to no input from the girls or their mothers. This practice has severe consequences for the girls' health and education, with nearly 10% of Afghan girls aged 15-19 giving birth each year and a quarter of women suffering from obstetric fistula having been under 16 when they married.

The Taliban's return to power in 2021 has further threatened women's rights in Afghanistan. Despite initially decreeing an end to forced marriages and claiming to support women's rights, the Taliban has imposed severe restrictions on women's access to education, employment, and public life. Women have been banned from most sectors outside of health and education and are not allowed to study in secondary schools or universities. The loss of jobs and income for women has pushed many families deeper into poverty, making them more vulnerable to forced marriage.

While there is international pressure and some local efforts to address forced marriage, the issue remains prevalent and deeply rooted in Afghanistan's culture and traditions.

Domestic abuse

Cultural norms and traditions play a significant role in perpetuating domestic abuse in Afghanistan. The society is conservative and patriarchal, with strict gender roles that limit women's opportunities and freedoms. Women are typically expected to be homemakers and are financially dependent on their husbands or fathers, making it difficult for them to leave abusive relationships. Additionally, domestic abuse is often normalised and accepted in Afghanistan, with 92% of women believing that a husband is justified in hitting or beating his wife under certain circumstances. This acceptance of violence is influenced by factors such as education, with lower-educated women being more likely to approve of domestic abuse.

The Taliban's rise to power has further undermined efforts to protect women's rights and address domestic abuse. Safe houses for women have been shut down, and women who previously sought refuge in them have been forced to return to their abusers or face arrest. The Taliban has also released prisoners convicted of sexual violence and domestic abuse, putting victims at further risk.

Despite these challenges, there are women-led initiatives and organisations working to address domestic abuse in Afghanistan. These include campaigns that offer meditation and counselling services to both victims and perpetrators, as well as training programmes to help identify and respond to signs of violence. However, the normalisation of violence and the lack of access to healthcare and legal services continue to be significant barriers to addressing domestic abuse in the country.

Polygamy

In Afghanistan, polygamy is legal and permitted by the country's Islamic laws. Afghan men are allowed to have up to four wives, as stated in the Qur'an. While polygamy is not as common in modern-day Afghanistan, it is still practised, especially among wealthy men. The reasons for polygamy include a woman's infertility, the desire to acquire more land, property, wealth, and children, and the belief that it is economically profitable and increases societal influence. Additionally, in Afghanistan's patriarchal culture, women are often financially dependent on men, and social disapproval and religious indoctrination also play a role in perpetuating polygamy.

Historically, there have been attempts to restrict polygamy in Afghanistan. King Amanullah Khan (1919-1929) introduced laws limiting the number of wives to four and promoted women's rights and modernisation. However, these reforms were short-lived, as subsequent rulers reinstated conservative practices. More recently, in 2022, the Taliban's supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, issued a decree banning Taliban members from taking multiple wives. Nevertheless, polygamy remains a complex issue in Afghanistan, with some women choosing to remain in polygamous marriages due to socio-economic factors and the fear of social stigma associated with divorce.

Education

Before the Taliban takeover in 2021, 3.7 million Afghan children were out of school, most of them girls. Since then, the regime has banned an additional 1,254,473 girls from attending secondary school. The Taliban has implemented over 20 written and verbal decrees on girls' education, each adding further restrictions. These decrees ban co-education, certain subjects for female students, and university entrance exams for women.

Afghanistan's education system has been devastated by over three decades of sustained conflict. For many children, especially girls in rural areas, completing primary school remains a distant dream. In the poorest and most remote areas, enrolment levels vary, and girls lack equal access to education. An estimated 3.7 million children are out of school in Afghanistan, 60% of them girls.

In some parts of the country, a shortage of schools and insufficient transportation are the main obstacles to education. Geographical barriers, especially in mountainous areas, also make it difficult for children to reach classrooms. Once they do, they often receive a lower quality of education because only 48% of their teachers have the minimum academic qualifications.

The Taliban's perspective on girls' education partly stems from a specific school of 19th-century Islamic thought and partly from rural areas where tribalism is entrenched. They believe that women should not participate in anything social or public and should be kept away from education.

However, there has been some progress in girls' education in Afghanistan over the years. Between 2001 and 2018, the country saw a tenfold increase in enrolment at all education levels, with the number of girls in primary school increasing from almost zero in 2001 to 2.5 million in 2018. By August 2021, 40% of students in primary education were girls. Literacy rates for women doubled during this period, from 17% in 2001 to nearly 30% for all age groups combined.

Despite this progress, the Taliban takeover in 2021 has once again severely restricted girls' access to education. Girls are now barred from attending secondary school and university, making Afghanistan the only country in the world with restrictions on female education. This decision threatens to wipe out the huge gains made in education over the past two decades.

The Taliban's ban on girls' education will have devastating long-term implications not just for women and girls but for the very social and economic fabric of Afghan society, with half of the population unable to contribute to their country's future. It will also negatively impact the mental health of Afghan women and girls, with reports of those out of school exhibiting signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts.

The international community must maintain consistent and firm pressure on the Taliban to allow girls to attend school and open access to female university students and lecturers. Education is crucial for the advancement of women's rights and the development of Afghanistan as a whole.

Gender roles

Afghan culture is collectivist, and people generally prioritise their family's interests over their own. Family responsibilities are often considered more important than personal needs, and loyalty to one's family supersedes obligations to one's tribe or ethnicity. In Afghan households, women are usually in charge of domestic chores, cooking, raising children, entertaining guests, and catering to the needs of the man of the house. Men, on the other hand, bear the economic burden and are often solely responsible for supporting the entire household.

In extended family households, three or four generations may live together, and all the women work together to raise, discipline, and educate the children. The eldest male typically has the most authority and decision-making power, controlling all family spending. Every decision must be approved by the husband or father, reinforcing the patriarchal nature of Afghan society.

While men dominate the public sphere, women are confined to having authority only in the domestic realm, over their children and other women. Although there has been some progress towards women's rights in the 20th century, the Taliban's rise to power has resulted in extreme restrictions on women's freedom and rights. The Taliban enforces gender segregation and places limitations on women's involvement in the public sphere, their dress, and their access to education and work.

Despite these restrictions, some more progressive families or tribes view women as equally deserving of opportunities, such as education and participation in public life. However, women are still largely excluded from public decision-making and are expected to be obedient and modest towards the men in their families. Ultimately, the power dynamics between genders in Afghanistan heavily favour men and limit women's agency and independence.

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