SAMIRA SALAVATI

News Center- On August 25, 2021, Afghan women woke up to a nightmare they thought they had left 20 years ago. Despite the Taliban’s moderate public pronouncements since seizing power, Afghan women have been deprived of their rights to education, work, and participate in social life. Afghan women have been taking to the streets across the country to protest the practices of the Taliban and they criticize the silence of the world. They have been subjected to violence and attacks by the Taliban forces whenever they take to the streets. Women activists are killed but no one claims responsibility for the attacks on the women.  We spoke to Selay Ghaffar, the spokesperson of the Solidarity Party of Afghanistan (SPA) about the conditions of Afghan women after the Taliban took the control of the country.

“Violence against women increases”

Selay Ghaffar firstly sent her greetings to all revolutionary women, who fight for the freedom of women around the world. “Everybody knew and saw the practices of the Taliban even before the murder of four Afghan women activists,” Selay Ghaffar said, “Women were the first victims of the bans. Women were deprived of the labor force; they were banned from working at banks, schools, and offices. Women and girls were banned from going to school. Violence against women has undoubtedly increased. We know that the whipping and stoning of women are still widely practiced in some provinces. I send my deepest condolences to the families of the women murdered in Mazār-i-Sharīf. We continue to receive reports about the attacks on women and women activists across the country. Lastly, an authorized woman was killed in Herat Women's Prison. Such murders clearly show us that there is no change in the ideology and practical practices of the Taliban against women.”

“They have misogynistic ideologies”

After the Taliban took the control of the country, they declared a general amnesty for government workers across Afghanistan and urged women to join its government. “They declared a general amnesty to hide their real face. In the 1990s, when the Taliban were in power, they imposed their middle-aged practices and they still have these misogynistic ideologies. Even today, we see that they try to acquit themselves of all murders committed against women, try to show themselves innocent. They act as if they do nothing against women. They say they will find the killers and punish them but everyone knows that all these are lies,” Selay Ghaffar told NuJINHA.

“Protests of brave women scare the Taliban”

Emphasizing that the Taliban are the enemies of the women, Selay Ghaffar continued to speak as follows: “There is no doubt that the Taliban are women's number one enemy and they scare of women’s power and ability. We see how they are trying to prevent women’s struggle. When the Taliban seized the power in the country, women were at the frontlines of the protests against the Taliban and they are still at the frontlines. They (The Taliban) try to prevent women’s protests; they attack the protesters and journalists covering the protests. They do this because they want to silence the voices of women. They try to identify resisting women and kill them. The protests of brave women scare the Taliban.”

“Women will never remain silent”

Underlining that the Taliban try to create an atmosphere of fear in the country by killing and attempting to assassinate women activists, Selay Ghaffar said, “We should remember that the Taliban want all people to live in this atmosphere to not resist them. Believing that the women's movement will one day spread and affect all people around the world, the Taliban forces want to control the Afghan people so that the people can “stay silent against the persecution”. The Taliban should always remember that Afghan women will never remain silent and they will always protect their rights.”

“When there is oppression, there is also a resistance”

“As we see in Afghanistan today, a virus called Islamic fundamentalism, represented by the Taliban has confined women to the home, deprived them of their freedom, and made their situation even more critical,” Selay Ghaffar said, “But Afghan women will never bow to the Taliban regime. Reactionary groups like the Taliban will not be able to silence the voices of Afghan women. When there is oppression, there is also resistance. Afghan women will continue to resist.”