Women's Rights in Afghanistan - It's 2001 All Over Again

Recent news from Afghanistan is rather sobering given that the United States and its partners spent 20 years in the nation, attempting to install a Western-style democracy in the vacuum created after the Taliban conceded control over the parts of the nation that it ruled with a heavy, conservative Islamic hand.

 

This news was reported by TOLOnews, Afghanistan's first 24-hour news television network which reports on current affairs, business, regional and world news as quoted here:

 

"Whether it’s breaking the news, providing in-depth reports or inspiring discussion among Afghanistan’s political leaders, TOLOnews has captured the attention of a nation who want fast, credible and reliable information as it happens, on the ground. Afghanistan’s first 24-hour news and current affairs channel serves Afghans’ growing appetite for the most up to date news, both domestic and international, across broadcast, online and social media platforms. 

 

An extension of the nation’s most popular channel TOLO TV, TOLOnews’ apolitical format is trusted and respected by audiences, and its programs provide an unparalleled level of in-depth current affairs coverage spanning across Afghanistan’s political, cultural and regional interests.

In Afghanistan, TOLOnews often breaks stories that lead regional and international headlines. More importantly, it is reaching Afghans in remote provinces as well as connecting those in the global diaspora. Boasting the largest newsroom in the country, TOLOnews’ 100 plus news professionals lead the development of the Afghan media industry, which was nonexistent less than a decade ago. Lotfullah Najafizada is the current Director of TOLOnews.

TOLOnews broadcasts in Dari and Pashto, and is available via the internet and social media in English, Dari and Pashto. Its website, www.tolonews.com, is one of the most popular news sites in Afghanistan.

Here is the news item in question dated May 78, 2022:

If you wish, you can watch the news item on TOLOnews' YouTube account here which unfortunately is not in English but will give you a sense of what the supreme leader of the  Islamic Emirate, Malawi Hibatullah Akhundada is announcing for Afghanistan's women:

The video from TOLOnews shows this graphic of acceptable coverings for women which is displayed in shop windows:

 

Here are some quotes from the announcement with my bolds: 

 

"A statement from the Vice and Virtue Ministry of the Islamic Emirate reads that hijab is an obligation in Islam and that any dress that covers the body can be considered as hijab given that it is not “thin and tight.” 

When it comes to the type of the covering or hijab that women will need to wear, the statement says that burka is the best type of hijab/covering “as it is part of Afghan culture and it has been used for ages.” It adds that another preferred type of hijab is a long black veil and dress that “should not be thin or tight.” 

The statement, called “the descriptive and accomplishable plan on legitimate hijab,” also instructs women not to step out of home unless it is necessary, calling it one of the best ways of observing hijab.

 

The plan was announced by the Ministry of Vice and Virtue on Saturday at a press conference in Kabul." 

  

The plan will be implemented using both encouragement and punishment as follows:

"According to the new plan, if a woman doesn't wear a hijab, first, her house will be located and her guardian will be advised and warned. 

Next, if the hijab is not considered, her guardian will be summoned. If repeated, her guardian (father, brother or husband) will be imprisoned for three days. If repeated again, her guardian will be sent to court for further punishment, the plan reads.  

The statement also said that female public employees will be fired if they don't wear hijab. 

Male public employees will be suspended from their jobs if female members of their families do not wear hijab."

So, basically, under the reimposition of Sharia law, Afghanistan's women are back to where they were in 2001 before the War on Terror officially began on October 7, 2001.

Given the high financial cost of the war in Afghanistan to United States taxpayers as shown here:

...and the high human cost of the war as shown here:

 

 ...one would have to say that the entire operation has now been proven to be a complete and utter failure for Afghanistan's women who had actually made significant strides during the 20 year period after the Taliban appeared to be defeated.

 

But, as is typical, the defense industry made billions of dollars of profits thanks to their endless supply of hardware and software designed specifically to maim and kill human beings.  Bravo to them!

Civilian Casualties in Afghanistan - The Devolution of a Nation

With Washington announcing that it is more or less withdrawing from its 20 year war in Afghanistan, recent statistics from a recent report by The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan or UNAMA shows just how the "achievements" that were allegedly made for the Afghani people during two decade-long war were for naught.  Let's look at some of the details.

 

UNAMA opens the report by noting that, over the first six months of 2021, there were 5,183 civilian casualties in Afghanistan including 1,659 killed and 3.524 injured.  The total number of civilian casualties over the first six months of 2021 was up by 47 percent when compared to the first half of 2020, reversing the trend over the past four years, reaching the record levels last seen in the first six months of 2014 to 2018 as shown on this graphic:

 

 

When compared to the data from the first six months of 2020, the numbers for 2021 look like this:

1.) the number of civilian female children and adult women killed and injured nearly doubled

 

2.) the number of civilian boys killed increased by 36 percent

 

3.) the number of adult males killed increased by 35 percent

 

While the casualties over the first six months of 2021 rose significantly on a year-over-year basis, the numbers for May and June 2021 look even worse than those for the entire first half of the year.  UNAMA notes that over these two months, there were 2,392 civilian casualties, nearly as many as the previous four months of 2021 when there were 2,791 civilian casualties.  This was the highest number of civilian casualties for those two months since UNAMA began to document civilian casualties in 2009.  UNAMA believes that the increased number of civilian casualties is due to the announcements that international military forces were leaving Afghanistan after which the Taliban captured dozens of district administrative centres.  

 

Here is a graphic showing civilian casualties by incident type for the first six months of 2021:

 

UNAMA's data shows that just under 40 percent of civilian casualties were caused by non-suicide improvised explosive devices (IEDs).  Civilian casualties from IEDs rose nearly three-fold from the first half of 2020 with non-suicide vehicle-borne and pressure-plate IEDs causing the majority of civilian casualties.  The use of pressure-plate IEDs, nearly all by the Taliban, resulted in 42 percent more civilians casualties during the first half of 2021 compared to the first half of 2020.  Here's a quote from UNAMA's report:

 

"Pressure plate-IEDs function as victim-activated devices, triggered by any person stepping on them - including children - or any vehicle driving over them. Anti-Government Elements continued to plant pressure-plate IEDs in public areas frequented by civilians. UNAMA documented many incidents where the devices were emplaced on the roads leading into areas under the control of Anti- Government Elements, as well as left in and around civilian homes in villages from which they had recently departed....

 

UNAMA emphasizes that, as victim-activated devices, the use of pressure-plate IEDs may violate international humanitarian law by virtue of their indiscriminate nature.20 Once emplaced and activated, the user of a pressure-plate IED has no ability to direct its effects towards a particular target, placing civilians at severe risk. UNAMA reiterates its call on the Taliban to permanently ban the use of these indiscriminate devices and reminds the Taliban of commitments on this by its former leader, Mullah Omar."

 

UNAMA's data also shows that non-suicide vehicle-borne IEDs resulted in more than a ten-fold increase in civilian casualties when compared to the first six months of 2020 with two attacks being responsible for nearly 75 percent of all civilian casualties from non-suicide vehicle-borne IEDs.

 

Ground engagements between the Taliban and Afghani national security forces are to blame for 33 percent of civilian casualties with the number of these casualties increasing by 41 percent on a year-over-year basis.

  

Here is a graphic showing civilian casualties by party to the conflict:

 

 

According to UNAMA, Taliban forces are responsible for the largest number of civilian casualties (39 percent) followed by Afghani national security forces (23 percent) and undetermined anti-government entities (16 percent).

  

In closing, let's look at a map which shows how Afghanistan is divided effective the end of July 2021, noting in particular the territory that has been seized by the Taliban since May 1, 2021 in light grey:

 

Here's what it looked like on August 17th:

As you can see, in less than 3 weeks, the Taliban has managed to gain control over the vast majority of Afghanistan.

Given the impact of a two decade-long war on Afghanistan's civilians, it's looking like Afghanis face a very dire situation once the international military forces abandon them to the Taliban as shown in this quote from UNAMA's report:

 

"In May and June 2021, UNAMA verified the destruction and looting of civilian homes, schools, clinics, electricity and mobile phone towers, city water supplies, bridges, shops, and residential apartment buildings. 35 The vast majority of incidents of intentional destruction of civilian property that UNAMA verified were attributed to or done with the complicity of Taliban fighters after they took control of a new area."

 

It certainly seems like the world simply cannot learn the lesson that history has taught; Afghanistan is unconquerable no matter how much military force is used, an expensive lesson learned by the Soviet Union in late 1979 and throughout the 1980s.  The Taliban survived 20 years of attacks by international forces and now look poised to take over the entire nation once again.  While the war may be over for the international forces that have been in Afghanistan since 2001, it certainly appears that the war is far from over for Afghanistan's beleaguered civilian population.