Female journalists in Afghanistan are grappling with widespread challenges. These journalists report that, alongside difficulties in accessing information, they face severe economic hardships, systemic discrimination in society, feelings of alienation, diminished self-confidence, and a lack of clear prospects for the future. According to them, the majority of female journalists have become unemployed, and the few who continue working under repression and censorship confirm that they encounter discrimination in media environments. They state that some media outlet managers view female journalists as “the sixth finger,” treating them with contempt. This report includes interviews with eight female journalists, who confirmed experiencing severe mental and psychological issues. They say media institutions and media-supporting organizations have forgotten them. All names in this report are pseudonyms to ensure the journalists’ safety.
Several female journalists in Afghanistan complain about a lack of psychological security, unemployment, and economic pressures. They say that restrictions imposed by the Taliban, particularly bans directly targeting female journalists, have further constrained their work environment and made access to information extremely difficult.
Halima (pseudonym), a female journalist living in Kabul, says: “Every day, I face the challenge of balancing security and truth, especially when working on critical issues, human rights violations, or corruption, which brings more stress and pressure. While writing a report, I often wondered if it was worth risking my life. Sometimes, I had to censor parts of the truth or write under a pseudonym.”
She adds: “Psychological pressures, mental exhaustion, depression, and often a lack of motivation overwhelm me. I feel hopeless. Chronic anxiety and insomnia have become part of my daily life. Sometimes, I feel I can’t go on, but I continue because I must amplify the people’s voice.”
Zainab (pseudonym), one of the journalists working under Taliban rule, says: “I studied journalism with great passion to highlight people’s issues, but today, due to restrictions, I am among the unemployed masses of society, and this torments my soul from within.”
Sara (pseudonym) shares a similar experience with other female journalists. She says: “Journalism in Afghanistan is currently an extremely difficult task. You have to choose between your duty, conscience, and security. Freedom of expression simply does not exist; you cannot reflect the truth because we have witnessed the detention of thousands of journalists, not just detention, but also humiliation, defamation, and a stain of shame that marks one’s life. Even thinking about it crushes the human spirit in the worst possible way.”
Yasmin (pseudonym), another journalist, expresses concerns about the lack of security and workplace safety in Afghanistan. She adds: “Don’t ask about my mental struggles! I’m 28 years old, but when I look in the mirror, I see a woman who looks 40 or 45. These lines and wrinkles don’t match my age at all. I’m grappling with severe depression and anxiety, and it’s evident in my appearance. Even the most trivial matter can make me cry.”
Additionally, some female journalists complain about workplace discrimination and the derogatory attitudes of some male colleagues. They say that certain men, exploiting the prevailing environment, attempt to dismiss women’s work and belittle them.
Khujasta (pseudonym) says: “Not only the Taliban, but there are also many male colleagues with Taliban mentality in our society who, alongside the pressures and restrictions of this group, try to devalue our work with contemptuous and discriminatory attitudes, making us feel weak and exacerbating stress and psychological pressure in the workplace.”
Nasrin (pseudonym), who has had similar experiences, adds: “In the workplace, men’s attitudes toward women were such that they treated them as inferior, assuming they were incapable, and behaved in ways that made women lose their confidence. This loss of confidence caused women’s work to be undervalued, and managers [men] always thought they were superior to women. When your confidence is shattered, you feel that your efforts and hard work are not taken seriously, and this was a real issue.”
Some other female journalists believe they have been forgotten by media institutions and media-supporting organizations, leading to a trend of collective isolation for female journalists.
Firooza (pseudonym) says on this matter: “I ask media-supporting and international institutions and organizations to do more than just send letters to the United Nations or issue statements. We need real action. Pressure must be put on the Taliban, who prevent the truth from being reflected.”
Tahmina (pseudonym) also says: “We have no access to information sources, no freedom of expression—unfortunately, freedom of expression is zero. My future as an independent journalist in this dangerous situation is at risk. I cannot make any long-term plans for my career.”
Since taking control of Afghanistan, the Taliban have severely suppressed the media, eliminated freedom of expression, and restricted access to information to only reflect their activities. Female journalists, due to their gender, bear not only professional restrictions but also the burden of restrictions imposed on women.
These female journalists are voicing their grievances about their situation under Taliban rule, while the group has recently detained four journalists in Afghanistan. Taliban intelligence detained three journalists in Takhar province and one in Ghazni province on charges of publishing critical content on social media and collaborating with media outlets operating outside the country. No information about their fate is available so far.
The Afghanistan Journalists Center (AFJC), in its 2024 report, announced that it recorded 172 cases of violations against journalists and media, including the closure of 22 media outlets and the detention of 52 journalists. According to the center, the statistics show a 24 percent increase in media rights violations compared to the previous year.
AFJC also announced that the Taliban have officially banned the publication of images of living beings in the provinces of Kandahar, Takhar, Badghis, Helmand, Nangarhar, Nuristan, Farah, Nimruz, Badakhshan, Baghlan, Jawzjan, Zabul, Parwan, Kunduz, Bamyan, Daykundi, and Faryab, and have enforced this restriction.
Meanwhile, Reporters Without Borders, in a report publishing the global ranking of media freedom, stated that Afghanistan ranks at the bottom of the list and is among the six countries most repressive of media freedom.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
زنان خبرنگار در سایه طالبان؛ روایت خاموشی، تبعیض و سانسور | روزنامه ۸صبح
