Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban supreme leader, has issued another discriminatory decree against women and girls in Afghanistan, setting the salary for all female employees at 5,000 Afghanis per month starting from June 2024. The Taliban’s administrative office stated that this directive applies equally to all governmental and non-governmental institutions and organizations without exception. However, teachers and women currently working in the health sector argue that this Taliban action is a blatant violation of women’s rights and indicative of systematic discrimination and gender apartheid. They point out that worldwide, salaries are determined based on expertise, education level, and job position, but the Taliban have set wages based on gender due to their discriminatory policies against women, which contradicts all professional principles and human rights values. Female employees under the Taliban regime claim that this Taliban action, as part of their misogynistic policies, exemplifies the height of “irrationality and ignorance” in governance. Meanwhile, the UN Women’s Agency published a report stating that the oppression experienced by women and girls in Afghanistan since the Taliban’s takeover is “unprecedented” in scale and generational impact.
The Taliban’s General Administration Office confirmed that Hibatullah Akhundzada has ordered that the salary of all female employees in Afghanistan be set at 5,000 Afghanis. A letter signed by Noor Alhaq Anwar, the acting head of this office, stated that all female employees appointed under the previous government should be paid 5,000 Afghanis.
Additionally, an audio recording attributed to a Taliban official obtained by the Hasht-e Subh Daily emphasizes the universality of Akhundzada’s decree. The official states that this command applies to all governmental and non-governmental institutions, including organizations.
The Taliban official said, “This is a command, it is universal. This command has come directly from the Amir al-Mu’minin’s [Hibatullah’s] office to the administrative office [of the Taliban] and has been disseminated to 26 ministries, including the Ministry of Finance. Women working in any sector, whether budgetary or non-budgetary, will receive this uniform salary. Institutes, universities, organizations, the Ministry of Education, and the Ministry of Public Health are all included. It applies to all without exception.”
A local Taliban official addressed the education supervisors of one of the provinces, saying, “Supervisors of district and city education departments, the entitlement of the June salary was prepared and finalized, but the decree came that female employees’ salaries should be 5,000 Afghanis. Since our payrolls were already processed, we requested the treasury to adjust the salary difference starting from July.”
In this audio clip, the official mentions that the treasury obtained a written commitment from the education department to return any amount exceeding 5,000 Afghanis that was paid to female teachers and employees in July.
Simultaneously, another teacher stated, “Unfortunately, despite having received my salary based on rank, the general decree now applies to all female employees, including teachers, janitors, night-shift workers, and all female staff, setting their salaries at 5,000 Afghanis.”
Teachers and women currently working in the health sector view the Taliban supreme leader’s directive as contrary to all work principles and standards. They assert that this order signifies a complete negation of women’s participation in the workforce and reflects the “irrationality” and “ignorance” of the Taliban supreme leader.
Jamila (pseudonym), a health worker, told the Hasht-e Subh Daily, “What sense does it make that a woman working in the health sector under the worst conditions and with the least resources, who nurses patients day and night, receives the same salary as someone who works less with no specified duties and responsibilities? This is the peak of the Taliban’s irrationality and ignorance.”
Fawzia (pseudonym), a university professor who wished to remain anonymous, stated that if this decree included female professors, it only reflects the Taliban’s lack of understanding and logic concerning higher education and knowledge.
The professor added, “Although we are currently not allowed to go to universities, it was not our choice to stay home. We are ready to continue our duties. We are the country’s cadres with thousands of students. How, and on what logic, can a professor be given the same salary as a 12th-grade graduate or a nurse?” She emphasized that the Taliban supreme leader, with this order, intends to have women sign their house arrest decree.
Additionally, health sources at a government hospital in Afghanistan told the Hasht-e Subh Daily, “According to Sheikh [Hibatullah]’s decree, from now on, the salary for women, from specialists to guards, is 5,000 Afghanis.”
Meanwhile, several women’s rights activists and protesting women consider this Taliban action a continuation of systematic discrimination against women, emphasizing that it is a clear example of gender apartheid against women and girls in Afghanistan.
Zarifa Salangi, a women’s rights activist, states that equalizing the salaries of all female employees solely based on their gender constitutes gender apartheid. She points out that worldwide, employees are paid based on their education level and job position, but under the Taliban regime, salaries are determined based on gender.
On the other hand, Lisa Curtis, a former National Security Council official at the White House, has stated that the Taliban should be held accountable for human rights violations, especially women’s rights, at the upcoming third Doha meeting.
In an article published on the “Just Security” website, Curtis urged the United Nations to expedite efforts to criminalize “gender apartheid.” She emphasized that the UN has not implemented the Security Council’s resolution on appointing a special envoy, despite six months having passed since its issuance.
The former White House official asserted that the UN needs to urgently address its actions regarding Afghanistan, including recognizing gender apartheid as a crime against humanity, which is currently occurring in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, the UN Women’s Agency, in a recent report, called for immediate global action to end the ongoing oppression of women in Afghanistan. According to the agency, the scale and generational impact of the oppression experienced by women and girls in Afghanistan since the Taliban’s takeover is “unprecedented.”
This report includes a survey and profile of women who have faced gender discrimination since the Taliban’s takeover. It shows how 40 years of progress in women’s rights have been undone in less than three years by over 70 decrees issued by the Taliban. The agency states that the social isolation of women and girls leads them to despair.
According to statistics provided by this agency, only one percent of women feel they have an impact on society. Additionally, eight percent of women surveyed in August 2021 now know at least one woman who has committed suicide, and 18 percent of participants have not met with any women outside their families in the past three months.
One survey participant stated, “Women want the right to make decisions, not just in their homes but in the government and other spaces. They want education and work, they want their rights.” The gender profile presented shows that nearly three years after the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan, women’s determination to claim their rights is growing stronger.
Alison Davidian, the UN Women’s Special Representative in Afghanistan, said, “Women of Afghanistan demonstrate extraordinary resilience. Faced with incredible challenges, women continue to run organizations, and businesses, and provide services. We must invest in their resilience, and Afghanistan must remain at the top of the international agenda.”
UN Women also recommended supporting women of Afghanistan’s civil society organizations with long-term funding to combat this situation. The agency emphasized that the international community should avoid actions that could unintentionally support or normalize the Taliban’s discriminatory policies, norms, and values.
Finally, the agency suggested that human rights, with a special focus on women’s rights, should be integrated as a fundamental aspect of all humanitarian activities and essential human needs interventions.
This comes as the Taliban have closed all educational and academic institutions to women and girls in Afghanistan, and for over a thousand days, girls have been unable to attend school. Currently, women are prohibited from going to governmental and non-governmental institutions.
You can read the Persian version of this daily report here:
تعیین معاش برمبنای جنسیت؛ کارمندان: اوج «بیمنطقی و بیشعوری» در عرصه حکومتداری است | روزنامه ۸صبح