Under the shadow of Taliban repression and systematic discrimination, women in Afghanistan face a daily struggle between life and death. With the imposition of restrictions and the closure of support institutions, many women are exposed to domestic violence and, in the absence of law and adequate protection, fight for survival.
Sanam, a resident of the Guzara district of Herat province, is one of thousands of women living in shocking and painful conditions. She grapples with five children, an absent and indifferent husband, physical and psychological violence, poverty, and homelessness. She has been forced to send her daughters to a Quranic memorization school, where they have now fallen into the clutches of Taliban fighters. Her young son remains stranded in Iran, while Sanam herself suffers from recurring seizures and dizziness as she struggles to prevent her daughter from falling into the hands of the Taliban. She has repeatedly approached Taliban courts seeking a divorce, but the courts have responded by telling her that “the fault is your own,” and she has been told she must continue living in these conditions.
“I have been married for 15 years and have five children,” the woman says. “My husband has left me alone with five children, gone to Kabul, and taken a second and third wife. My situation is very bad. During the month of Ramadan, we have neither food to eat nor clothes to wear.”
Sanam adds, “One of my daughters fell from the fifth floor and died. When I was pregnant, my husband used to beat me, and my child was stillborn. Now, when I call my husband to ask for help, instead of helping me, he insults and humiliates me.”
This woman, whose life has been pushed to the brink of ruin by the weight of hardship and uncertainty, says: “With great difficulty, I managed to get an Iranian visa for my son so he could go and work, but he has now been caught up in the fighting, and I have no news of him whatsoever.”
Sanam, who is herself trapped under the crushing weight of life, her husband’s violence, and his neglect, now fears that her daughter too will become the victim of a marriage that makes her life even darker than her own. She says that to prevent her daughter from remaining illiterate, she was forced to send her to a Quranic memorization school. But now, this child has fallen into the sights of one of the Taliban fighters, who has come forward to ask for her hand in marriage.
She adds: “My daughters have remained illiterate because there is no school for them to study and build their futures. I was forced to send them to a Quranic memorization school, but one of the Taliban members has proposed to my daughter and is insisting that I give her to him. My daughter has no father to protect her, and there is no one else to help us leave this place. I do not know what my daughter’s future will be.”
Sanam says, “This situation is causing me immense stress. I suffer seizures in my head. Whatever is within my reach, I end up hitting my own children, and then I lose consciousness and regain my senses after a few minutes. I truly do not know what to do. My left hand and foot have gone numb. Several times I decided to go to people’s homes to do cleaning work, but I could not, because my hand does not function.”
This woman, who carries the weight of years of violence and grief on her shoulders and whose words fail to capture the depth of her pain, adds: “I have tried many times to do sewing work, but the seizures I suffer have left me incapacitated, and now I cannot even sew. Meanwhile, my husband has gone to Kabul and is living in comfort.”
Sanam says: “I live in a house where I never even imagined I would survive the harsh winter. When I go to the Taliban courts to seek a divorce, they tell me the fault is my own. What fault have I committed? There is no one to come to our aid, to help us, or to hear our voices. What are we supposed to do?”
Previously, several women, speaking to the Hasht-e Subh Daily, said that, due to the absence of legal institutions, their cases are not being pursued and they are unable to obtain divorces from their husbands. These women had also said that they approached Taliban courts, but instead of listening to them, the Taliban insulted, humiliated, and labeled them as immoral women.
This comes as the Washington Post, in a published report, stated that the Taliban view women who have obtained divorces in Afghanistan as “lawbreakers and immoral women.” According to the report, thousands of divorced women currently face the risk of imprisonment and violent retribution. The report further states that since the collapse of the republican system, power has shifted in favor of husbands who have ties to the Taliban. The report notes that divorced women who have remarried have been forced to go into hiding out of fear of retaliation from their former husbands and accusations of “adultery.”
This comes as, on the occasion of March 8, International Women’s Day, many women and girls published protest videos expressing deep concern over the Taliban’s misogynistic policies in Afghanistan, calling on the international community to formally recognize gender apartheid in Afghanistan. These women stated that the streets are their battleground and that they will continue their struggle until equality is achieved, social justice is ensured, and women are liberated from Taliban rule.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
۸ مارچ؛ زندهگی در برزخ؛ صنم چگونه در دام شوهر و طالبان افتاد؟
