Afghan Women Defend Right To Drive As Taliban Curb Licenses
New
Age Islam News Bureau
03
May 2022
•
US Special Envoy Rina Amiri: Muslim Nations Must Champion Rights of Afghan
Girls
•
Iraqi Female Artist's Murals Bring 'Joy' To Baghdad Concrete Jungle
•
US Special Envoy Calls On Muslim World To Champion Afghan Women's Rights
•
Sexual Violence Against Women Remains Rampant In Pakistan
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/afghan-women-taliban-rights/d/126922
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Afghan
Women Defend Right To Drive As Taliban Curb Licenses
Afghan
women wait to receive a food package being distributed by a Saudi Arabia
humanitarian aid group at a distribution center in Kabul, Afghanistan, April
25, 2022. (REUTERS)
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May
03, 2022
HERAT,
Afghanistan: Taliban officials in Afghanistan’s most progressive city have told
driving instructors to stop issuing licenses to women, professionals from the
sector said.
While
Afghanistan is a deeply conservative, patriarchal country, it is not uncommon
for women to drive in larger cities — particularly Herat in the northwest,
which has long been considered liberal by Afghan standards.
“We
have been verbally instructed to stop issuing licenses to women drivers ... but
not directed to stop women from driving in the city,” said Jan Agha Achakzai,
the head of Herat’s Traffic Management Institute that oversees driving schools.
Adila
Adeel, a 29-year-old woman driving instructor who owns a training institute
said the Taliban want to ensure that the next generation will not have the same
opportunities as their mothers.
“We
were told not to offer driving lessons and not to issue licenses,” she said.
The
insurgents-turned-rulers seized back control of the country in August last
year, promising a softer rule than their last stint in power between 1996 and
2001, which was dominated by human rights abuses.
But
they have increasingly restricted the rights of Afghans, particularly girls and
women who have been prevented from returning to secondary school and many
government jobs.
“I
personally told a Taliban (guard) that it’s more comfortable for me to travel
in my car than sit beside a taxi driver,” said Shaima Wafa as she drove to a
local market to buy Eid Al-Fitr gifts for her family.
“I
need to be able to take my family to a doctor in my car without waiting for my
brother or husband to come home,” she said.
Naim
Al-Haq Haqqani, who heads the provincial information and culture department,
said no official order had been given.
The
Taliban have largely refrained from issuing national, written decrees, instead
allowing local authorities to issue their own edicts, sometimes verbally.
“It
is not written on any car that it belongs only to men,” said Fereshteh Yaqoobi,
a woman who has been driving for years.
“In
fact it is safer if a woman drives her own vehicle.”
Zainab
Mohseni, 26, has recently applied for a license because she says women feel
safer in their own cars than in taxis driven by male drivers.
To
Mohseni, the latest decision is just a fresh sign that the new regime will stop
at nothing to prevent Afghan women from enjoying the few rights they have left.
“Slowly,
slowly the Taliban want to increase the restrictions on women,” she said.
Source:
Arab News
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2074866/world
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US
Special Envoy Rina Amiri: Muslim Nations Must Champion Rights of Afghan Girls
US
Special Envoy Rina Amiri
----
May
2, 2022
The
US special envoy for Afghanistan’s women, girls and human rights, Rina Amiri,
said that at an Iftar dinner ambassadors from Muslim-majority countries “agreed
that the Muslim world must champion the rights of Afghan women and girls.”
Amiri
said that depriving women of work and girls of education is not seen in any
Islamic country.
“Taliban
policies denying girls and women education and jobs aren’t seen in any other
Muslim-majority country,” she said on Twitter. “Discussed challenges in
Afghanistan with Nordic partners, including ban on girls return to schools and
attacks targeting Hazaras. Agreed on importance of unity in pushing the Taliban
to reopen schools and demanding protection of all Afghans, particularly ethnic
and religious minorities.”
Schools
have remained closed for female students above grade six for more than eight
months.
“We
are happy about any meetings and efforts made in support of reopening the
schools for girls. The Islamic countries have a direct impact on the Taliban
because they are citing their sources from Islam,” said Naveeda Khurasani, a
female rights activist.
“I
hope the stance made regarding supporting Afghan women is sincere and causes an
intense pressure on the group ruling Afghanistan,” said Marriam Marouf, a
women's rights activist.
This
comes as female students above grade six called on the Islamic Emirate to
reopen their school.
“We
were happy this Eid that the Islamic Emirate might give us news about the
reopening of school for girls, but unfortunately there is no news thus far,”
said Sofia, a student.
The
banning of girls from going to school has faced strong reactions inside and
outside the country.
Over
the past months, several countries, international organizations and religious
clerics from across the world called for the reopening of schools for female
students in grades 7-12.
Source:
Tolo News
https://tolonews.com/index.php/afghanistan-177841
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Iraqi
female artist's murals bring 'joy' to Baghdad concrete jungle
03
May 2022
Iraqi
artist Wijdan al-Majed is transforming Baghdad's concrete jungle into a
colour-filled city with murals depicting well-known figures from the
war-scarred country and abroad.
Perched
on a scaffold at a busy intersection, the 49-year-old artist and instructor at
the Baghdad College of Fine Arts is adding final touches to a mural dedicated
to celebrated Iraqi poet Muzzafar al-Nawab.
Peasant
women in traditional dress adorn the background of the mural, commissioned by
Baghdad mayor Alaa Maan.
He
launched the initiative nine months ago in a bid to "bring beauty to the
city and move art to the streets to get rid of the grey and dusty colours"
that hang over Baghdad.
Majed,
an artist more accustomed to exhibiting her work in the cosy and reflective
settings of galleries, at first had helpers to create the street art.
But
she has turned to working alone, undaunted by the "huge challenges"
she faces as a woman in a largely conservative, male-dominated society.
"Sometimes
I work late into the night," said Majed, wearing jeans and shoes
splattered with paint.
"The
street is scary at night, and it's not easy for a woman to be out so
late," she said.
Motorists
and passers-by often slow down or stop to watch the woman on her scaffold,
paintbrush in hand and hard at work.
'Iraqis
accepted me'
Disparaging
comments are sometimes fired her way.
"I
learn to live with it and ignore them," she said.
"People
have become used to seeing a woman paint. Iraqi society has accepted me."
Many
Iraqis are happily surprised by the transformation of their capital.
"This
is the most beautiful Muzaffar," a motorist shouted as he drove past Majed
while she touched up the poet's mural.
Nicknamed
the "revolutionary poet", Muzaffar al-Nawab, who spent years in jail
for writing about successive repressive regimes in Iraq, holds a special place
in the hearts of many Iraqis.
At
least 16 murals have been painted across Baghdad, with one devoted to Jawad
Salim, considered the father of Iraqi modern art and a celebrated sculptor, and
another to the late, world-famous Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid.
German
sociologist Max Weber and Catholic saint Mother Teresa are among the foreigners
celebrated on Baghdad's new murals.
Maan,
the mayor and an architect by profession, chooses the subjects which Majed
paints in vivid colours -- a jarring contrast with the rest of the city.
'Bringing
joy' to the city
Baghdad's
infrastructure was laid to waste by a 13-year international embargo against the
regime of late dictator Saddam Hussein, the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled
him and the subsequent years of sectarian violence, culminating in the rise and
fall of the Islamic State jihadist group.
Maan
acknowledges that much needs to be done to rehabilitate the city, which once
stood as a beacon of Arab culture but now struggles like most of Iraq with
corruption and mismanagement.
"The
city is the first victim: any problem elsewhere in the country is reflected
here," Maan said.
"When
unemployment soars, you will see street vendors... and when the housing crisis
flares, slums emerge."
Graffiti
covers many buildings and facades in Baghdad - including political messages
dating back to bloody anti-government protests that rocked the country for
months from late 2019.
Cables
from private electricity generators - desperately needed to make up for chronic
power cuts - add to the disfigurement of the capital.
For
Majed, painting murals "brings joy" across the city of nine million
people.
In
the teeming Al-Sadriya neighbourhood, known for its popular market, a mural
depicting two men selling watermelons has won hearts.
"This
is a slice of Baghdad's heritage," said textile merchant Fadel Abu Ali,
63.
The
mural is a reproduction of a work by late artist Hafidh al-Droubi, who often
portrayed Baghdad daily life. – AFP
Source:
The Star
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US
special envoy calls on Muslim world to champion Afghan women's rights
May
3, 2022
The
US special envoy has said that the "Muslim world must champion the rights
of Afghan women and girls", reported local media.
The
remarks of Rina Amiri, the US special envoy for Afghan women, girls and human
rights, came after she co-hosted an Iftar dinner with the Chief of US Protocol
Rufus Gifford and ambassadors from several Muslim-majority countries.
Taking
to Twitter, the US special envoy said, "Taliban policies denying girls and
women education and jobs aren't seen in any other Muslim-majority
country."
She
also highlighted the issue of the ban on girls' education in Afghanistan and
called on the international community to push the Taliban to reopen schools.
"Discussed
challenges in Afghanistan with Nordic partners, including ban on girls return
to schools and attacks targeting Hazaras. Agreed on importance of unity in
pushing the Taliban to reopen schools and demanding protection of all Afghans,
particularly ethnic and religious minorities," she tweeted.
Notably,
schools have remained closed for female students above grade six for more than
eight months in Afghanistan.
The
women's rights activists expressed hope that the efforts made in support of
schools reopening for girls will have an impact on the Taliban, reported
ToloNews.
"We
are happy about any meetings and efforts made in support of reopening the
schools for girls. The Islamic countries have a direct impact on the Taliban
because they are citing their sources from Islam," the media outlet quoted
Naveeda Khurasani, a female rights activist, as saying.
"I
hope the stance made regarding supporting Afghan women is sincere and causes an
intense pressure on the group ruling Afghanistan," said another women's
rights activist, Marriam Marouf.
Meanwhile,
the Taliban's Ministry of Education (MoE) said the group is close to a solution
for reopening the school for girls.
"When
we ask the Minister (of Education), he told me the issue is close and a proper
solution will be reached in the near future and that the girls will return to
the school," said Aziz Ahmad Riyan, a spokesperson for the ministry,
according to TOLOnews.
The
Taliban regime which took over Kabul in August last year has curtailed women's
rights and freedoms, with women largely excluded from the workforce due to the
economic crisis and restrictions.
According
to HRW, women and girls are blocked from accessing health care as well. Reports
suggest that women and girls facing violence have no escape route. Allowing
girls into schools and other educational institutes has been one of the main
demands of the international community. The majority of countries have refused
to formally recognize the Taliban amid worries over their treatment of girls
and women and other human rights issues.
Source:
Business Standard
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Sexual
Violence Against Women Remains Rampant In Pakistan
May
2, 2022
By
Maheen Mustafa
After
a wait of months and a lot of twists and turns, an additional session court
sentenced Usman Mirza and his 4 accomplices in couple harassment case in Islamabad
last month. The case emerged on social media in July last year through a video
in which Mirza and his friends were seen harassing and thrashing a couple in a
room. The female victim later told the court that she was “threatened with gang
rape if she didn’t have sex with her friend while they filmed it” and “they
forced her to dance naked in front of them.”
The
video went viral following which Islamabad police registered a case against
them and arrested Mirza and seven others.
The
case even got the attention of the then Prime Minister Imran Khan who ordered
speedy justice, saying, “the police should use all their energies to bring all
the accused to justice and share the report with the PM Office.” Under extreme
pressure from government and civil society, the hearing of the case started in
court. Everyone was hoping that with the premier following the case, the
victims will get quick justice. However, that is not what transpired.
In
January earlier this year, the female victim suddenly refused to pursue the
case against Mirza and his friends under her “free will”. She admitted an
affidavit in the court deciding not to pursue the case. She told the court that
“police itself created this case, neither I have recognised any accused nor
have I signed any papers.” She further said that she didn’t know any of the
accused and no one tried to assault her sexually. This obviously caused an
uproar on social media as activists and masses expressed concern that the
accused will be released from the jail.
Human
rights activist Shamila Ghyas Ahmed says, “Blackmailing has been going on since
the case became public. Usman Mirza even boasted in a TikTok video that he’ll
be out soon and thanked police officials for helping him.”
Journalist
Salman Masood noted, Usman Mirza’s case
is proof of how difficult it is to get justice in a system that is rotten, easy
to manipulate, and where the powerful always escape accountability.”
Rights
activists maintain that there needs to be proper policing, a pressure-free
environment and robust security for the victims. Furthermore, they insist that
society needed to be taught there is no shame in reporting such cases, which is
the only way to get justice and to tackle this menace.
This
uproar resulted in something positive as police and state became the
complainant in this case. And thus, it reached its ultimate result.
Experts
warn that even though the case was eventually resolved, it exposed the weakness
of our justice system and how easy it is to manipulate it.
There
are countless examples where the powerful escape legal punishment or even if
they are penalised, they enjoy a life of luxury in prison. A major example of
this is the Shahrukh Jatoi case who was found leading a comfortable life in a
hospital room despite being sent to jail by the Supreme Court.
Observers
also maintain that the case highlights the menace of sexual assault in our
society and how powerful can easily evade any kind of consequences.
According
to Human Rights Ministry report, as many as 14,456 women were assaulted in the
country in last four years. 4,326 cases of rape reported in the year 2018
followed by 4,377 rape cases in 2019, 3,887 cases in 2020 and 1,866 cases in
2021. But the gravest part of this report is that it mentioned that only 4 per
cent of total rape cases result in the conviction.
Analysts
reiterate that a large number of cases are not reported, and even those are not
handled by the police properly. After reaching the court, the pressure tactics
and other manners result in an abysmally low conviction rate.
Rights
activists maintain that there needs to be proper policing, a pressure-free
environment and robust security for the victims. Furthermore, they insist that
society needed to be taught there is no shame in reporting such cases, which is
the only way to get justice and to tackle this menace.
“Pietist
women have become empowered to pitch an unprecedented offensive against
feminists and they are supported by a government that promotes peak piety as
its policy and is reinforced by a misogynist media that glorifies women’s
domestication,” noted Afiya S Zia, the author of ‘Faith and Feminism in
Pakistan’.
“The
right-wing is ideologically clear in that the source of women’s security lies
in the family and domestic sphere and that their organised political party with
its gender apartheid agenda is the pathway to achieving this goal,” noted Afiya
S Zia, the author of ‘Faith and Feminism in Pakistan’
A
progressive counternarrative is needed that ensures women’s security based on
their own selves and not what their gender identity signifies to families and
societies.
Source:
Pakistan Today
https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2022/05/02/sexual-violence-against-women-remains-rampant/
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URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/afghan-women-taliban-rights/d/126922