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Taliban treatment of women

The neutrality of this article is disputed.

Most of Afghanistan was ruled by a small religious group called the Taliban (or 'Taleban') from 1996 until the end of 2001. During this rule, Afghanistan was one of the poorest nations in the world and suffered from constant low-level warfare, the civilian infrastructure was all but destroyed, a large number of people were killed or disabled by war or land mines, the average life expectancy was about 43, and there were human rights abuses against religious and racial minorities (especially the Shia muslims and Hazaras). The treatment of women in Afghanistan was often singled out for special attention by the Western world:

  • Women were prohibited from getting an education, though there were some secret schools which taught girls. The education of women became public after the fall of the Taliban.
  • Women were prohibited from getting a job except in healthcare (because it was segregated). If a husband left his wife, she would be hard-pressed to make a living.
  • Women were forced to cover up in a burqa when in public and to wear shoes that did not make noise. Violations of such laws brought on a public caning. Also, if a house had a woman inhabitant, the front windows of that house had to be painted over.
  • The Taliban were also accused of requiring women to stay at home and refusing to give women medical attention.

The Taliban claimed that their policies were favourable to women, but they made little attempt to promote a positive image of themselves and their policies outside of Afghanistan. Inside Afghanistan, they seem to have made more of an effort; for example, by crediting the creation of the Taliban to a desire by Mullah Omar to end the rape and abuses against women that were common place in the period before the Taliban, and by appealing to the idea that women needed extra protection during the period of fighting.


Last updated: 02-19-2005 00:14:32
Last updated: 05-03-2005 17:50:55