Life under the Taliban: “Women erased from public life” | ticker VIEWS

It’s been almost two months since the Taliban took over power in Afghanistan, and their dominance is leaving an impact on the world

From protests being broken up with machine gun fire, to young girls being banned from school, life under Taliban rule has been especially hard for the women of Afghanistan.

The Taliban’s repression of women has been something the group has long been known for, despite the militant organisation pledging that this time ‘things would be different’ when it comes to the treatment of females.

But the group’s promises appear to be nothing but words, according to those on the ground living life under Taliban rule.

CNN Correspondent Clarissa Ward, who fled Kabul in August when Afghanistan was taken over by the Taliban, has now returned to the war-torn country

Ward, who reports on the ground live on CNN television, returned to Kabul just days ago, after the Taliban granted the international reporter permission, but, things are much different now in comparison to before.

As she explains in her broadcasts, Ward has seen the repression of women continue by the Taliban, stating “women are being pushed out of public life.”

Ward states that the new regime isn’t living up to their promise, stating women have well and truly been erased from public life.

In recent weeks, some women of Afghanistan have taken to the streets to quietly protest for their freedoms, such as right to work and receive an education.

Although the defiant women stand quietly, their message is powerful, explains Ward.

“At the end of the day, the Taliban don’t know how to deal with women…they don’t know how to interact with women” – Clarissa Ward

Having the courage to speak up against the regime is powerful enough, let alone put yourself out in public for those on the streets to see.

In her package broadcasted on the American network, footage shows the moment women protest peacefully on the streets of Kabul, holding signs in their hands calling for the right to education.

As depicted within the footage, scenes escalate when the Taliban show-up to end the protest, with members of the militant group ripping up posters and “snatching” mobile phones out of the women’s hands.

The Taliban’s response:

Shortly after the militant group broke up the crowd at the protest, a Taliban leader fronted the cameras.

The leader claimed that the women who had been protesting had not received permission to do so.

He claimed to be supportive of women’s rights.

The Taliban recently announced that from Grade Six to Year 12, only boys will be allowed to attend school.

That new rule sadly meant girls above grade five will no longer have access to an education.

It’s a sad development for the nation that was just 12 months ago, hopeful of a better future, where girls attended school to build on their dreams.

The regime’s rule on an education block now means many girls will have no choice but to stay at home, many becoming housewives after marrying at an early age.

Women also banned from playing sport:

Afghan women, including the country’s women’s cricket team, will be banned from playing sport under the new Taliban government, according to an official in the Taliban.

During an interview with an Australian broadcaster, the deputy head of the Taliban’s cultural commission, Ahmadullah Wasiq, stated that women’s sport was considered neither appropriate nor necessary.

The future that awaits women of Afghanistan seems now quite sombre, and even though the Taliban recognise that in 2021 the treatment of women is closely watched by western nations, they still find it hard to see women as an asset to the country’s development.