By Rukhshana Media
When a group of women protestors gathered in the Afghan capital on Tuesday, they were greeted by members of the Taliban. In their hands contained a list of names: the extremists were searching for the demonstration’s organizers.
The women were rallying in front of the United Nations office in Kabul, where they called on the international community to pressure the Taliban to respect their rights, reopen high schools for girls and allow women back at work.
“The Taliban read my name from a list and asked, where is she?” said 26-year-old Rokhshana Rezae, who attended the protest with her face covered by a scarf to avoid detection.
Another protester confirmed that her name too was on the list.
Unlike previous demonstrations, where women were shoved, beaten and yelled at by members of the Taliban, this time the women were being clearly identified, and urged to not protest.
“We wanted to meet with the UN representative in Afghanistan to voice women’s concerns, but the Taliban did not allow us,” said 32-year-old activist Zahra Jafari. “The Taliban surrounded us and told us we must say they’re here for our security.”
Rezae said the Taliban asked them to chant against the UN, instead of the Taliban, who took down the women’s anti-Taliban signs and ripped them apart.
Since the Taliban returned to power in mid-August, the group has introduced sweeping curbs on women’s rights, saying they are “temporary” measures due to the insecure situation in the country. But activists say these are the same restrictions put in place during the group’s previous rule, and do not believe the Taliban have changed.
“The Taliban told us today that according to Sharia, a woman should stay at home, not at work. It is the duty of a man to work and feed his family,” Jafari said, adding that the Taliban have not changed.
The protesters said that the international community, in particular the United Nations and human rights organizations, have ignored the Taliban’s restriction on women in Afghanistan.
“Even though I am living under threat and the Taliban are looking for me, I want to continue fighting and I will speak with my own name to encourage other women to stand for their rights,” Rezae added.
Tuesday’s protest was the latest in a string of public defiance against the Taliban. Women have staged protests across the country since the group’s lightning takeover in August, demanding their rights be protected and restored. The Taliban has responded violently by beating protesters and arresting and torturing journalists for covering the protests they deem “illegal.”
