New film captures Afghan women's courage in failed peace talks with Taliban
7 months, 3 weeks ago

New film captures Afghan women's courage in failed peace talks with Taliban

Hindustan Times  

By Jenna Zucker New film captures Afghan women's courage in failed peace talks with Taliban TORONTO, - The new documentary "The Sharp Edge of Peace" begins with a harrowing scene: Fawzia Koofi, a former member of Afghanistan’s parliament and a women's rights activist, recovering in a hospital bed after surviving an assassination attempt in August 2020. Directed by Roya Sadat, the 95-minute film is a testament to the courage of Afghan women leaders who continue advocating for change since the Taliban seized power in August 2021, and have drastically curtailed women's freedoms and rights. She was a key figure among women negotiators, including Fatima Gailani, Habiba Sarabi, and Sharifa Zurmati, involved in the intra-Afghan talks in Doha, Qatar aimed at striking a peace deal with the Taliban. "It's painful that most of these countries think that we should influence and change the perspectives of the Taliban,” Koofi said, adding that since regaining power, they have not changed at all.

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History of this topic

'I just felt desperate to do something': Jennifer Lawrence and Malala on their film about the Afghan women fighting back
1 month ago

'I just felt desperate to do something': Jennifer Lawrence and Malala on their film about the Afghan women fighting back

BBC  

'I just felt desperate to do something': Jennifer Lawrence and Malala on their film about the Afghan women fighting back Getty Images Malala Yousafzai and Jennifer Lawrence tell the BBC about their new documentary Bread & Roses, which highlights the stories and voices of Afghan women resisting the Taliban. Apple TV+ Bread & Roses is a mainly fly-on-the-wall documentary that …

'Afghanistan is facing gender-based apartheid, world must come together to address it'
1 month, 2 weeks ago

'Afghanistan is facing gender-based apartheid, world must come together to address it'

Firstpost  

In an exclusive conversation with Firstpost, Afghan human rights activist Mahbouba Seraj narrates how the Taliban’s new ban has taken the country by surprise On October 26, the women in Afghanistan faced another brunt from the Taliban regime after they were barred from technically “hearing each other”. The Taliban’s Minister of Vice and Virtue, Khalid Hanafi, issued a new ban …

How Taliban’s Draconian ‘Morality’ Law Targets Afghan Women, Who Are The Muhtasibs?
3 months, 2 weeks ago

How Taliban’s Draconian ‘Morality’ Law Targets Afghan Women, Who Are The Muhtasibs?

News 18  

How miserable are women in Afghanistan can be understood from the fact that the Taliban have passed a new “morality” law — ‘Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice’ — which imposes its interpretation of sharia or Islamic law on people and bans women from showing any part of their bodies or faces in public. Taliban supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada …

Afghan women stage rare protests, braving Taliban reprisals
9 months, 2 weeks ago

Afghan women stage rare protests, braving Taliban reprisals

Al Jazeera  

Small groups of Afghan women have gathered in private spaces to demand that harsh restrictions on their freedoms be lifted, despite recent Taliban crackdowns on protests that have seen activists detained. On Friday, Richard Bennett, the United Nations special rapporteur for human rights in Afghanistan, called on the Taliban government “to immediately and unconditionally release all those who have been …

Cannes 2023: Jennifer Lawrence brings a documentary on Afghan women to the festival
1 year, 7 months ago

Cannes 2023: Jennifer Lawrence brings a documentary on Afghan women to the festival

The Hindu  

While the world watched Kabul fall and the Taliban surge back to power in 2021 following the withdrawal of U.S. troops, actor Jennifer Lawrence and producer Justine Ciarrocchi were asking themselves what they could do to support women's rights. They eventually found director Sahra Mani, whose 2019 documentary A Thousand Girls Like Me looked at a sexually abused woman’s quest …

Jennifer Lawrence-Produced Afghan Documentary Highlights Women's Lives Under Taliban
1 year, 7 months ago

Jennifer Lawrence-Produced Afghan Documentary Highlights Women's Lives Under Taliban

News 18  

While the world watched Kabul fall and the Taliban surge back to power in 2021 following the withdrawal of U.S. troops, actor Jennifer Lawrence and producer Justine Ciarrocchi were asking themselves what they could do to support women’s rights. They eventually found director Sahra Mani, whose 2019 documentary “A Thousand Girls Like Me” looked at a sexually abused woman’s quest …

World faces tough choices in dealing with Taliban-ruled Afghanistan
1 year, 9 months ago

World faces tough choices in dealing with Taliban-ruled Afghanistan

The Hindu  

Published : Mar 22, 2023 14:24 IST - 7 MINS READ On the third anniversary of the Doha Agreement, signed on February 29, 2020, between the United States and the Afghan Taliban, US spokesperson Ned Price said that the Afghan Taliban were empowered by the agreement. The Afghan Taliban, in its statement, celebrated the day on which the US-led foreign …

UN’s top woman in Afghanistan for talks on Taliban crackdown
1 year, 11 months ago

UN’s top woman in Afghanistan for talks on Taliban crackdown

Associated Press  

UNITED NATIONS — The highest-ranking woman in the United Nations arrived in Kabul on Tuesday at the head of a delegation promoting the rights of women and girls, a response to the recent crackdown by Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers. Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, a former Nigerian Cabinet minister and a Muslim, was joined by Sima Bahous, executive director of UN Women, …

‘Leaders have gone silent’: Malala calls for UK to help oppressed Afghan women
2 years ago

‘Leaders have gone silent’: Malala calls for UK to help oppressed Afghan women

The Independent  

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Nobel Laureate Malala Yousafzai has called on the UK Government …

Empowering Afghan Women and Their Civil Resistance
2 years, 2 months ago

Empowering Afghan Women and Their Civil Resistance

The Diplomat  

After the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, the international community lost everything that it had invested in the last two decades in Afghanistan. The military resistance on the ground, supported by neighboring countries, and the international community’s stance against the Taliban’s strict rules gave Afghan women hope for resistance. Some Survival Strategies To support Afghan women who still fight …

Why the Taliban’s war on women is gravest women’s rights crisis in world
2 years, 3 months ago

Why the Taliban’s war on women is gravest women’s rights crisis in world

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Experts came together for a highly emotional event hosted …

Justine Fleischner of Afghan Peace Watch
2 years, 4 months ago

Justine Fleischner of Afghan Peace Watch

The Diplomat  

A year ago the Western-backed Afghan government collapsed and the Taliban, 20 years after their ouster, seized power once more in Afghanistan. “The Taliban has clearly prioritized its religious and ideological agenda over the economy and the humanitarian needs of the Afghan people,” said Justine Fleischner, director of research at Afghan Peace Watch, in the following interview with The Diplomat’s …

Worldview with Suhasini Haidar | One year of the Taliban | How far has Afghanistan fallen behind?
2 years, 4 months ago

Worldview with Suhasini Haidar | One year of the Taliban | How far has Afghanistan fallen behind?

The Hindu  

August 15 marked a somber anniversary for Afghans- one the Taliban celebrated, but hundreds of thousands of Afghans in exile mourned as the day they lost their country to the terrorist group. The European union has a resident delegation in Kabul, and the US has asked Qatar to represent its interests as a “protecting power” - The Taliban regime receives …

How is life for Afghan women under Taliban rule?
2 years, 9 months ago

How is life for Afghan women under Taliban rule?

Al Jazeera  

On Tuesday, March 22 at 19:30 GMT: Women’s rights have eroded in Afghanistan in the seven months since the Taliban took power, despite promises by the leadership to uphold them. In a tweet published on March 8 – International Women’s Day – the Taliban vowed to defend women’s rights under Sharia, saying, “We protect and defend the rights of our …

Relief and despair: What end of 20-year war brings to Afghan women
2 years, 10 months ago

Relief and despair: What end of 20-year war brings to Afghan women

India Today  

The Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan in August brought an end to 20 years of fighting -- and relief for many women -- but harsh restrictions imposed by the new government are also causing despair. "Before this, the planes were in the sky and bombing," said the mother of three, who like many Afghans goes by only one name. "We are …

A brief history of Afghan women's rights
2 years, 10 months ago

A brief history of Afghan women's rights

The Hindu  

"I was working for the Defense Ministry. "Why would anyone do that," Ghafari asks rhetorically, explaining that many women simply have no choice: As single mothers and the sole bread-earners of the family, they have been particularly affected by the Taliban's ban on work for women. The regime has also banned women from showing their faces on all kinds of …

From exile, female former Afghan leader keeps fighting
3 years, 2 months ago

From exile, female former Afghan leader keeps fighting

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Two months after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan, one of the country’s once-prominent female leaders — a former parliament member, candidate for president and a nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize — is visiting the United Nations, not as a representative of her government but as a woman in exile. Women should not be only the …

Afghan women’s losing battle to remain visible under Taliban
3 years, 2 months ago

Afghan women’s losing battle to remain visible under Taliban

Al Jazeera  

Kabul, Afghanistan – Marzia Hamidi, a 19-year-old Afghan taekwondoin, had big plans. Many women fear a return to enforced invisibility they lived under for five years when the Taliban controlled Afghanistan last. When the Taliban came to power, it promised to respect women and allow them to participate in public life “in accordance with Islamic law”, but secondary schools remain …

Taliban replaces ministry for women with one restricting them
3 years, 3 months ago

Taliban replaces ministry for women with one restricting them

LA Times  

Afghanistan’s new Taliban rulers set up a ministry for the “propagation of virtue and the prevention of vice” in the building that once housed the Women’s Affairs Ministry, escorting out World Bank staffers Saturday as part of the forced move. In Kabul, a new sign was up outside the women’s affairs ministry, announcing it was now the “Ministry for Preaching …

Hear the voices of the women of Afghanistan
3 years, 3 months ago

Hear the voices of the women of Afghanistan

Hindustan Times  

Amid the violence in Afghanistan, the fate of women in what is already a de facto Islamic Emirate has received inadequate attention. I spoke to Mahbouba Siraj, president of the board of the Afghan Women’s Network and human rights activist who lives in Kabul. Yes, we heard a lot of talk about human rights for women from world leaders but …

Taliban beat Afghan woman as protest in Kabul turns violent: Reports
3 years, 3 months ago

Taliban beat Afghan woman as protest in Kabul turns violent: Reports

India Today  

The ongoing women-led protest in Kabul took a violent turn on Saturday after the Taliabn stopped their way to the presidential palace and lobbed tear gas on them, according to TOLO news. In a video shared by Etilaatroz news publisher Zaki Daryabi, the woman, identified as Rabia Sadat, could be seen with a bleeding forehead. pic.twitter.com/1s3El4TZHW — Zaki Daryabi September …

Won't give up, say female boxer, singer and journalist from Afghanistan post Taliban takeover
3 years, 3 months ago

Won't give up, say female boxer, singer and journalist from Afghanistan post Taliban takeover

India Today  

In their first official press conference since they took control of Kabul on August 15, the Taliban had vowed to protect women's rights "within the limits" of Islamic law in Afghanistan. ‘MY GOAL IS TO WIN OLYMPIC MEDAL FOR AFGHANISTAN’ Seema Rezai, an 18-year-old boxer with the word ‘boxer’ tattooed on her wrist, is a member of Afghanistan’s national boxing …

Women’s rights and the US’s ‘civilising’ mission in Afghanistan
3 years, 4 months ago

Women’s rights and the US’s ‘civilising’ mission in Afghanistan

Al Jazeera  

The US imperial endeavours in Afghanistan and anywhere else in the world have never benefitted women and their rights. Long before the 9/11 attacks even transpired, US politicians, celebrities and self-declared feminist activists had been pushing for a “liberation” of women in Afghanistan that conveniently dovetailed with imperial geostrategic interests. In November 2001, the month after the launch of Bush’s …

Despite assurances of dignity from Taliban, Afghan women have everything to lose
3 years, 4 months ago

Despite assurances of dignity from Taliban, Afghan women have everything to lose

Firstpost  

The absence of women in those crazy scenes at the airport this week, for me, portended a continuation of their long story of silent bravery and resilience This April, a report by the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission stated that 14 women had been killed and 22 wounded since January in targeted attacks, even as the Taliban and the now-deposed …

Taliban declares ‘amnesty’ and urges women to join govt, but fear stalks filmmakers, photographers
3 years, 4 months ago

Taliban declares ‘amnesty’ and urges women to join govt, but fear stalks filmmakers, photographers

Firstpost  

Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the United Nations’ high commissioner for human rights, noted both the Taliban’s vows and the fear of those now under their rule Even as women in Afghanistan from all walks of life – from filmmakers to photographers – have taken to social media to express fears about their futures under Taliban rule and plead for …

‘I prefer to die than to go with them’: Afghan women dread Taliban rule
3 years, 4 months ago

‘I prefer to die than to go with them’: Afghan women dread Taliban rule

LA Times  

Tamana Bahar was a toddler when the Taliban first ruled Afghanistan. “The only hope I have is you.” Taliban officials who appeared Tuesday on state television and at a briefing in Kabul said women’s rights would be respected within the boundaries of sharia, or Islamic law. I am deeply worried about women, minorities and human rights advocates,” Yousafzai wrote on …

‘I definitely want to stay’: Afghan women grapple with prospect of life under the Taliban again
3 years, 5 months ago

‘I definitely want to stay’: Afghan women grapple with prospect of life under the Taliban again

LA Times  

Since the day the Taliban and the U.S. began negotiating almost two years ago, Laila Haidari hasn’t had a good night’s sleep. “The Taliban mention an ‘Islamic framework.’ But there are no details as to what that looks like,” said Hosna Jalil, former Afghan deputy minister of women’s affairs. On board were figures as disparate as actor Angelina Jolie and …

Opinion: For Afghan women, the US rhetoric of liberation has fallen short
3 years, 6 months ago

Opinion: For Afghan women, the US rhetoric of liberation has fallen short

CNN  

Editor’s Note: Lina AbiRafeh is a global women’s rights expert, humanitarian aid worker, and executive director of The Arab Institute for Women. But I knew even then that Afghan women were not to be “beneficiaries” of “charity,” but rather strong women with agency, who, with the right kind of support, could change their own lives. I stayed in Afghanistan for …

Concerns mount that US withdrawal from Afghanistan could risk progress on women’s rights
3 years, 8 months ago

Concerns mount that US withdrawal from Afghanistan could risk progress on women’s rights

CNN  

CNN — Concerns are mounting from bipartisan US lawmakers and Afghan women’s rights activists that the hard-won gains for women and civil society in Afghanistan could be lost if the United States makes a precipitous withdrawal from the country. Progress ‘could evaporate’ Gailani told those at the virtual discussion that an American troop withdrawal from the country must be “extremely …

Woman member of Afghanistan's peace team survives attack by gunmen near Kabul
4 years, 4 months ago

Woman member of Afghanistan's peace team survives attack by gunmen near Kabul

Firstpost  

Fawzia Koofi, who is part of a 21-member team which will represent the Afghan govt in upcoming peace talks with the Taliban, is in good health, said the team’s head. Kabul: A female member of Afghanistan’s peace negotiating team and a former parliamentarian survived an assassination attempt, Afghan officials said Saturday. Koofi is part of a 21 member team charged …

Afghan women's rights trailblazer survives gun attack
4 years, 4 months ago

Afghan women's rights trailblazer survives gun attack

India Today  

Trailblazing Afghan women's rights campaigner Fawzia Koofi, a member of the Afghan negotiating team that will hold talks with the Taliban, has been wounded in a gun attack near Kabul, officials said Saturday. Gunmen opened fire on Koofi, 45, and her sister on Friday when they were returning from a meeting in the province of Parwan near the capital, interior …

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