Rights of Afghan Women Since the US Invasion

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Sadly, women do not even have the power to advocate for change in their government. Karzai and his administration are trying their best to exclude women from politics. In the 2003 Loya Jirga, or peaceful gathering, a new Afghan constitution was considered. Western countries pushed Karzai to include women delegates in the convention. Women across Afghanistan campaigned for election to the committee to ensure that in the peace talks with the Taliban, women’s rights would not be compromised in exchange for peace. The deceptive nature of this convention soon became clear when Malalai Joya, a women’s representative, was thrown out of the conference for denouncing the Taliban, many of whose members were present and who had been granted amnesty for their ‘war crimes’ (Jalal et al., 2006). Another Loya Jirga was planned in 2009, to discuss the Taliban’s insurgency and try to reach a peaceful agreement. Although a few more women were present than previously, the meeting was postponed due to Taliban attacks, showing the true vulnerability of Afghan security and lives (“Peace Unveiled,” 2011). Furthermore, in the recent 2014 presidential elections, women have been deterred from voting due to Taliban attacks. Furthermore, a significant number of women still vote based on what was “suggested to them” (Mahr, 2014, p. 29). Most voting sites, even under heavy guard, are targets of Taliban suicide bombings or assaults on police, resulting in many deaths (Mahr, 2014). Even through attempts to include women in the governmental and voting process, the rights of women continue to be stifled by the fear of the still rampant Taliban and muted by the peace-seeking government.
Opponents of Afghan women’s rights argue that Westerners cannot hypothesize id...

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