Voices Rising: Women Leaders in Afghanistan

Voices Rising: Women Leaders in Afghanistan

The situation for some women in Afghanistan is abysmal. However, in order to understand the future of this war-affected nation, Afghan women - overwhelmingly portrayed as veiled subjects controlled by their fathers and husbands - cannot all be viewed as powerless victims. Women are moving to the forefront, despite the country’s male-dominated culture. They are parliamentarians, lawyers, athletes, businesswomen, musicians, and more than even before, they are role models for a younger generation of girls. Since the Taliban were thrown out of power almost 13 years ago, women have taken an active part in government and civil society, returning from years spent as refugees in Pakistan or Iran, or reemerging from the hidden life they were forced to lead in their own country. Women are attaining leadership and power positions despite being harassed and threatened for going against fixed gender roles in a traditional society. They are fighting to make their voice heard, both in their professional and personal lives. While these women must deal with challenges, risks and targeted attacks, none of them is willing to give up what she has achieved.

by contributor Anna Loshkin

The situation for some women in Afghanistan is abysmal. However, in order to understand the future of this war-affected nation, Afghan women - overwhelmingly portrayed as veiled subjects controlled by their fathers and husbands - cannot all be viewed as powerless victims. Women are moving to the forefront, despite the country’s male-dominated culture. They are parliamentarians, lawyers, athletes, businesswomen, musicians, and more than even before, they are role models for a younger generation of girls. Since the Taliban were thrown out of power almost 13 years ago, women have taken an active part in government and civil society, returning from years spent as refugees in Pakistan or Iran, or reemerging from the hidden life they were forced to lead in their own country. Women are attaining leadership and power positions despite being harassed and threatened for going against fixed gender roles in a traditional society. They are fighting to make their voice heard, both in their professional and personal lives. While these women must deal with challenges, risks and targeted attacks, none of them is willing to give up what she has achieved.

Shamsia Hassani, a graffiti artist, stands on the roof on the Berang Art Organization. Hassani leads graffiti workshops for young people as well as traditional artists in Afghanistan, and teaches fine art at Kabul University. Young actors in costume practice their lines before going on stage to perform. The all-female cast puts on plays that encourage fair treatment of women in the community. Nilofar Bayot crosses the main street in her West Kabul neighborhood to catch a taxi to her university. Bayot sustained a spinal cord injury at the age of two. Despite her handicap and the perception that handicapped women should stay at home, she plays wheelchair basketball, is in her second year of university and works at the ICRC Orthopaedic Center, where she herself was treated as a child. Surrounded by her staff, Governor Habiba Sarabi takes in the view from the roof of the newly inaugurated Highland Hotel in Bamiyan. As the only female governor in Afghanistan, Sarabi worked on women's education, and on reviving tourism in Bamiyan province. Sarabi stepped down from her post to become the second running mate for presidential candidate Zalmai Rassoul in the April 2014 elections. General Khatol Mohammadzai takes care of paperwork in her new office. She is the only woman to achieve the rank of general in the Afghan National Army, although she doesn't receive the same benefits as the men who share her position. Widowed when her son was only 40 days old, General Khatol has struggled in both in the army and in her personal life as a husbandless woman and single mother. Paradise, the frontwoman for the rap group 143Band, practices with her fiancé and partner Diverse in the studio. Paradise and Diverse started 143Band in Herat in 2008, but were forced to flee to Tajikistan due to threats. In 2013, they returned to Afghanistan with hopes of furthering their musical careers in their own country. Nilofar Bayot and her teammates play wheelchair basketball. Women's practice starts as early as 5 am, and sometimes the men's team joins them later on for a co-ed pickup game. Bayot sustained a spinal cord injury at the age of two. Despite her handicap, she is in her second year of university and works at the ICRC Orthopaedic Center, where she herself was treated as a child. Women from all over Afghanistan attend a conference for female entrepreneurs held in Kabul. Speakers give participants, some of whom have little business experience, advice in areas such as marketing, sales, and product development. A stencil piece by graffiti artist Shamsia Hassani decorates the wall of the Berang Art Organization. Hassani leads graffiti workshops for young people as well as traditional artists in Afghanistan, and teaches fine art at Kabul University. Nargis Azaryun, an activist and director of the non-governmental organization RED (Road to Equality and Development) drives in traffic in Kabul. Women drivers experience both favoritism and discrimination on the road. While they are often waved through checkpoints, male drivers may purposely try to hit their cars. Pigeons fly in front of the Shah-e-Doh Shamshira mosque in downtown Kabul. Laila Haidari talks with the men who live at her shelter for recovering heroin addicts. The 2012 Afghanistan National Urban Drug Use Survey estimates that nearly 11% of adult males use drugs nationwide. Haidari gives the men an opportunity to regain self-worth, stability, and reintegrate into society by working at the restaurant affiliated with the shelter. After she started helping addicts, her husband divorced her because he was opposed to her work. Members of Parliament listen to Shukria Barakzai, an outspoken member of Parliament and the only woman to serve on the Defense Committee. In July 2013, the percentage of seats reserved for women in Parliament was lowered from 25% to 20%. Barakzai has been threatened and targeted by extremists, along with other female Parliamentarians. Frozan Rasuli, one of the ten women on the Afghan Women's National Cycling Team, gets ready to pass a man riding on a city bicycle. The women train by riding on the well paved roads in Kabul and the suburbs. Passersby sometimes stop and stare as the team rides by. Bicycling is considered off-limits for women in Afghan society. Laila Haidari plays a game with a young man who lives her shelter for recovering addicts. The 2012 Afghanistan National Urban Drug Use Survey estimates that nearly 11% of adult males use drugs nationwide. Haidari gives the men an opportunity to regain self-worth, stability, and reintegrate into society by working at the restaurant affiliated with the shelter. After she started helping addicts, her husband divorced her because he was so opposed to her work. Nilofar Bayot's bag sits in her family's living room. Bayot sustained a spinal cord injury in childhood, and despite the perception that handicapped women should stay at home, she works and is in her second year of Law studies. Niloofar, Frozan and Ramila work on their poems at the Herat Literary Association. During the weekly meetings, young men and women share and critique each other's writing. Niloofar has been coming to the Association for the past ten years. Several members have have published books of poetry or prose. Paradise and Diverse of the rap group 143Band look with a friend at photographs from a recent concert. Paradise and her fiancé Diverse started the group 143Band in Herat but were forced to flee to Tajikistan because of threats. In 2013, they returned to Afghanistan with hopes of furthering their musical careers in their own country. Shakila Ebrahimkhel, a journalist with Afghanistan's most popular TV network, Tolo News, is interviewed by Gurbat TV, a start-up news channel. After her husband was killed by the Taliban, Ebrahimkhel convinced her family to allow her to attend Kabul University, where she studied journalism. Seven years ago, she was the first woman to be hired by Tolo. She is routinely threatened for reporting on corruption and crime. High school girls in Herat prepare to start their computer class after power has been restored. The Women's Annex, an organization that strives to increase computer literacy for girls, sponsors 10 such centers in high schools across Herat, all of them with internet access. Nazifa Hassani checks her bicycle's pedal clips with her coach, Sadeq Sadiqi, as passersby stare. Hassani is one of the ten women on the Afghan Women's National Cycling Team. The women train by riding on the well paved roads in Kabul and the suburbs. Passersby sometimes stop and stare as the team rides by. Bicycling is considered off-limits for women in Afghan society. Girls at the Afghanistan National Institute of Music (ANIM) wait for their ensemble teacher to arrive. Founded in 2010 by Dr. Sarmast, ANIM provides a music education alongside the standard Afghan curriculum. Around half of the children studying at the Institute are orphans or former street children. Madina Saidy shows her students how to descend from an indoor climbing wall at Skateistan, a non-government organization that promotes education and sports. Saidy first heard about the organization when she was child selling trinkets on the street, and has worked her way up to a paid teaching position. A man exercises on the parallel bars in Shahr-e-Naw park in Kabul. It's not appropriate for women to exercise in public or go to parks by themselves.