The Hindu : 'Women still under threat'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, May 11, 2002

International

International

'Women still under threat'

New York May 10. Afghan women continue to fear physical violence and insecurity even after the end of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, Human Rights Watch said today. Sexual violence by armed factions and public harassment tied to repressive Taliban-era edicts continue to restrict women in their movement, expression and dress, it said in a new briefing paper.

``Women can only participate in the reconstruction of Afghanistan if they can be physically safe,'' said La Shawn R. Jefferson, executive director of the Women's Rights Division of Human Rights Watch.

"The international community must act now to end violence against women.'' The 11-page briefing paper, "Taking Cover: Women in Post-Taliban Afghanistan,'' documents cases of attacks and threats against women that include rape and other acts of sexual violence and their effect on

women's participation in civil society. Since the end of Taliban rule in Afghanistan in November 2001, women and girls have had growing access to education, health care, and employment.

At the same time, many Afghan women still live in an environment in which personal physical security is constantly under threat. The Human Rights Watch briefing paper documents a number of cases of sexual violence in the northern city of Mazar-e- Sharif, including gang-rapes. Many women continue to limit their movements and to wear a burqa, the head-to-toe enveloping garment, for their physical security, though the Taliban-era edict requiring women to wear the burqa is no longer in force.

Human Rights Watch called on the international community to support the expansion of the mandate and duration of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan (ISAF), increase funding for human rights monitoring in Afghanistan, and provide direct financial and programmatic assistance to the Afghan Ministry for Women's Affairs.

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