The Girls of the Taliban

Angelica Mae Monong

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The Girls in Afghanistan has had many encounters when it comes to their
education and even their daily lives. Afghanistan was once a Taliban strong hold where
women were deprived in their essential rights and the education for girls was
prohibited.The women in Afghanistan were forced to wear the burqa at all times in public
because according to one Taliban spokesperson that “The Faces of a woman is sort of a
corruption”.

The Women and girls in afghanistan go to madrasas or religious schools. There

are now 1,300 unregistered madrasas in Afghanistan, where children are given only
religious teaching.This has increased the fears of among those who are involved in
mainstream education. Arguably the most controversial of these madrasas is Ashraf-ul
Madares in Kunduz, founded by two local senior clerics, where 6,000 girls study full
time.

They attend the madrasa solely to study the Quran and the teachings of the
prophet Muhammad.They are taught by males but they are forbidden to see each other
face-to-face and during the classes they should wear a full hijab.

A Quran literally meaning “The Recitation” it is the central religious text of the
Islams, which muslims believe that it is a Revelation from their God (Allah). Muslims
believe that the Quran was verbally revealed by God to Muhammad through the
angel Gabriel (Jibril). For a Muslim this is the ultimate source of authority because it is
not only revelation or inspiration of God, it’s the verbatim word of or Revelation of God.

In a systematic segregation sometimes referred to as gender apartheid, women

were not allowed to work, they were not allowed to be educated after the age of eight, and
until then were permitted only to study the Quran.Women seeking an education were
forced to attend underground schools, where they and their teachers risked execution if
caught.

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The Girls of the Taliban
Angelica Mae Monong
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Women were not allowed to be treated by male doctors for their illnesses unless
they were accompanied by a male chaperone, which led to illnesses not being treated
right and for the ones who violate the laws of the Talibans they will face flogging and
execution in the public.
80% of Afghan marriages were forced because in some cases they allow girls
under the age of 16 to be married.

The Taliban treats their women differently from the age of 8 and onwards they are
not allowed to be in contact with men other than a blood relative,Husband, or in-
law.Photographing Women or filming them was banned also putting up pictures of
females in news papers,books,shops or the home.They are also forbidden to appear in
their balconies of their apartments or homes.Their presence is also banned on
radio,televisions, or at any public gatherings of any kinds.

The rulings of the taliban placed severe restrictions on a woman’s freedom of

moving and created huge difficulty for those who can’t afford the burqa.These women
who are not able are faced with a virtual house arrest. A woman who was badly beaten by
the Taliban for walking the streets alone stated "my father was killed in battle...I have no
husband, no brother, no son. How am I to live if I can't go out alone?"

The lives of rural women were less dramatically affected as they generally lived
and worked within secure kin environments. A relative level of freedom was necessary
for them to continue with their chores or labor. If these women traveled to a nearby town,
the same urban restrictions would have applied to them.

In September 30, 1996, The Taliban decreed that all women should be banned
from being employed. Estimated 25% of government employees were females, and when
compounded by losses in other sectors, many of those women were affected perhaps
thousands of them.

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The Girls of the Taliban
Angelica Mae Monong
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Another Loss was for those whom the employed women served their duties and
responsibilities.There was increased rate of mother and child destitution. A Taliban
supreme leader assured those female civil servants and teachers that they would still get
paid of around $5 per month.The talibans promoted the use of the extended family of
charity to ensure women should not be needed to work.

However conflicts began the families struggled their way to support their let alone
aiding additional relatives of them. To qualify for legislation often rested on men, such as
food aiding for their families which had to be collected by a male relative.

Female health professionals were exempted from the employment ban, yet they
operated in much-reduced circumstances. The ordeal of physically getting to work due to
the segregated bus system and widespread harassment meant some women left their jobs
by choice. Of those who remained, many lived in fear of the regime and chose to reside at
the hospital during the working week to minimize exposure to Taliban forces.

The Female employment ban was felt greatly in the education system. In a place
within afghanistan the ruling affected 106,256 girls, 148,223 male students, and 8,000
female university undergraduates. 7,793 female teachers were dismissed, a move that
crippled the provision of education and caused 63 schools to close due to a sudden lack of
educators.

The learners, parents and educators were aware of the consequences should the
Taliban discover their activities, but for those who felt trapped under the strict Taliban
rule, such actions allowed them a sense of self-determination and hope.

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The Girls of the Taliban
Angelica Mae Monong
GAS 1-A

Family harmony was badly affected by mental stress, isolation and

depression that often accompanied the forced confinement of women. A survey of
160 women concluded that 97 percent showed signs of serious depression and 71
percent reported a decline in their physical well being. Taliban restrictions on the
cultural presence of women covered several areas. Place names including the
word "women" were modified so that the word was not used.

Women were forbidden to laugh loudly as it was considered improper for a

stranger to hear a woman's voice. Women were prohibited from participating in
sports or entering a sports club. Punishments were often carried out publicly,
either as formal spectacles held in sports stadiums or town squares or spontaneous
street beatings. Civilians lived in fear of harsh penalties as there was little mercy;
women caught breaking decrees were often treated with extreme violence.

Examples of this are the following:

When a Taliban raid discovered a woman running an informal school in
her apartment, they beat the children and threw the woman down a flight of stairs
(breaking her leg), and then imprisoned her. They threatened to stone her family
publicly if she refused to sign a declaration of loyalty to the Taliban and their
laws. Working women are threatened into quitting their jobs. Failure to comply
with Taliban's threats has led to women being shot and killed.

Many punishments were carried out by individual militias without the

sanction of Taliban authorities, as it was against official Taliban policy to punish
women in the street. A more official line was the punishment of men for instances
of female misconduct: a reflection of a patriarchal society and the belief that men
are duty bound to control women.

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The Girls of the Taliban
Angelica Mae Monong
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How religion affect our society and the human perspective. Today we are
witnessing that decline and since we are pretty much involved in it, it is of utmost
importance to us. At stake are whether the ideals we cherish will survive or some new
abominable set of values win the day.

These are not idle statements. We are today at a turning point of history and our
actions today will decide whether the world goes up from here or continues to slide into
some new dark age.It affects the Society because what we may be doing in our such
religions can affect our decisions for our families and in our daily lives.

It is important to understand bad conditions don’t just happen. The cultural decay
we see around us isn’t erratic. It was caused. Unless one understands this he won’t be able
to defend himself or reach out into the society with effectiveness. A society is capable of
surviving for thousands of years unless it is attacked from within or without by hostile
forces. Where such an attack occurs, primary targets are its religious and national gods
and heroes, its potential of leadership and the self-respect and integrity of its members.

The human perspective we are being affected by religion by the influence of

belief systems have over people starts in their head. What you believe is very important.
So if you believe that smoking, drinking, and doing drugs is wrong then you are more
likely to not smoke, drink, or do drugs. On the other hand if you don’t think that smoking
, drinking, and doing drugs is wrong the chances of you doing all of it is greater. This is
all because of what you believe.

Finally your beliefs must be your own. You must know what you believe. People
can affect what you believe in life. It may be a parent or a teacher. It could be a friend or
even someone you do not like, but everyone influences everyone. For example a pastor
might have a positive influence on you so you try to be like him because you believe he
or she is doing the right thing. I will close with your beliefs are the most important thing
in life and if you do not know what to believe find someone who who you believe is a
good person and try to be like them.

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