THE SITUATION OF WOMEN IN AFGHANISTAN

Background article

THE SITUATION OF WOMEN IN AFGHANISTAN

"Your country is now embarking on a process to create credible and accountable institutions in which all Afghans are represented. These are decisions for Afghan men and women to make. The role of the United Nations is to assist and encourage this process. But, I would like to take this opportunity to say to all Afghans: there cannot be true peace and recovery in Afghanistan without a restoration of the rights of women." UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan in his statement to the Afghan Women's Summit for Democracy (Brussels, 4 to 5 December 2001)

Afghanistan is a country of approximately 23 million which, after three years of severe drought, 23 years of war and devastation and five years under the Taliban authorities, has been left as one of the poorest countries in the world. Afghanistan has the second highest maternal mortality rate in the world. Even before the Taliban came to power, Afghanistan had high maternal and child mortality rates and a very low literacy rate for women. But women participated economically, socially and politically in the life of their societies. Women helped to draft the 1964 Constitution. In the 1970s, there were at least three women legislators in the Parliament. Up to the early 1990s, women were teachers, government workers and medical doctors. They worked as professors, lawyers, judges, journalists, writers and poets.

After the Taliban's rise to power, women and girls were systematically discriminated against and marginalized, and their human rights were violated. This resulted in the deteriorating economic and social conditions of women and girls in all areas of the country, in particular in areas under Taliban control. Women and girls continued to be severely restricted in their access to education, health care facilities and employment. During the Taliban's rule, only about 3 per cent of girls received some form of primary education. The ban on women's employment also affected boys' education, as the majority of teachers had been women. Poor health conditions and malnutrition made pregnancy and childbirth exceptionally dangerous for Afghan women.

The Taliban's policies also severely limited women's freedom of movement. Women could travel only when accompanied by a male relative, which put a particular strain on female-headed households and widows. In May 2001, a decree was issued by the Taliban, banning women from driving cars, which further limited their activities. The resulting seclusion of women to the home constituted a form of solitary confinement and also created obstacles to women meeting with each other. Women were harassed and beaten by the Taliban if their public appearance was perceived to be in contradiction with Taliban edicts. Women's removal from the public space also meant that women could not play any role in the political process and were excluded from all forms of formal or informal governance. Afghan women suffered domestic and other types of violence for the past 25 years, not just under the Taliban regime.

Prior to September 2001, the United Nations Resident/Humanitarian Coordinator, with the UN agencies on the ground and UN senior staff within the UN Special Mission to Afghanistan (UNSMA) continued to address issues related to the discrimination against women and girls. They made numerous efforts to negotiate the withdrawal of various discriminatory decrees, including those banning women's employment, which nevertheless remained in effect. The Afghanistan 2001 consolidated inter-agency appeal emphasized that the assistance community would collectively aim to expand access for Afghan women to education, health services and employment and income-generating activities.

Despite many years of concern about the situation of Afghan women, it is only now, under conditions of extreme tragedy, political violence and destruction, that the situation has propelled Afghanistan and the plight of its women and girls firmly back into the global spotlight. For the first time outside of the setting of the United Nations and of the international community, there is a groundswell of concern, from Parliaments to First Ladies, from entertainers and media stars to non-governmental organizations, all calling for the full recognition of the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan.

Actions by the international community

The United Nations Charter proclaims the equal rights of men and women. Two years ago, the groundbreaking United Nations Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) called for an end to impunity for war crimes committed against women and girls, but also recognized the need to increase women's role in peace negotiations and in peace-building. The United Nations has urged the Afghan parties to bring women into every stage of the political process; and the UN is recruiting Afghan women as quickly as it can to help to provide humanitarian assistance.

The United Nations and its family of organizations have had a long interest in Afghanistan. UNICEF set up its first office there 52 years ago. The situation of Afghanistan, in general, and the situation of women and girls in particular, have remained under intense scrutiny by several United Nations bodies, including the Security Council, the General Assembly, and several of the Economic and Social Council's functional commissions and expert bodies, in particular the Commission on Human Rights, the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, and the Commission on the Status of Women.

In November 1997, Angela E.V. King, the Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women, led an inter-agency gender mission in Afghanistan, to specifically address issues related to discrimination against women and girls under the Taliban. The mission made a set of recommendations aiming to improve the gender situation within Afghanistan and in the United Nations system, so as to better serve the needs of Afghan women. One such recommendation was the appointment of a senior UN adviser on gender in Afghanistan.

After September 2001, the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women continued to address the situation of women's rights in Afghanistan in meetings with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and other senior officials within the United Nations system, in inter-agency consultations and in meetings with representatives of non-governmental organizations. She also facilitated contacts between Afghan women and women's organizations and the UN system and supported the organization of the Afghan Women's Summit in Brussels, and follow-up meetings with the Secretary-General and members of the Security Council in an Arria Formula meeting. She also called on Afghan women to return to their country and former jobs, including in the civil service and elsewhere.

The first Integrated Mission Task Force, which was established at UN Headquarters to advise the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan, Lakhdar Brahimi, included a gender specialist from the Division for the Advancement of Women. Three Executive Committees, reporting to the Secretary-General, on Peace and Security, Humanitarian Affairs and the United Nations Development Group (UNDG), have been meeting regularly and have drawn up strategic recovery plans on the political process, humanitarian assistance and reconstruction of Afghanistan, including gender perspectives. In addition, the UNDG and Executive Committee on Humanitarian Affairs formed a Sub-Group on Gender in Afghanistan, to monitor developments on the ground in order to devise strategies to ensure that a gender perspective was mainstreamed in the peace negotiations and the reconstruction process.

On 14 November 2001, in its resolution 1378, the Security Council expressed its strong support for the efforts of the Afghan people to establish a new and transitional administration leading to the formation of a government, which would be broad-based, multi-ethnic and fully representative of all the Afghan people, and should respect human rights regardless of gender, ethnicity or religion.

Most recently, on 30 January 2002, the 26th session of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women issued a statement of solidarity and support for Afghan women, which stated, among other things, that "The participation of Afghan women as full and equal partners with men is essential for the reconstruction and development of their country." The Committee also called upon all parties concerned to respect internationally recognized principles, norms and standards of human rights, particularly the human rights of women, in all their actions and activities, which the Committee considered essential to achieve peace and stability in Afghanistan.

Today, as the reconstruction and rehabilitation of Afghanistan continues, a number of United Nations entities continue to be actively involved in improving the situation of women and girls in Afghanistan. Some examples of this work includes:

During the Taliban's rule of Afghanistan, bakeries sponsored by the World Food Programme (WFP) represented one of the few job opportunities open to women; WFP bakery projects employed 300 women in Kabul and 100 women in Mazar-I-Sharif before September 2001. Today, WFP is currently assisting about six million people in Afghanistan. Beginning in April 2002, the focus will shift from relief to recovery, with particular emphasis on school feeding for education.

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) managed to implement a massive polio eradication campaign, which reached over 10 million children under five years of age, and delivered life-saving humanitarian assistance, including nutrition, water and environmental sanitation, emergency obstetric care and provision of non-food items.

The UN has launched a large-scale drive to immunize Afghan children against measles - a major, yet preventable, killer disease among the young. Measles is responsible for an estimated 40 per cent of all vaccine-preventable childhood deaths in Afghanistan, killing about 35,000 Afghan children each year. The $8 million effort, which is being organized by WHO and UNICEF, aims to vaccinate up to 9 million Afghan children.

In mid-November 2001, women national staff members of the Office of Humanitarian Affairs, UNICEF, WFP and other agencies returned to work in Kabul and were expected to resume their posts in other urban areas as well.

In December 2001, WFP conducted a major survey on food needs in Kabul. Of 3,612 surveyors employed, some 2,400 were women, the first boost to women's employment since the fall of the Taliban.

The World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF shipped emergency health kits into Afghanistan in October 2001 to serve more than a million people for three months.

In late September 2001, responding to the grave health emergency facing Afghan women, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) mounted its largest-ever humanitarian operation. Thousands of pregnant women were among the Afghan civilians who fled their homes and massed along the country's borders. The lack of shelter, food and medical care, and unsanitary conditions posed a serious risk to these women and their infant children. To provide displaced Afghan women with lifesaving reproductive health care services, UNFPA prepared to pre-position emergency relief supplies in the countries bordering Afghanistan. UNFPA, supported by non-governmental organizations, continues to provide its essential obstetric care services through a network of about 130 clinics.

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) focused on assistance to internally displaced persons inside Afghanistan and on the needs of refugees in neighbouring countries, including the voluntary return of refugees.

The Mine Action Programme initiated the clearing of an estimated 25,000 unexploded cluster bomblet units.

In December 2001, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR) deployed a needs-assessment mission in Pakistan and Afghanistan to assess the human rights situation, which paid particular attention to the systematic discrimination against women and girls.

Under the leadership of the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), a number of meetings were held to prepare and coordinate the efforts of the assistance community and donors in the reconstruction and rehabilitation process in Afghanistan.

The World Bank, ADB and UNDP submitted a joint assessment, entitled "Afghanistan: preliminary needs assessment for recovery and reconstruction", to the International Conference on Reconstruction Assistance to Afghanistan (Tokyo, 21 and 22 January 2002). The assessment addressed gender equality as an important element for the overall reconstruction and development agenda.

The United Nations system, in consultation with the Interim Authority and international and national organizations and non-governmental organizations, prepared a transitional assistance programme, which was presented to the donor community following the Tokyo Ministerial Meeting.

Women's role in the rehabilitation and reconstruction of Afghanistan

Since September 2001, Afghan women have begun to increase their activities. Numerous events were organized during the last few months by and with Afghan women's organizations inside and outside Afghanistan, such as panel discussions, conferences and international meetings, in order to ensure that the experiences and needs of Afghan women would receive the needed attention in all efforts directed at the post-Taliban Afghanistan.

For the first time in many years, new opportunities have been presented for women to reclaim their rights as active participants in the governance, as well as in the rehabilitation and reconstruction of Afghanistan. Schools for girls are being reopened, and young women are enrolling in universities. Women are seeking to return to their former jobs as teachers, doctors and civil servants. Radio and television broadcasts in Kabul once again feature woman commentators.

The United Nations Talks on a transitional government for Afghanistan began in Bonn on 27 November under the leadership of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General Lakhdar Brahimi. Representatives of four Afghan groups participated, representing the Rome process, linked to the former King; the United Front (also known as the Northern Alliance); the Cyprus Group and the Peshawar Group. All political groups had been encouraged by the UN to include women in their delegations and Afghan women's organizations were asked to contact the four groups for participation in the Talks. Two women, Sima Wali and Rona Mansuri, participated as full delegates of the Rome process; Amena Afzali participated as a full delegate of the United Front; Seddiqa Balkhi participated as adviser to the Cyprus Group; and Fatana Gilani participated as adviser to the Peshawar Group. The Agreement on Provisional Arrangements in Afghanistan pending the re-establishment of permanent government institutions was signed in Bonn on 5 December 2001.

In response to requests from Afghan women, a number of non-governmental organizations convened the Afghan Women's Summit for Democracy in Brussels, from 4 to 5 December 2001, in collaboration with the Office of the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women and the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM). About 40 Afghan women leaders from different ethnic, linguistic and religious backgrounds participated, including three who had also attended the UN negotiations in Bonn. The Summit concluded with the adoption of the Brussels Proclamation, which included concrete demands for the recovery of Afghan society in the areas of education, media and culture; health; human rights and the constitution; and refugees and internally displaced women. Participants of the Summit met with members of the European Parliament, members of the U.S. Congress, members of the Security Council in the Arria Formula meeting, and women ambassadors to the United Nations. In their talks, the Afghan women called for measures to increase security in Afghanistan and facilitate the disarmament of all warring factions.

UNIFEM organized a roundtable in Brussels from 10 to 11 December 2001 in cooperation with the Government of Belgium on "Building Women's Leadership in Afghanistan". The roundtable brought together Afghan women and UN agencies, the World Bank and donors, and issued an Action Plan calling for mechanisms to support the role and leadership of women in shaping the future of their country.

On 19 December 2001, the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women organized a breakfast meeting between Afghan women non-governmental organizations and women ambassadors from the permanent missions to the UN, allowing Afghan women to share their vision and priorities for Afghan women. In addition, these Afghan women met with the Secretary-General to share such vision and their views about their role in the reconstruction of Afghanistan.

In January 2002, Hamid Karzai, the head of the Interim Administration, demonstrated his support for women's rights by signing the "Declaration of the Essential Rights of Afghan Women", which affirmed the right to equality between men and women. The Declaration had been adopted by a meeting of Afghans in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, in 2000.

When the Secretary-General visited Kabul on 25 January 2002, he made a symbolic visit to a girls school, which is assisted by UNICEF. Girls from six through 16 were preparing to resume their education after a Taliban-imposed break of five years.

Women are at the helm of two Ministries which are part of the new Interim Administration headed by Hamid Karzai. The Ministry of Women's Affairs, which had never existed before, is headed by Sima Samar, a physician and founder of the Shuhada Organization network of clinics, hospitals and schools in Pakistan and central Afghanistan. Ms. Samar is also one of the five Vice-Presidents of the Interim Administration. Suhaila Siddiq, a surgeon who continued to practice in Kabul throughout the Taliban regime, heads the Ministry of Public Health.

International Women's Day: 8 March 2002

The observance of International Women's Day (8 March 2002) at United Nations Headquarters, under the theme "Afghan Women Today: Realities and Opportunities", is being organized by the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women and the UN Department of Public Information, in cooperation the Inter-Agency Network on Women and Gender Equality and UNIFEM. The special event will focus on the recent developments in Afghanistan, which have created new opportunities for women to claim their rightful roles as full participants in Afghan society. The event will also underscore the international community's support for and solidarity with the women and girls of Afghanistan in the face of the long-term challenges that remain.

Afghanistan at a Glance*

Only about 15 per cent of births are attended by trained health workers, with more than 90 per cent of births take place at home. According to UNICEF, the maternal mortality rate in Afghanistan is the second highest in the world, with an estimated 15,000 women dying each year from pregnancy-related causes.

The infant mortality rate is 165 per 1,000; the under five mortality rate is 257 per 1,000, with one in four children in Afghanistan dying before the age of five from preventable diseases.

Only 23 per cent of the population has access to safe water, and only 12 per cent have access to adequate sanitation, thereby increasing the incidence of diseases. At least 15,000 Afghans die of tuberculosis every year, of which 64 per cent are women.

4 per cent of the population is disabled, many by landmines. Afghanistan is one of the most heavily mined countries in the world. According to the UN Mine Action Programme, Afghanistan has more than 732 square kilometres of its territory mined and about 500 square kilometres of unexploded ordnance.

Malnutrition of women, which negatively affects pregnancies and deliveries as well as the health of children, is not only caused by the food scarcity linked to the conflict and the drought, but is also related to traditional preferences for males which makes women reduce their own food allowance in favour of men and children.

The poor health situation has been aggravated by the lack of basic health services and resources, particularly in rural areas; the strict segregation of medical staff and the small number of trained women doctors, nurses and midwives that remained in the country after the rise of the Taliban.

23 years of war have destroyed the infrastructure of the educational system and further increased the illiteracy rate in Afghanistan. Only 5 per cent of women are able to read and write (during the 1980s, the female adult literacy rate was only 8 per cent).

54 per cent of girls under the age of 18 are married. Families of girls and young women were reportedly forced to marry them to the Taliban or give them large amounts of money instead. Often, families married young girls at an earlier age in order to use the bride price to assist in the family's survival.

The conflict in Afghanistan during the Taliban rule and the militarization of society led to an increased number of abductions of young girls and women by Taliban fighters. The exact numbers are unknown, as families have been reluctant to come forward and report cases of abductions for fear of reprisals and due to the social stigma attached to a daughter or sister kidnapped or sold for sex.

* Source: Report of the Secretary-General on "Discrimination against women and girls in Afghanistan" (E/CN.6/2002/5)

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