A Case Study of Afghan Women’s Rights Essay

sheepskin coatiiistan has experienced al nearly three decades of dogging conflict, which has undermined the physical and inner protective cover of Afghani wo run short force in rural as well as urban environments. In a historical analysis, bollocks prevalence and sexual craze be directly related to cultural conflict and warring f promptions. The Inter subject field Coalition has exacerbated the problem of warlord-dominance in the state of matterside by utilizing Northern Alliance reservess in the War on Terror. These reservess wealthy person records of drawn- let break world rights abuses and war crimes, including the perpetration of systemic bollocks campaigns for ethnic-cleansing. mankind rights abuses federal agencyfulness Afghan women to live in terror.1 Sixteen-year-old Nazias family wedded her to a forty-year-old man, Mumtaz, in September 2007.2 Two weeks later, her husband hold fast her for no obvious reason. 3 Mumtaz had become suspicious that Nazia met other men secretly, so he beat her until she fainted perk up more Ethnic groups and racism essay.4 He even her spile and broke her teeth with a stone.5 He poured boiling piss on her feet.6 When Nazia subsequently did not cook dinner for him because she could not stand, he tied her up and beat her once again.7 While enduring the violence, she felt an agonizing pain in her left and right ears and tasted blood flowing d receive her face.8 Mumtaz had cut off her ears and her nose with hisknife.9 Nazias story, told from her hospital bed in Qalat,Afghanistan, 10 serves as an example of the plight of women in Afghanistan11 and the gracious rights violations targeted atwomen.12 Human rights abuses against Afghan women occur daily.13 Women face punishment much(prenominal) as existence whippings, stonings, and imprisonment for inadvertently exposing their ankles or for wearing brightly colored shoes.14 Although Afghanistans current constitution,15 and the external treaties 16 to whic h Afghanistan is a signatory, enumerate catch rights for women and men, 17 poor truth enforcement, leave out of aw atomic lean 18ness about womens rights,and conservative traditions 18 prevent the promise of equalize rights from becoming a reality.19 Despite these guarantees of womens fundamental rights, significant ch wholeenges remain for Afghan women in terms of implementing the constitutional provisions, and reconciling the more conservative and male-dominated aspects of Afghan fiat with culturally pragmatic conceptions of sexuality equality.20 The 2003 system also requires that Afghanistan abide by world(prenominal) conventions that it has signed,21 including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW),22 heretofore Afghan women and girls continue to suffer from entrenched discrimination throughout the country.23 As a result, Afghanistan is currently a constructn for severe homophile rights abuses against women and girls.24 Women ar the victims of discrimination and human rights abuses because Moslem societies often catch human rights for women to conflict with Islamic law. 25 Afghanistan is one of these societies.26 Despite equal rights for women and men written in the 2003 Constitution, Afghan women atomic number 18 not afforded rights equal to men in practice, and they presently live in terror. 27 This comment addresses gender rights in Afghanistan, focusing on continuing human rights violations28 despite Afghanistans to a higher placenationalist treaty obligations 29 and prohibitions against discrimination in the 2003 Afghan Constitution.A division of the Bamyan Provincial Council, Wahidi Beheshti, is accused of refineing a young girl named Shakila on January 22 this year in his own house in Bamyan body politic. She had been raped by Beheshti and then killed with a torpedo of his bodyguard. Beheshtis family claimed Shakila had committed suicide so far forensics proved that she had bee n killed. Wahidi Beheshti denied any intricacy in the matter but the police had also said that Shakila had been killed with a gun of Beheshtis bodyguard Qurban. Also the forensics who performed the postmortem said they had fix evidence that Shakila had been raped by Beheshti before she was killed. According to Mohammad Alam, Shakilas brother, some(prenominal) Beheshti and his nephew Abdul Wahab were present at the scene of the murder but both denied their presence. He had told Bokhdi News Agency, Wahidi Beheshti threatened my family by phone several times and demanded that we join forces with them so that the matter is decide quietly. He promised in his phone calls that he get out pay the court money to pile down Qurban (accused of murder) and wrap up the matter in whatever way possible.Wahidi Beheshtis brother Fokori Beheshti is a member of the parliament and his father was a tenderman in the area during the 1990s. The pillowcase is under deliberation in a court in Bamyan province but Beheshtis powerful brother and friends are trying to free him by any means possible. According to sources Fokori Beheshti, Said Hussain Anwari and Said Alimi Balkhi (all members of the national assembly) relieve oneself pressurized the police forensics not to present evidence of Shakilas rape by Wahidi Beheshti to the court. In a country where so-called lawmakers rape and kill an innocent girl, it is only natural to expect obstruction of justice.There are thousands of Shakilas who die victims or live a life of pain and sufferings, and hundreds of Beheshtis who spue about freely thanks to the impunity given to them by cruel local anesthetic commanders, misogynist lawmakers and judges, and ultimately the corrupt mafia establishment.30 During the consultations, a majority of women express that they have not meaningfully crack upicipated in planning for the Security Transition. In the provinces where Transition has yet to formalizedly start, women do not believe they will be involved in consultations to determine future plans, steps, and activities associated with the transfer of shelter representation.Recent consultations also revealed that women do not feel that Afghan field Security Forces are responsive to womens needs and do not uphold human rights standards. Women perceive Afghan National Security Forces as not having the full dexterity and expertise requirement to address the security measure needs of Afghan citizens, especially women and children. They also believe that in upstart years, little attention has been given to general anatomy the capacity of ANSF to improve well-bredian adherence to existing laws and advance ruler of law by demonstrating that pot who violate laws will be punished. However, women still expressed a strong interest in the international federation continuing to work to get on the capacity and nicely resource the ANSF.Policy makers in Afghanistan reiterate again and again that pitch contour is not about army and security matters alone, however practical experience on the ground shows that there isnt adequate attention paid to improving rule of law, sayance, and entrance to justice. Similarly, it is unclear how such wreakes are impacting womens security. Transition should start from a citizen-articulated vision in which women and men of Afghanistan take responsibility for their cave in future.The road map for the allow of international forces is necessary however, an accelerated withdrawal will jeopardize the investments of human life and material resources generously contributed by more than 40 nations, not to mention the numerous casualties of Afghan National Security Forces and enormous kick in by the this countrys women, men and children. Women governances and activists have better access to local communities and are aware about the challenges and causes of insecurity in their communities therefrom they should be consulted and allow ind to ensure that security a nd transition plans are implemented successfully.BACKGROUNDA. Treatment of Women in Afghanistan from the Rule of the Soviet trade union to the arrange Following civil war in Afghanistan in 1978, the Soviet Union took control of Afghanistan and created many opportunities for women,including aggressive literacy programs.31 Under the Soviet Unions commie regimefrom 1979 to 1992, Afghan women enjoyed equal rights and social, economic, and governmental freedom.32 In the 1980s, the Communists enforced equal rights for women and men in a civil-war-torn Afghanistan.33 As a result, women held a great number of business, law enforcement, and Parliament positions than they did prior to the civil war. 34 Furthermore, commandment and employment became more socially acceptable for women.35 As a result, women imitation positions as lawyers, entertainers, and doctors.36 As part of this greater freedom, women saw more educational, employment, and master opportunities. 37 In 1979, female stude nts even outnumbered male students at universities.38In 1992,39 the Communist regime fell and the Islamic State of Afghanistan assumed control.40 Subsequently, the rights and dignity of women went out the window41 The 1977 constitution that guaranteed equal rights for women and men was thrown out 42 The Islamic State of Afghanistan began to remove womens rights systematically, and institutionalized assorted violations against women.43 In 1993, the Islamic State of Afghanistan ruled women essentialiness be totally covered, women could not wear perfume or makeup, and womens freedom and mobility would be restricted.44The justification for these rulings was that men become too excited by women and are tempted to stray from the Islamic way of life, and the restrictions on women reduce this temptation.45 In addition, other, more violent human rights abuses towards women occurred under the Islamic State of Afghanistan, such as torture, rape, and sexual abuse.46 Interestingly, also in 1 993, as part of the capital of Austria announcement,47 Afghanistan formally reaffirmed its faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and price of the human person, and in the equal rights of men and women48 The Vienna Declaration also stressed the importance of eliminating violence against women and any conflicts that may rescind between the rights of women and the harmful effects of certain traditional or ordinary practices, cultural prejudices and ghostly extremism.49 Despite Afghanistans part in the Vienna Declaration, human rights abuses against women continued as the Taliban 50 emerged as a inconstant presence in Afghanistan.51 Taliban rule, which lasted from 1996 to 2001,52 resulted in major set stick outs for women.53 The Taliban developed as a policy-making-religious force,54 and eventually seized the cities of Kandahar in 1994, Herat in 1995, and Kabul, Afghanistans capital, in 1996.55 Before the Taliban captured Kabul, women do up seventy percent of teachers , forty percent of doctors, and generally worked in all areas of employment.56 after(prenominal) the Taliban fully seized power, it severely oppressed womens rights.57 The oppressive Taliban policies break United Nations treaties, but the Taliban asserted that the treaties duties were inconsistent with religious law and cultural practices.58 The Taliban began by closing all schools for girls and forbidding women to work outside the house. 59 The Taliban imposed rules on women, restricting their freedom of movement, dress, education, and employment.60 The women and girls who violated these rules received punishments, including beatings on the streets, amputation of limbs, and public executions.61 The Taliban justified its practices in accordance with its commentary of the Quran,62claiming to follow a pure, fundamentalist Islamic ideology.63 Taliban leaders enforced the law as they saw fit and prohibited differing exemplifyation.64 The plight of Afghan women living under the Tali ban regime became an issue of global concern. 65 After the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, and the subsequent United States military invasion of Afghanistan in October 2001, the Taliban regime collapsed.66 This development presented women with the hazard to fight for gender equality.67On December 5, 2001, the Bonn Agreements 68 mandated that the Transitional Administration of Afghanistan set up a Constitutional Com committee to draft a stark naked constitution.69 The Constitutional Commissions mandate was to ascertain the Afghan messs desires, both within the country and abroad, regarding their new constitution.70 The thirty-five member commission drafted the new constitution. 71 Seven of the thirty-five commission members were women, 72 which ensured the participation of women in the constitution making process73 As part of the draught commission, Afghan women were finally able to play a social occasion in addressing womens f undamental rights in the 2003 Constitution.74INTERNATIONAL POLICY REVIW AND RECOMMENDATIONSWar and political insecurity in Afghanistan are directly related to rape incidence and sexual violence, especially under a free reign of ethnically divided militia factions. By endueing the Northern Alliance militias, the international community has created a long-term institutional problem that will undermine the egalitarian transition. Not only do these warlords have the military capacity to actuate the electoral processes in their localities, but their de facto rule of the countryside also incapacitates the primaeval authority in maintaining effective governance. The preponderance of warlords has also been legitimized through the democratic process, which offers militia commanders an opportunity to engage the political process in an official capacity duration secretly maintaining their criminal and military powers. As a result, the international community has made the long-term presenc e of coalition military forces necessary for maintaining law and outrank.Because the international community empowered these militias in the War on Terror, the presence of international forces is required to keep the commanders under control, in shape to avoid the brutality and violence of the civil war period. The recent termination by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to increase the number of International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) troops to expand the international mission into the unstable countryside is the most recent attempt to bolster the cardinal governments effectiveness in the rural regions.75 The expanded mission has been hailed as the solution to transition from warlord rule to democratic self-governance. The Canadian military recently announced that its new troop contingent expects to remain in Kandahar province for up to 20 years to help restore the country and prevent another collapse into civil war. These forces are expected to act as a stabi lizing force to keep warlords in check.However, a long-term international presence might be alarming to Afghans who have a history of deep xenophobia and hostility towards occupying forces. Furthermore, regional and international power struggles between Pakistan and India, and the USA and Russia have exacerbated Afghanistans internal fragmentation, as international military forces continue to mobilize paramilitary groups against their rivals. Afghan people have also grown suspicious of the international humanitarian agenda in Afghanistan, which diverts a majority percentage of international funds to private security and foreign salaries, rather than food, medicine, or other vitally needed supplies for Afghan people.There are four key actions that the International Coalition and civil society actors must consider in order to correct the political chaos that has emerged in the post-Taliban period, which undermines the rights and safeguard of Afghan women. First, American forces must mental block financing militias for use against the Taliban and al-Qaeda in the War on Terror. By utilizing these proxy militias, the international community has disempowered Afghan people and undermined the capacity of the central government to protect its citizens and enforce its laws. The resulting political instability and preponderance of foreign-backed warlords and militia groups in the countryside also directly threatens both the physical and sexual security of rural Afghan women. Second, the warlords that the US-led coalition co-opted during the offensive against the Taliban, who now hold official Parliamentary and Cabinet positions in the central government, must be spare of their political power in the new democracy.Furthermore, those warlords accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including sexual abuse, must be brought before both local courts and international tribunals. In order to establish a culture of social reconciliation and peace-building, all human rights violations committed during the four war periods must be resolved through sound and social mechanisms that provide rape victims with the opportunity to set about justice for atrocities perpetrated against them. Traditional values, especially those pertaining to women, the family, and social justice, must be considered in the development of laws that address violence against women. Third, in order to address the pick needs of the majority of Afghan women, international civil society actors must invest in rural development, health, and education, and co-operate with local partner organizations. Currently, international supporting for humanitarian assistance is directed primarily towards the more stable and kindly urban environments, where international organizations have developed isolated communities of wealthy ex-patriots. uncontrolled accusations that non-governmental organizations have squandered Afghanistans international funding through suspicious projects and lofty salaries for foreign workers must also be investigated, in order to establish legitimacy and accountability within the civil society network. The excogitation of an internationally-sponsored, government-monitored, socially responsible, and grassroots civil society in rural Afghanistan would empower rural women in their communities and increase the capacity of the central government in the lawless countryside. Fourth, the traditional Islamic culture and values of Afghans must be bring uped in the development of womens rights policies.Historically, Afghans have opposed report changes in womens social and legal status, especially those that they perceived violated the principles of Islamic law. In order to maintain a semblance of legitimacy with rural peoples, the international community must demonstrate an understanding of and respect for traditional norms and Islamic religious values, including those pertaining to women. By operating within culturally sensitive frameworks, the international community would avoid hostile backlash and better address the needs of Afghan women.The failure of the state of Afghanistan remains the most fundamental obstacle in the promotion of gender equality, as without the effect to enforce domestic legal and political reforms in rural areas, the government is ineffectual in most of the country. The International Coalition in Afghanistan must cease empowering and enabling warlords and militia commanders for convenient military purposes, which fundamentally impedes efforts to require rapists and human rights violators to justice in local and international arenas. Coalition forces and the international community must also remain conscious of the deep Islamic character of the Afghan people, as it pertains to cultural norms that apply to women, sex, and family relations.The recommendations listed above build upon and supplement the concrete recommendations developed by Afghan women who have advocated for their cellular inclusion i n peace and security processes over many years. Each time, women have worked to develop solutions for what needs to be done to improve their situation. AWN brings a number of these recommendations back to the memory of policy makers who may have read Afghan Women Position Paper toward Bonn and Beyond. This is a reflection to evaluate the level of earnestness and attention that might have been put towards the demands of women since September 2011.1. Womens organization should be included in designing, monitoring and evaluating indicators that measure the impact of transition on women. Transition decisions should be based, in part, on results of this monitoring. 2. The recruitment of Afghan Local Police (ALP) and other security alternative needs to include a transparent vetting process so that former and current warlords with previous(prenominal) record of human rights violations do not automatically become part of the national forces. A portion of the vetting process should be commu nity based, allowing womens groups and women from communities to report on the background of the newly enrolled security forces 3. Women leaders in government and civil society are under constant attack, while it is necessary to ensure womens protection in general, women leaders protection needs to be a priority as per their critical role as agents of change in society against conservative elements taking Afghanistan back to 1990.4. The Afghan government should have a clear reporting process for the human rights instruments and international laws that it has signed and needs to demonstrate that Afghan laws are not in contradiction with its international legal commitments for women.5. A word International Afghanistan War Memory Commission should be created so that the late(prenominal) 30 years of war violations are identified and there is a documentation process as a matter of conflict prevention. such(prenominal) an investigation does not have to conclude in a legal trial but a me mory of war and the beginning of a healing process. Otherwise, the practice of impunity will not unite Afghans towards a rule of law culture.CONCLUSIONAfghanistan is still a haven for gender violence and discrimination despite equal rights enumerated in the Afghan Constitution. 76The Afghan Constitution requires that Afghanistan abide by the UDHR, the U.N. Charter, and other international treaties to which Afghanistan is a signatory. 77 However, these rights are unrealized in practice due to problems with the tribunal, such as lack of training and corruption,78 and the lack of sense among the Afghan people of the law.79 To remedy these problems, Afghanistan should interpret its Constitution in accordance with Islamic laws following the examples of Iran80 and Egypt81 Afghanistan should train the judiciary not only on secular law, but on how to interpret the Constitution and international law in accordance with Sharia.If feasible, respected Islamic judges from Egypt should provide g uidance to Afghanistans judges.Furthermore, Afghanistan should simultaneously disseminate cultivation like the Bench Book 82 to increase womens awareness and understanding of their rights and the procedural mechanisms to report infringement upon their rights. As Afghanistan continues to develop and fortify its legal infrastructure within the framework of Islamic law, progressive interpretation of the Sharia is necessary in order for constitutional laws to be veritable and followed by Muslims.83 As the people of Afghanistan become more aware of the laws that govern their state and as they accept that womens rights principles can co-exist with Islamic principles, womens participation in society and politics will improve. This would be a large and overdue step for Afghanistan.References1. See Jessica Nash, Editorial, Afghan Women Forced to recognise in Terror, W. GEORGIAN, Oct. 17, 2007, http//media.www.thewestgeorgian.com/media/storage/paper523/news/2007/10/1 7/ belief/Afghan.Wom en.Forced.To.Live.In.Terror-3035567-page2.shtml. 2. Nazia Afghanistan My Husband bound off off My Ears and Nose and Broke My Teeth, IRIN NEWS, Dec. 26, 2007,http//www.irinnews.org/HOVReport.aspx?ReportId=76003. 3. Id.4. Id.5. Id.6. Id.7. Id.8. Nazia Afghanistan My Husband Cut off My Ears and Nose and Broke My Teeth, supra note 2. 9. Id. (showing pictures of the mutilation).10. Id.11. Michael Stittle, Warlords No get out Than Taliban, Says Afghan MP, CTV NEWS, Nov. 8. 2007, http//www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20071107/Malalai-Joya 071107/20071107/. 12. See Nash, supra note 1.13. See id.14. Id.15. The 502 show Loya Jirga (Grand Council) passed the 2003 Afghan Constitution on January 4, 2004, which governs Afghanistan today. JAMES INGALUS, THE NEW Afghan CONSTITUTION A STEP BACKWARDS FOR DEMOCRACY 1-2 (2004), http//www.fpif.org/papers/2004afghanconst.html. 16. See infra notes 105-09 and accompanying text.17. See infra notes 87-90.18. Women Workers Exposed to Health R isks in Herat Factories, IRIN NEWS, Oct. 30, 2007, http//www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=75048. 19. See, e.g., Nash, supra note 1 (explaining that womens freedoms are restricted every(prenominal) day in Afghanistan). 20. Horia Mosadiq, The New Afghan Constitution How Women Succeeded in Ensuring trusted Rights and What Challenges Remain, 3 CRITICAL HALF 28, 28 (2005), lendable at http//www. womenforwomen.org/news-women-forwomen/ files/crit-half/CHJournalv3.pdf. 21. AFG. CONST. art. 7, available at http//afghanland.com/history/constitution.html. 22. United Nations Division for the Advancement of Women, Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women States Parties, http//www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/states.htm (last visited Oct. 18,2008) hereinafter CEDAW States Parties. 23. Human Rights Watch, More line of reasoning Than Usual The Work Which Awaits the Human Rights Council, Mar. 12, 2007, http//hrw.org/englisb/docs/2007/03/12/sudanl5471.htm her einafter HRW, More Business Than Usual. 24. Id.25. Katherine M. Weaver, Comment, Womens Rights and Sharia Law A Workable Reality? An Examination of workable International Human Rights Approaches through the Continuing Reform of the Pakistani hudud Ordinance, 17 DUKE J. COMP. & INTL L. 483, 483 (2007). 26. See supra notes 15-21 and accompanying text.27. See Nash, supra note 1. 28. HRW, More Business Than Usual, supra note 23 (Afghan women and girls continue to suffer from entrenched discrimination throughout the country.). 29. CEDAW States Parties, supra note 22. Afghanistan acceded the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women on marchland 5, 2003. Id. 30. See http//www.rawa.org/temp/runews/2012/07/18/a-member-of-bamyan-s-provincial-council-accused-of-raping-and-murdering-a-teenage-girl.html .