Asia-Pacific
Afghan Women Continue to Resist the Taliban
Nearly five years have passed since the return of the Taliban's dark rule over Afghanistan.
Since August 2021, Afghanistan has become the largest open-air prison for women and girls; a place where they have been systematically deprived of their most basic human rights.
Throughout this long period, the Taliban not only trampled on women's rights but also silenced their voices of protest with bullets, secret prisons, and unbearable torture. In response, the international community has sunk into complete silence and indifference.
Not only is the international community watching this catastrophe, but it also, with its eyes closed to political expediencies, geopolitical goals, and the normalization of relations, provides this repressive regime with over 40 million dollars a week under the title of "humanitarian aid." Assistance that has practically become a tool for the continuation of the Taliban's power.
But in the heart of this suffocation, the breathtaking resistance of women never dies.
On February 28, 2026, a group of brave Afghan girls once again came to the streets of Kabul city and shouted the cry of "Bread, Work, Freedom, Education". They proved that the will of a nation cannot be killed with violence.
Afghanistan has experienced more than four decades of war and insecurity, and throughout these years, women have been the primary victims of this violence.
Today, the majority of families have lost their male guardians, and women are the main breadwinners of their households.
However, with their brutal decrees, the Taliban have banned women from working in government offices and private institutions and have forbidden them from leaving their homes without a mahram (male guardian).
This deprivation has led to profound human tragedies.
Nooria, a thirteen-year-old girl who had lost her father in the war and whose sick mother and little sisters depended on her, was forced to hide her gender identity to find money for her mother's treatment. She cut her hair and wore boys' clothes so she could work in a café in Helmand province. But after a year, the Taliban identified, arrested, tortured, and imprisoned her.
In Herat, a pregnant woman who was on her way to the hospital to give birth was denied entry because she did not have a male mahram. She gave birth outside the hospital gates and lost her child forever.
H. Farzia, a female teacher who had set up a home school for girls above the sixth grade, was arrested by the Taliban and tortured for 25 days in secret prisons, and was finally released on bail.
By approving more than 100 restrictive decrees against women, the Taliban have implemented a completely organized and institutionalized system of repression.
This situation goes beyond human rights violations; it is "gender apartheid," an attempt to erase the human identity of women from the scene of life.
In such horrifying conditions, the “Spontaneous Movement of Afghan Women” (SMAW), which formed immediately after the fall of Kabul in 2021, continues to be at the forefront of the struggle and peaceful protests in Kabul and other provinces.
Dozens of members of this movement have been killed by the Taliban, and hundreds of other members have been imprisoned and tortured.
Unfortunately, due to the Taliban preventing international human rights organizations from accessing official and private prisons, no one knows the exact number of imprisoned women or their dire situation.
As repression intensified over the past four years, SMAW has continued its activities underground and secretly to avoid being tracked and arrested by Taliban intelligence.
To ensure the safety of targeted women protesters, this movement has established “Safe Houses.”
Also, to combat the educational deprivation of girls, it has set up numerous “Home schools” run by volunteers and female teachers to keep the lamp of knowledge and awareness shining.
On the occasion of March 8th, International Women's Day of Solidarity, we, the women of Afghanistan, as the most deprived and suffering women in the world, declare our deep solidarity with all women who suffer from the catastrophes of war.
We stand in solidarity with the women of Iran, the women of Ukraine, the women of Gaza, and all the oppressed and struggling women of the world.
We, who are ourselves victims of war, understand the depth of their pain and suffering well.
But on this difficult path of fighting for our freedom and rights, we have an urgent need for your solidarity and practical support, our sisters and brothers in Europe, America, and all countries of the world.
We ask women's rights advocacy organizations and all human rights activists not to forget the pain and captivity of Afghan women.
We ask you to strive for the release of women from the Taliban's prisons and to keep the freedom-seeking voice of Afghan women loud, as loud as ever.
We call on you to:
- Support the "Safe Houses" that are shelters for targeted women protesters.
- Assist the "Girls' Home Schools" run by SMAW.
- Do not let Afghan women protesters be arrested, tortured, and killed by the misogynistic Taliban regime any longer.
The women of Afghanistan are alive, they are resilient, and they are fighting for freedom. Today, more than ever, they need your voice and solidarity.
For more information, contact: afghanwomen2022@gmail.com
