March 2021 \ News \ COUNTRY FOCUS—AFGHANISTAN: WOMEN, DEMOCRACY, PEACE
THE LONG STRUGGLE OF AFGHAN WOMEN

Afghan women are at a very important juncture today. They endured the Taliban’s oppressive rule and have come a long way today fighting for their gains. For the beginners, we would like to walk you through the conflicted past ...

By Sohaila Nejrabi, Meena Popalzai

Another concrete example of the commitment of the Afghan Government to women’s rights can be seen in the role of women in the Afghan peace process.

The first Peace Consultative Loya Jirga, held on April 29, 2019 in order to involve the people in the peace process. Nearly 3,200 elected representatives of the people from various parts of the country, thirty percent of which were women, attended this Jirga. These women had the chairpersonship of 13 working committees and 28 committee secretaries. The Second Loya Jirga, which convened on August 17, 2020 to decide whether to release some 400 Taliban prisoners, was attended by 720 women from across Afghanistan. Similarly, in the composition of the High Reconciliation Council, including 21 members of the peace negotiating team with the Taliban, 4 of them are women, and one of the things that Afghanistan has emphasized in the peace talks is to preserve the achievements of the last 20 years, which includes the discussion of women’s rights and their achievements. Increasing the active role of women in economic and social activities and creating job opportunities for a large number of rural women, active participation of women in the elections, as in the 2020 presidential election (31.49) percent of women and (68.51) percent of men participated, the active presence of women in the cabinet of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, commissions, provinces, parliament, schools and universities; Presence of women in the judiciary (as a head of the Court of Appeals for Serious Crimes of Corruption), presence of women representing the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in foreign countries, international organizations and in the Human Rights Commission of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, all and all are examples of women’s achievements in recent years.




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