A young woman pleaded for a divorce in Afghanistan ruled under the Taliban’s iron fist, but officials laughed at her.
Afghanistan enters its fifth year under Taliban rule after the militant organisation took over Kabul as the US and NATO forces fled in August 2021.
The collapse of the Western-backed government also swept the rug from under women’s rights in the country, with women being banned from secondary education and most jobs.
In northern Afghanistan, one young woman was determined to divorce her husband despite the Taliban’s efforts to make it nearly impossible.
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In an encounter witnessed by the BBC, the 18-year-old, covered head to toe in a veil and sunglasses, claimed she had been subjected to abuse and beatings for months.
She told governor Abdullah Sarhadi: ‘If there was any chance to live together, I wouldn’t be here… I have taken my decision.’
She said she is ‘ready to be executed but not live with him.’
The woman, whose real name has not been revealed, then faced being coaxed to stay in the marriage.
Governor Sarhadi, the local head of Jawzjan province, told her: ‘Ask yourself: “Who would marry me after I get my divorce?”
‘You’ll have to compromise a lot or you’ll lose your dignity and honour.’
In a chilling response, she said: ‘Mr Governor, my honour and dignity have already been ruined.’
After the tense exchange, the governor remarked that women are ‘mindless’ and ‘deficient in intellect,’ with laughter from the male officials, bodyguards and others around him, the BBC reported.
Meanwhile, her husband is said to have sat and listened nearby as he waited for his turn to speak.
Money is often heavily involved in divorce proceedings in the country, and under Sharia law, a woman requesting a divorce might have to pay back the dowry given to her family.
The husband said he wanted four times the dowry amount, but her family refused.
In a bid to settle the matter, governor Sarhadi said the woman should have her own room.
He added that the man should not beat her or ‘otherwise he’d be jailed.’
The young woman’s family later told the broadcaster that they would try to seek a divorce through the Taliban courts, despite the requirement to have the husband’s consent.
Women's rights in Afghanistan
Women in Afghanistan face strict rules controlling their lives, with women blocked from many public places like gyms and parks.
The Taliban has issued dozens of rules restricting women and girls, such as making it more difficult to leave a marriage and implicitly allowing child marriage.
Girls have effectively been banned from attending school beyond sixth grade, and only an estimated 7% of Afghan women work, compared with 84% of men.
Around one in two Afghan women leave their home no more than twice a month, according to United Nations Women.
In 2023, almost 30% of Afghan girls aged under 18 were married, including 10% of girls under 15.
Access to healthcare has also eroded under the Taliban rule, and the country now endures one of the world’s highest maternal deaths at birth.
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