Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State John Kerry and former First Lady Laura Bush on Friday said that as elections near in Afghanistan and U.S. troops continue to draw down, America must remain committed to the country during what they called a critical juncture.
Getting Afghan women voter cards has proven a challenge for the Independent Election Commission (IEC), which has made female turnout a top priority this election cycle, but southern Helmand province is said to be an especially challenging environment due to strict traditional values and the l
Hundreds of Paktia Province women October 23 rallied in Gardez to announce their intentions to actively participate in the upcoming elections next year.
"We will be voting for the candidates who could help us achieve our rights," civil society activist Anar Gula said.
One evening, in a conversation with a group of impressive Afghan women activists in Kabul, the first participant started the conversation by making a simple but profound statement. She said, “Stop looking at us as victims, and look at us as the leaders that we are.” She was right.
Women are increasingly exposed to violence and exclusion from the public sphere as Afghanistan nears the 2014 security transition and conservative forces gain momentum.
Analysts say a spate of attacks on high-profile Afghan women has heightened fears that the limited gains for women’s rights will be reversed after NATO forces withdraw next year.
Last May, Afghanistan’s upper house of parliament quietly removed an electoral law that stipulated that a quarter of all provincial council seats should be allotted to women. When women politicians found out nearly a month later, they fought to have the bill recalled.