KABUL — Dengan undang-undang baharu Taliban yang melarang wanita daripada meninggikan suara di khalayak ramai, aktivis wanita di Afghanistan mendakwa mereka juga didiamkan di Barat, di mana perwakilan mereka semakin ditolak.
Peraturan yang dikeluarkan bulan lalu oleh Kementerian Penyebaran Kebajikan dan Pencegahan Maksiat memperkenalkan kod pakaian lebih ketat untuk semua warga Afghanistan, tetapi sekatan itu menetapkan wanita bukan sahaja menutup diri sepenuhnya, termasuk muka, tetapi juga menyembunyikan suara mereka di khalayak ramai.
“Kerajaan secara praktikal telah mengabaikan suara wanita dan sedang berusaha untuk menghapuskan sebanyak mungkin peranan wanita dalam masyarakat,” kata Haida Akbari, seorang aktivis hak wanita di Kabul, kepada Arab News (AN).
“Larangan terhadap suara wanita adalah salah satu langkah ke arah penghapusan peranan sosial wanita – bukan yang pertama mahupun yang terakhir.”
Hak wanita Afghanistan telah disekat sejak Taliban menguasai Afghanistan pada 2021, apabila tentera pimpinan AS (Amerika Syarikat) berundur selepas dua dekad perang berikutan pencerobohan ke atas negara itu.
Wanita dan kanak-kanak perempuan secara beransur-ansur dilarang daripada menghadiri sekolah menengah dan universiti, menjalankan kebanyakan bentuk pekerjaan bergaji, dan menghadiri ruang awam seperti taman awam atau gim.
Setiap sekatan telah mendorong kecaman dan mencetuskan perdebatan di Barat. Tetapi sementara ini bertujuan untuk mempertahankan hak wanita, mereka jarang menyertakan suara mereka yang menghadapi realiti kehidupan di Afghanistan.
Dalam perbincangan baru-baru ini mengenai kesan undang-undang “maksiat dan kebajikan” baharu, penyiar Kanada meminta komen daripada bekas menteri Afghanistan, bekas ahli parlimen dan bekas pegawai kerajaan — semuanya tinggal dalam buangan.
Satu lagi saluran media antarabangsa menumpukan liputannya pada komen seorang aktivis lelaki, dan sementara ia juga menjemput tiga wanita Afghanistan untuk mengulas, tidak seorang pun tinggal di Afghanistan.
Bagi Haida dan aktivis wanita lain, amalan sebegitu semakin menghakis perwakilan dan perjuangan mereka untuk memperkasakan.
“Tidak dinafikan bahawa seorang wanita yang tinggal di dalam Afghanistan yang ingin meneruskan kehidupannya di dalam negara sangat berbeza daripada seseorang yang berada di luar negara,” kata Haida.
“Wanita di dalam negara mahu masalah itu diselesaikan, tetapi itu tidak bermakna mengalu-alukan satu lagi peperangan di negara ini… Isu-isu ini tidak disiarkan dalam media.”
Adina Ranjber, pengarah organisasi OTUF diterajui wanita, yang menyediakan pembangunan kemahiran dan peluang pekerjaan untuk wanita di Afghanistan, berkata adalah penting forum antarabangsa menawarkan suara kepada wanita Afghanistan, terutama apabila mereka disenyapkan di rumah.
“Pandangan dan tuntutan wanita di negara ini sering diabaikan dan ditindas. Nampaknya masih jauh perjalanan untuk pandangan wanita Afghanistan didengar dan dipertimbangkan. Terdapat keperluan untuk sokongan berterusan daripada masyarakat antarabangsa dan media,” katanya kepada Arab News.
“Perwakilan wanita dari Afghanistan dalam perbincangan hak asasi manusia menunjukkan penghormatan terhadap hak asasi manusia dan kesaksamaan jantina. Ini boleh membantu mewujudkan masyarakat yang lebih adil dan sama rata untuk wanita dan lelaki.”
Adina berkata bukan sahaja Barat yang menyumbang kepada suara wanita Afghanistan diketepikan di platform antarabangsa.
“Salah satu faktor paling penting dalam pengabaian wanita di Afghanistan ialah kesunyian negara Islam dan kesatuan ulama Islam dunia mengenai isu wanita di Afghanistan,” katanya.
“Ini juga memberi media Barat alasan untuk mengabaikan wanita Afghanistan dan menambah masalah dan bukannya menyelesaikan apa-apa.”
AN
English
Banned by Taliban, Afghan women’s voices increasingly dismissed abroad
KABUL — With a new Taliban law banning women from raising their voice in public, female activists in Afghanistan claim they are also being silenced in the West, where their representation is increasingly dismissed.
Regulations issued last month by the Ministry of Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice introduced stricter dress codes for all Afghans, but the restrictions stipulated that women not only cover themselves completely, including the face, but also conceal their voices in public.
“The government has practically ignored the voice of women and is seeking to eliminate as much of the role of women in society as possible,” Haida Akbari, a women rights activist in Kabul, told Arab News.
“The ban on women’s voices is one of the steps toward the elimination of women’s social role — neither the first nor the last.”
The rights of Afghan women have been curtailed since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in 2021, when US-led forces withdrew after two decades of war following the invasion of the country.
Women and girls have been gradually barred from attending secondary school and university, undertaking most forms of paid employment, and attending public spaces such as public parks or gyms.
Each of the restrictions has spurred condemnation and sparked debate in the West. But while these are aimed at defending the rights of women, they rarely include the voices of those facing the reality of life inside Afghanistan.
In recent discussions on the impact of the new “vice and virtue” law, a Canadian broadcaster sought a comment from a former Afghan minister, a former member of parliament, and a former government official — all living in exile.
Another international media outlet focused its coverage on comments by a male activist, and while it also invited three Afghan women to comment, not one was living in Afghanistan.
For Akbari and other female activists, such practices further erode their representation and struggle for empowerment.
“There is no doubt that a woman living inside Afghanistan who wants to continue her life inside the country is very different from someone who is outside the country,” Akbari said.
“Women inside the country want the problem to be solved, but that does not mean welcoming another war in the country … These issues are not covered in the media.”
Adina Ranjber, director of a women-led organization OTUF, which provides skill development and employment opportunities for women in Afghanistan, said it was important that international forums offer a voice to Afghan women, especially when they were being silenced at home.
“Women’s views and demands in the country are often ignored and suppressed. It seems that there is still a long way to go for Afghan women’s views to be heard and considered. There’s a need for continued support from the international community and the media,” she told Arab News.
“Representation of women from Afghanistan in human rights discussions demonstrates respect for human rights and gender equality. This can help create a more just and equal society for both women and men.”
Ranjber said that it is not only the West that is contributing to the voices of Afghan women being sidelined on international platforms.
“One of the most important factors in the neglect of women in Afghanistan is the silence of Islamic countries and the world Muslim scholars’ unions about the issues of women in Afghanistan,” she said.
“This also gives the Western media an excuse to ignore Afghan women and add to the problem instead of solving anything.”
AN
