Women and the Afghan peace and reintegration process

In 2010, as the Afghan government announced its intention to begin a formal peace process, there were numerous calls for women to have a seat at the table. Both mainstream and critical discourse on women and the peace process in Afghanistan, however, relied on the production of essentialized subjectivities which failed to recognize the political and social complexity of women's lives, diminished their intellectual contributions and silenced their voices. This article challenges the simultaneous hyper-visualization and silencing of Afghan women by both Afghan and international actors. Drawing on feminist and decolonial theory, we examine the ways in which the colonial mechanisms of intervention, patriarchy and the global hierarchies of knowledge production worked in tandem to marginalize Afghan women while upholding them as agents of peace. The article brings together findings from three participatory research projects on women and peace, which took place from 2010 to 2014 across eight provinces in Afghanistan. A prismed view of the participants' intersectional realities is constructed, which highlights diverse positionalities and articulations of peace, the social and political cleavages, and differentiated obstacles to their involvement in the peace and reintegration process. The concluding remarks emphasize the relevance of these findings for Afghanistan at the time of publication.

Child marriage and adverse reproductive outcomes among young Afghan women: implication for policy and practice in Afghanistan

Background: Child marriage is defined as marriage before the age of 18 years and it has been linked to several adverse health and social outcomes. This study aimed to explore the prevalence and determinants of child marriage and its association with adverse reproductive outcomes among a nationally representative sample of young Afghan women. Methods: This was a secondary analysis of the 2015 Afghanistan Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data. Based on the UN recommendation on child marriage study, only women aged 20-24 years old were included. Descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression were employed to determine the distribution of respondents' characteristics and prevalence and determinants of child marriage. Multivariate logistic models examined the association between child marriage and adverse reproductive outcomes accounting for the sociodemographic factors. Results: An estimated 52% of the Afghan women aged 20-24 married at ages less than 18 years. Poor illiterate women were more likely to marry at early ages (<18). There was a significant negative relationship between child marriage and history of rapid repeat childbirth, delivery by skilled personnel, and institutional delivery. In both adjusted and unadjusted models, women married at age ≤14 were more likely to experience terminated or unintended pregnancy (AOR = 1.89, 95% CI: 1.31-2.75 and AOR = 2.20. 95% CI: 1.24-3.91, respectively), inadequate ANC (AOR = 1.71, 95% CI: 1.01-2.90), unmet need for family planning (AOR = 1.44, 95% CI: 1.05-1.98), fistula (AOR = 2.36, 95% CI: 1.22-4.57); While, for those married at age 15-17 years, only terminated or unintended pregnancy remained significant. Conclusion: The younger age of marriage was associated with a higher prevalence of adverse reproductive outcomes among Afghan women. Moreover, poverty and illiteracy proved to be important predictors of child marriage in Afghan women. Strict international law enforcement and advocacy are a need in the current situation of Afghanistan to increase young women's education, promote their civil rights, and improve their autonomy and role in decision-making concerning their health.

Valor behind the Burqa: Afghan women's fight against Covid-19

The paper studies the gendered impact of the pandemic in a war ravaged Afghanistan. For majority of Afghan women, the onslaught of Covid has exacerbated their already dire condition and adversely impacted their social, economical, physical and cultural aspects of life. The research also underlines that the imposition of lockdown has caused the reversal of war gains. The paper also highlights the notable works of various Afghan women carried out during the corona pandemic that has contributed to their emancipation and upliftment of the society at large. It brings forth strong and courageous women who are combatting terrorism, everyday conflicts, frequent bombings, societal restrictions and now the deadly coronavirus and yet contributing majorly in re-building the Afghan society. This paper is an attempt to dispel the dominant narrative of their state of helplessness and despondency around Afghan women before the withdrawal of American troops and Taliban takeover. Both primary and secondary sources have complemented this research.

Intimate partner violence and unmet need for family planning among currently married Afghan women aged 18-49 years: findings from a nationally representative survey in Afghanistan

Background: Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a serious public health issue, particularly in poor-resourced countries. It has been linked to a range of adverse health outcomes. In this study, we explored the prevalence and the relationship between the IPV and unmet need for family planning and identified the associated sociodemographic factors among a nationally representative sample of married Afghan women aged 18-49 years in Afghanistan. Methods: This study used the data from Afghanistan Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) conducted in 2015. The data for IPV, unmet need for family planning, and sociodemographic characteristics of Afghan women aged 18-24 were extracted from the available databases. Sampling weights and survey design were accounted for in bivariate and multivariate analyses using the STATA software version 14. The significant alpha level was determined at p-value < .05 Results: More than half of the study population, with a prevalence of 55.89%, experienced some types of intimate partner violence during the last 12 months. Unmet need for family planning was documented in less than a third of the population. Illiterate employed women from poorer families who were living in the rural areas were more likely to suffer from any type of IPV. Moreover, those from Pashtun (OR = 2.12, 95% CI:1.30-3.45), Tajik (OR = 1.69, 95% CI:1.06-2.71), and Pashai (OR = 2.23, 95% CI:1.17-4.26) ethnic groups had a higher chance of being a victim of any type of violence compared to the reference group (Turkmen). Illiterate women (OR = 1.37, 95% CI:1.02-1.83) with more than 5 pregnancy experiences (OR = 1.44, 95% CI: 1.19-1.74) had more unmet needs for family planning compared to the reference group. The unmet needs were almost 40% and 30% less likely to be observed among women from Pashtun and Tajik ethnic backgrounds compared to the reference group (Turkmen), respectively. The likelihood of having unmet needs was 30% less in those women who suffered from any type of violence. Conclusion: IPV is an important predictor of several adverse health outcomes. The findings of present study portray the disastrous situation of Afghan women's right violation and violence against them in a conflict setting in one the poor-resourced countries in the world and communicate an important message to the international communities and human right advocate to take immediate actions to mitigate the current situation and prevent the violence against Afghan women to improve the integrity of their reproductive health.

Effectiveness of Life Skills Training Based on Self-Care on Mental Health and Quality of Life of Married Afghan Women in Iran

Objective: One of the major issues that immigrants, especially Afghan women face, is their self-care disability. This will cause problems in their mental health and quality of life. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of life skills training based on self-care on mental health and quality of life of married Afghan women living in Taft.Method: This quasi-experimental was conducted using a pretest posttest design with control group. Statistical population was all married Afghan women living in Taft of whom 60 women were selected using purposive sampling and were randomly allocated to two groups of 30 as case and control groups. The experimental group received 8 sessions of life skills training based on self-care. General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) and Quality of Life of the World Health Organization Questionnaire (WHOQ- BREF) were used to collect data. Multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) was used to analyze the data.Results: Results showed that following the intervention, the mean scores of quality of life (p<0.0001) and mental health (p<0.019) in the case group increased in the posttest compared to the pretest and the effect of intervention was significant. Conclusion: Results suggested that providing a training opportunity for Afghan women to learn life skills based on self-care, enables them to realize their strengths and weaknesses and improve their quality of life and mental health.

Nurturing Masculinity, Resisting Patriarchy: An Ethnographic Account of Four Women's Folk Songs from Northeastern Afghanistan

Western literature has presented the condition of Afghan women as either empowered or helpless. Their stories have been overlooked, romanticized, or seen as an outcome of tribalism, patriarchy, and war. Women's ability to articulate their personal experiences, grief, happiness, gender roles, and capacity to imagine an alternative has been missing. This article argues that through their folk songs women in northeastern Afghanistan criticize the behavior of husbands in their families while supporting their brothers, fathers, and sons. These women nurture and dismantle masculinity to their advantage. In singing space, women support but also bargain with patriarchy. The article concludes with recommendations for future research.

Dissolving Gender Difference – Female Teachers, Male Allies and the Creation of Islamic Sufi Authority in Afghanistan

This article offers a case study of contemporary female Sufi leadership and teaching within a branch of the Qadirriyah Sufi order originating with pir Allama Faizani. Based on ethnographic participant observation and oral history interviews, it traces the development of female inclusion within spiritual practice, such as meditative zikr [lit. remembrance], and religious leadership in urban Afghanistan. Addressing the paucity of writing on Afghan women as Muslim actors, the article considers how the founding pir became a moral exemplar for gender inclusive conduct, facilitating women's participation and inspiring a community ethos of male allyship. The Faizanis legitimize women's participation through recourse to the spiritual psychophysiological organ of the heart, rendering divine connection a non-gendered endeavor that transcends social categories. In addition to the discursive erasure of gender, the community navigates restrictive environments and expectations through practical adaptations such as new cultural organizations. This article examines how women train to access, navigate and control inner states during zikr and documents how this process is interlinked with the relational establishment and creation of spiritual authority.

India and Pakistan both face fallout from Afghanistan

Significance However, Islamabad fears that the Pakistani Taliban Movement (TTP), which opposes the Pakistani state, may now pose a heightened threat. For India the Taliban victory is a setback, as Delhi had good ties with the ousted Afghan government and had made sizeable investments in the country. Impacts Afghan women, children and minority communities will suffer especially under Taliban rule. Trafficking in synthetic drugs will likely rise across South Asia, fuelled by increased production in Afghanistan. Indian-US ties will strengthen while relations between Islamabad and Washington deteriorate.