“We, in the 21st century, have been buried in the darkness of ignorance”

Fariba

Former communications officer, Kabul

A woman in a black hijab holds her child near a red curtain looking out a boarded-up window in a clay home.

“I’m 23 years old, and I’ve finished the twelfth grade. I’d just started studying when the university was closed to us. Currently, I’m unemployed, but before the return of the Taliban I worked in a public information department, in communications. The restrictions of the basic rights of women and girls have weakened us.

Previously, our family’s economic situation was good, and I was working, while my father was a government employee. With the privileges we had, we were leading a good life. However, due to the imposed restrictions, I lost my job, and my father was also dismissed.

There was a time when we used to help others out, financially, but we have now become dependent on others.

When I think about these imposed restrictions, I become very emotional and often break into tears. After these restrictions, our mental and emotional well-being has been severely affected, and many women and girls are suffering from psychological illnesses. Family violence has increased, and stories of women committing suicide have become more common. The demand for selling girls for money is growing every day. People are pulling their young children out of school to do hard labour and earn extra income.

The biggest change is that I lost my independence. I am unemployed and I cannot go to university. I feel unsafe when I travel without a male guardian – something I didn’t feel before. While there were many deaths before, we had the opportunity for education, work and freedom of speech.

What has affected me greatly is losing my job and my source of income, which I used to support my family, especially my younger siblings in their pursuit of education. This sorrow has stolen sleep from my eyes.

In the past two years, there has been no change, and the restrictions on women have become more severe. Sometimes, I wonder how to remain hopeful in these dark circumstances. Nonetheless, I remain hopeful for the future and reassure myself that darkness will end soon, and women and girls in our society can once again access opportunities for work, education and their basic rights.

The global community has ignored the cries of Afghan women and girls over the past two years. The men in our society did not stand by us, and we, in the 21st century, have been buried in the darkness of ignorance. My plea is that, in these sensitive times, do not leave us alone, and stand by us so that we don’t lose all the gains of the past years. Hear our voices so that we can once again achieve the right to work, get an education and the freedom to live.”

“The Taliban attempted to silence us with guns”