What’s life like as a woman under the Taliban? | The Economist

Just give us a sense. of what it is like right now. to be a woman in Afghanistan. I think it's a pretty. restrictive picture. On the streets. is one of the most visible areas. You'll see that. a lot of women, most women. are dressed very conservatively. with their faces covered, that's one of the requirements. of the Taliban. And you actually see. quite a lot of women. wearing a covid-style mask. If they're not wearing the niqab. they’ll wear a covid-style mask, which covers their face, and that shows they're complying. Not absolutely everyone. but most women you see.

are doing that. Of course. they've been massively restricted. from workplaces. and from universities. I spoke to one professor. who said his entire department. had been cleared out. of women. You do. come across some women. working pretty discreetly. in the private sector, but that's become. much more difficult. And then, of course, the really. big and controversial one. inside Afghanistan. is schooling. And the Taliban have. implemented this policy.

of banning girls from attending. public secondary schools. That's hugely unpopular. inside Afghanistan. So it's very hard to get. robust numbers, but people I asked thought. that perhaps only 10%. of girls are now. getting any kind. of formal secondary education. And the way that's happening. is that some of them are allowed. to go to these. privately run madrassas. But it's a pretty difficult situation. and a lot of the girls and women. I was speaking to. they say it's pretty bleak. and they're not.

optimistic about the future. It was one of the most. striking experiences I had. to visit this madrassa in Kabul. Everyone was very, very nervous. about me being there. We had to be very careful. about not naming. or identifying it. The girls were delighted. to get some education. but they said. lots of our friends. can't afford this. and, of course, we're not. going to be able to do anything. with this education. So they've really made it. very, very difficult. for girls to just exist. and pursue any kind of ambition.

Were they speaking to you. in English, the girls? They all spoke perfect English. I literally started the—. so they're all about 16. or 17 years old. I started the interview. very slowly. thinking they would need. my translator. They very quickly corrected me. and pointed out that they. could understand me perfectly. They were incredibly articulate, very ambitious. One of them had wanted. to become a lawyer. Another one had wanted. to become a doctor. They said that those dreams. had been crushed. One of them very movingly. said to me that.

her parents kept telling her. that by the time she graduated. everything would be okay. And she said. I don't think everything. will be okay. She said I don't have any hope. for the future. So these are the kind of girls. that are being crushed. by this regime.