Afghan Law Governing Women Draws Criticism
Controversial Legislation’s Fate Unknown
Women’s Rights have long been a controversial issue in Afghanistan. Between 1996 and NATO’s (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) involvement in the country the fundamentalist Taliban regime ruled the country. Some rules for women included that they must wear a burqua, and they couldn’t leave the house without a male escort. The regime banned women from the workforce, and universities.
Legislation Governs Shi’ite Women
The law focuses on the lives of Shi’ite families who make up 20% of the country’s total 30 million people. According to the Associated Press, among the more contentious articles require women to “preen for her husband as and when he desires.”
Another of the clauses focuses on a couple’s sexual life. According to the Associate press article 132 states: “As long as the husband is not traveling, he has the right to have sexual intercourse with his wife every fourth night, unless the wife is ill or has any kind of illness that intercourse could aggravate, the wife is bound to give a positive response to the sexual desires of her husband.”
Some legislators defend the law saying it gives Afghan women more rights than those in the United States and Great Britain because it requires husbands to provide for their wives. President Hamid Karzai hasn’t directly commented on the issue, but his spokesperson says he is aware of the controversy and is looking into it.
The law doesn’t apply to the country’s Sunni population.
International and Domestic Opposition
Some critics accuse Karzai of politicking ahead of the upcoming election, and others call it legal rape. It’s debatable whether the law was even passed. Associated Press reports a Member of Parliament doesn’t remember debating or voting on the issue; they have no idea how it came to be signed by Karzai.
There are fears from female lawmakers that the law will take the country backward and erase the recent gains. One lawmaker Fawzia Kuffi voiced those fears to Associated Press: “All the efforts that were made in the last seven years to enhance women’s rights will be undermined.”
International human rights groups, and governments are united in condemning the legislation. The United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) stated the law abuses women’s rights. The Human Rights Watch, a New York based group calls it a “dramatic setback for women’s rights.”
International governments including Canada’s condemned the law. In an interview given to the CBC London Prime Minister Stephen Harper called the fight for women’s rights a major part of international efforts in Afghanistan. In remarks published by the Toronto Star of the changes he said: “It’s a significant change we want to see from the bad old days of the Taliban.” Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff was equally serious in his remarks saying that Karzai better think twice before passing such a law. It remains unclear as to whether the law was actually passed.
Life in Afghanistan for women has improved since 2001. Women own businesses, and girls attend school. 89 of 389 members in the country’s Parliament are women.
What do you think about this article?
More in Politics & Society
Latest Articles