How do afghanistan men treat women

Findings are preliminary but indicate that there is tremendous social pressure on men, especially younger men, to adhere to stereotypes of masculinity; for example, disallowing womenfolk to emerge from the confines of the house and enter the public domain. The most frustrating exhibition of such behavior is denying women their own names in public i. Peer pressure among men takes the form of verbal harassment and, in the worst cases, persecution.

Jokes, slights, and name calling which indicate that the male in question has lax morals or lacks the masculinity to control his womenfolk form a critical, insidious, and at times painful part of socialization.

Many argue that it is necessary to convince influential groups and gatekeepers that gender equality is enshrined in the tenets of Islam, but such discussions become exercises in rhetoric for some publics while other views are presented elsewhere.

When we enquired of an important maulavi , whose opinion on social and religious matters is sought at the regional level, how he would view or describe men who allowed their wives to go to work or participate in government and non-governmental organization NGO programs, his answer was disturbing: He responded succinctly that such men should be regarded as nothing more than pimps who prostitute their wives.

Men are guardians of a notion of communal honor and punishers of those men whose women do not follow prescribed gender roles. His grandmother is a community activist, and he is proud of her achievements. Even on the day he was interviewed, other young men in the room joked that our male team members from Kabul had heard of his mother and come to visit her.

As his father was dead and he felt powerless, the young man regularly approached his older relatives to put pressure on his mother to stay at home. She then struck a match. The last thing she heard were birds chirping.

The next morning, she realized her prayer had gone unanswered. But even while he was serving his prison sentence, Khadija felt more trapped than when she tried to take her own life. If she refused, she would never see him again. It also highlights how, in the face of little governmental support and dwindling international aid, women are stepping in to help one another.

Meet Khadija and the doctors trying to save her life in the video at the top of this story. Video by Beth Murphy. Bush declared victory in the country. In October, the U. As in all war-torn societies, women suffer disproportionately. Afghanistan is still ranked the worst place in the world to be a woman.

Despite Afghan government and international donor efforts since to educate girls, an estimated two-thirds of Afghan girls do not attend school. Eighty-seven percent of Afghan women are illiterate, while percent face forced marriage , many before the age of Government statistics from show that 80 percent of all suicides are committed by women, making Afghanistan one of the few places in the world where rates are higher among women.

Psychologists attribute this anomaly to an endless cycle of domestic violence and poverty. The Global Rights survey found that nearly 90 percent of Afghan women have experienced domestic abuse. Earlier that week, a man claimed his wife had died from a longstanding illness but activists suspect he murdered her. Herat, a province in western Afghanistan near the border of Iran, has some of the highest rates of violence against women in the country and some of the highest rates of suicide among women.

Psychologist Naema Nikaed, who was working with Khadija, said she handles several cases of attempted suicide every week. Supporting women in Afghanistan is something people all over the world pay lip service to, but money and aid never get to them. Higher Education Minister Abdul Baqi Haqqani indicated women would be allowed to study, but not alongside men.

He also announced a review of the subjects students would be taught. Women and girls were banned from schools and universities under Taliban rule between and The Taliban have said they will not prevent women from being educated or having jobs.

But since they seized control on 15 August, they have asked all women, except those in the public health sector, to stay away from work, until the security situation improves. Sunday's announcement of the higher education policy comes a day after the Taliban raised their flag over the presidential palace, signalling the beginning of their administration.

They seized control from the elected government a month ago. The policy marks a significant change from the accepted practice before the Taliban takeover. Female students did not have to abide by a dress code, and universities were co-educational, with men and women studying side by side.

The eldest male has the most authority and decision-making power and usually controls all family spending. Every decision has to be approved by the husband or father. Men carry the economic burden of the family and often have to single-handedly support the entire household. For a husband and father in Afghanistan, this can mean having to earn enough to support himself, his wife, his children and any parent or in-law living with the nuclear family.

Brothers and sons must also help to economically support the family, protect the family honour and discipline any misbehaviour. Women are largely in charge of the domestic chores, cooking, raising the children, entertaining guests and catering to the needs of the man of the house.

Children are to show reverence and deference to their parents and elders. This expectation of social compliance loosens as people gain adult independence. The Afghan educational system is limited, especially for those living rurally. Many young children learn entirely from the village mosque and religious leader mullah , or their parents usually the mother while the father works.

This supports the cultural idea that parents are to be revered for their wisdom and mothers should be greatly admired. Gender roles are highly patriarchal and rigidly defined in Afghan culture. The men are viewed as the main income earners, while women are seen as the homemakers. Husbands are expected to provide economically for their wives and children throughout their lives. Under Islamic inheritance law, females receive exactly half of the wealth that their male relatives receive.

This division is based on the idea that it is a man's duty to care for the women in his family. Broadly, men dominate the public sphere and women only have authority in the domestic realm over their children and other women. However, when the Taliban came into power, they placed extreme restrictions on women, resulting in their seclusion and exclusion. Many bans were enforced that limited their involvement in the public sphere, tightened their moral code of dress and denied them an education.

Such restrictions have eased but remain stricter than what most Afghans desire. According to the religiously based conservative view, a woman should not be available to anyone but her family — meaning generally she can only leave the house if she has a male accompaniment and is completely shielded from the public eye usually by a burqa , chador or niqab.