Taliban's Increasing Power Brings Back Sexual Enslavement Horrors For Afghan Women

The Taliban have taken complete control of a majority of Afghanistan ever since American troops pulled out of the country in July. To make matters worse, Afghan president Ashraf Ghani has fled the country leading to a  total collapse of the government. With no resistence from Afghan forces and lack of any international pressure, the Taliban has only gotten stronger so much so that they have intensified their violence. To say that Taliban's increasing power is terrifying for the woman in Afghanistan would be to understate it.

It may be recalled that Taliban leaders had sought the list of girls over 15 and widows over 45 from the local religious leaders to get them married to Taliban fighters. Taliban's strategy to give women to Taliban militants is a way to tempt them into joining them. However, it is not known if the religious leaders complied with their wish. This was after the Taliban took control of Badakhshan and Takhar in July.

Girls and women who will ve forced into marriages will be taken to Pakistan's Waziristan and converted.This fear has led to scores of women fleeing  the country. As per reports, some 9 lakh people have been displaced in the last three months.

Way back in 1996-2001 under the Taliban regime, women had to go through intense hardships besides facing human rights violations. They were not given jobs, forced to wear naqaab (burqa) and not allowed to step out without a male guardian (mahram).

Taliban has claimed earlier that they will protect women's rights. However, their current actions of subjecting women to sexual slavery is far from reality. The only way out would be for UN to step in and protect Afghan women against atrocities.