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By Heather C. Odell
License: Part of the Inequality and Stratification Commons, Islamic Studies Commons, Near and Middle
Eastern Studies Commons, Politics and Social Change Commons, and the Women’s Studies Commons
Following the entry of the United States armed forces into Afghanistan in 2001, Afghan women’s rights rose to the forefront of the international community’s attention. As media outlets highlighted the Taliban’s egregious treatment of women, government agencies and international NGOs poured into the country with the aim of liberating women from their oppressive circumstances. While the Taliban’s presence lingers in Afghanistan today, significant strides have been made toward gender equality since their fall from power in 2001. Yet, in many ways, women remain subordinate, with lower levels of education, poorer health, and less participation in politics. Many of the legal advances made for women remain little more than words on paper. Extensive changes are needed to realize these gains in practice. This paper presents the argument that, while education, legal rights, political participation, and physical security are important pieces of the gender equality puzzle in Afghanistan, economic empowerment of women should be the top priority as it is the most effective and culturally sensitive way to improve women’s rights in the long term. Women who gain economic skills that are valuable to their household and community will eventually wield greater political influence and ability to advocate for their own rights. Furthermore, economic empowerment is the most effective means to equality in the context of Afghanistan’s patriarchal, Muslim-majority society. Approaching gender relations from an economic angle will be less threatening than approaching it using human rights discourse, which many Muslims consider at odds with Islam or an imposition of Western values.
Keywords: Gender equality, Women’s economic empowerment, Taliban, Education and legal rights, Patriarchal society, Cultural sensitivity in reform