No 'real change' for Afghan women

international | gender and sexuality | other press Wednesday November 01, 2006 12:20 by pat c

Women still face a grim present and future in Afghanistan as the ironheel of Islam stamps firmly on their faces.

Women reporting rape run the risk of being imprisoned for having sexual intercourse outside marriage.

"Women's rights activists are getting killed, women's NGO workers are getting killed, and that is not going to change unless some drastic action is taken,"

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pat c

Millions of Afghan women still face discrimination, the report says
An international women's rights group says guarantees given to Afghan women after the fall of the Taleban in 2001 have not translated into real change.

Womankind Worldwide says millions of Afghan women and girls continue to face systematic discrimination and violence in their households and communities.

The report admits that there have been some legal, civil and constitutional gains for Afghan women. But serious challenges remain and need to be addressed urgently, it states. These include challenges to women's safety, realisation of civil and political rights and status.