08/16/2021
We’re all seeing plenty of images of young men attempting to flee Afghanistan, but largely absent from the narrative are the stories of the women, homosexuals, and other marginalized people who are being left behind as the country falls under Taliban rule.
Many fear a return to Sharia law – under which women are forbidden from attending school, must cover their bodies while in public, and are required to have a male es**rt when leaving the house.
In a heartbreaking video, one Afghan woman who did manage to escape to India was interviewed by reporters. Through tears, she says: “our friends are going to get killed, they’re going to kill us. Our women are not going to have any more rights.”
“I am in shock,” said another 26-year-old woman who was unable to flee. “How can it be possible for me as a woman who has worked so hard and tried to learn and advance, to now have to hide myself and stay at home?”
Apparently, these new oppressive restrictions are already being enforced. According to an AP news report, girls in northern Afghanistan were stopped on their way home Friday and lashed for wearing “revealing sandals.”
The situation for LGBT people in the country is even more dire. Last month, a Taliban judge confirmed that homosexuality will carry a death penalty under their rule.
"There are only two penalties for g**s: Either stoning or he has to stand behind a wall that falls on him. The wall must be 2.5 to 3 meters high," the judge told a German newspaper.
As yet another young Afghan put it, what comes next is likely “a return back to the dark days.”