Women of Afghanistan Under Taliban Threat

Zohal Sagar
Sagar lost her father and two brothers in the war. Her mother hopes they can leave Afghanistan and find a new life in Canada.





Shirin Gul
Convicted of murder and hijacking, Gul says she fell into a life of crime under pressure from her husband; she had six children, so she followed his wishes. Her husband, son and brother-in-law have all been hanged in connection with their crimes.

Islam
Family dispute and a husband hooked to drugs pressed Islam to pour diesel fuel over herself in a suicide attack. Her mother-in-law stressed to extinguish the flames

Sakina
When Sakina was 14, her family passed out her into marriage with a 45-year-old man who had a carpet-weaving job. "I didn't know about marriage," she says. "I didn't experience about relations between men and women." He used her as an bound servant and beat her with threading instruments when she didn't work fast adequate. Once, when she dropped some tea glasses, the family break up all of her hair. She escaped. Now she is seeking to get a divorce, which her in-laws refuse to allow because, they say, they paid fine money for her.




Mahbooba Seraj
Women collect at a preparation conference for parliamentarians. "Women have exactly as much a correct to participate in ahead Afghanistan now as they did then," tells Seraj, supporting, coming to to historic female heroes in Afghanistan. "We must not comparison women in Afghanistan to women in France or Sweden. We have to compare women now to women in 2001. And we have made immense approach."



Fawzia Koofi
The early deputy speaker of parliament, Koofi is very free-spoken on women's issues. "Balancing will not bring peace to Afghanistan," she says. "Peace is a result of republic. You have to admit everyone in that action, admitting women." She is running a second term in parliament but fears that fresh election rules may make it more hard to win and that outspoken women like her will be sidelined.

Robina Muqimyar Jalalai
In 2004, Muqimyar was one of Afghanistan's first two female representatives at the Olympics. She is now running for parliament

Mozhdah Jamalzadah
Part Oprah, part Hannah Montana, The Mozhdah Show, hosted by Jamalzadah, is the most belated star to hit Afghanistan's television screens.



Sabrina Saqib
Saqib, Afghanistan's youngest parliamentarian, says having women in parliament was a huge step forward. "Women came back to life after the Taliban."