Her husband’s government has been excluded from peace talks but, as Amie Ferris-Rotman writes, Rula Ghani is rallying for Afghan women
Amie Ferris-Rotman
Kabul, Afghanistan
Sunday 28 April 2019 23:00
The Independent
For many women in Afghanistan, peace talks between the United States and the Taliban are evoking the darkest days of their lives, when the group stripped women of their most basic rights.
The Taliban regime banned girls from going to school, women were forbidden from working, and they had to be covered head to toe when venturing outside and accompanied by a male relative, even if that meant their baby boy. Showing a wisp of hair would get them whipped by vigilantes.
The peace talks might return the Taliban to power, and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s government has so far been excluded from the dialogue. But his wife, first lady Rula Ghani, has emerged as a powerful voice on the talks and women’s role in them. She is working to become, as she says, “the little stone you put under the urn so it will not fall. This is what I do for Afghan women”.
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Categories: Afghanistan, Asia, Islam