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A30 world news
Dialuna 20 September 2021

Taliban-run Kabul municipality to female workers: Stay home

killing three people and wounding ing attacks over the years. Such barri-
20, witnesses said. There was no im- ers — erected near ministries, embas-
mediate claim of responsibility. sies and private homes of politicians
and warlords — had been common-
With the Taliban facing major eco- place in Kabul for years.
nomic and security problems as they
attempt to govern, a growing chal- The mayor said private citizens
lenge by IS militants would further would be charged for the work of
stretch their resources. taking down the barriers. While he
said most barriers had been removed,
Also on Sunday, interim Kabul May- reporters touring the city noted that
or Hamdullah Namony gave his first barriers outside most government
news conference since being appoint- installations and embassies had been
ed by the Taliban. left in place.

He said that before the Taliban take- The Taliban have tried to present
over last month, just under one-third themselves as guarantors of security,
of close to 3,000 city employees were in hopes that this will win them sup-
women, and that they had worked in port from a public still widely suspi-
all departments. cious of their intentions. Under the
previous government, a rise in crime
Namony said the female employ- had been a major concern for ordi-
(AP) — Female employees in the holding up signs calling for the par- ees have been ordered to stay home, nary Afghans.
Kabul city government have been ticipation of women in public life. pending a further decision. He said
told to stay home, with work only “A society in which women are not exceptions were made for women Perhaps the toughest challenge faced
allowed for those who cannot active is (sic) dead society,” one sign who could not be replaced by men, by the new Taliban rulers is the accel-
be replaced by men, the interim read. including some in the design and erated economic downturn. Even be-
mayor of Afghanistan’s capital engineering departments and the at- fore the Taliban takeover, Afghanistan
said Sunday, detailing the latest The protest lasted for about 10 min- tendants of public toilets for women. was plagued by major problems, in-
restrictions on women by the new utes. After a short verbal confronta- Namony did not say how many fe- cluding large-scale poverty, drought
Taliban rulers. tion with a man, the women got into male employees were forced to stay and heavy reliance on foreign aid for
cars and left, as Taliban in two cars home. the state budget.
Witnesses, meanwhile, said an explo- observed from nearby. Over the past
sion targeted a Taliban vehicle in the months, Taliban fighters had broken “There are some areas that men can’t In a sign of growing desperation,
eastern provincial city of Jalalabad, up several women’s protests by force. do it, we have to ask our female staff street markets have sprung up in Ka-
and hospital officials said five people to fulfill their duties, there is no alter- bul where residents are selling their
were killed in the second such deadly Elsewhere, about 30 women, many of native for it,” he said. belongings. Some of the sellers are
blast in as many days in the Islamic them young, held a news conference Afghans hoping to leave the country,
State stronghold. in a basement of a home tucked away Across Afghanistan, women in many while others are forced to offer their
in a Kabul neighborhood. Marzia Ah- areas have been told to stay home meager belongings in hopes of get-
The decision to prevent most female madi, a rights activist and government from jobs, both in the public and ting money for the next meal.
city workers from returning to their employee now forced to sit at home, private sectors. However, the Taliban
jobs is another sign that the Taliban, said they would demand the Taliban have not yet announced a uniform “Our people need help, they need
who overran Kabul last month, are re-open public spaces to women. policy. The comments by the Kabul jobs, they need immediate help, they
enforcing their harsh interpretation mayor were unusually specific and are not selling their household be-
of Islam despite initial promises by “It’s our right,” she said. “We want affected a large female work force longings for choice here,” said Kabul
some that they would be tolerant to talk to them. We want to tell them that had been involved in running a resident Zahid Ismail Khan, who was
and inclusive. In their previous rule that we have the same rights as they sprawling city of more than 5 million watching the activity in one of the
in the 1990s, the Taliban had barred have.” people. impromptu markets.
girls and women from schools, jobs
and public life. Most of the participants said they Namony also said the new govern- “For a short-term people might try
would try to leave the country if they ment has begun removing security to find a way to live, but they would
In recent days, the new Taliban gov- had an opportunity. barriers in Kabul, a city that has en- have no other choice to turn to beg-
ernment issued several decrees roll- dured frequent bombing and shoot- ging in a longer term,” he said.
ing back the rights of girls and wom- The explosion Sunday in Jalalabad
en. It told female middle- and high was the second attack in two days to
school students that they could not target the Taliban in the Islamic State
return to school for the time being, group stronghold. The Taliban and
while boys in those grades resumed IS extremists are enemies and fought
studies this weekend. Female uni- each other even before the Taliban
versity students were informed that seized control of Afghanistan last
studies would take place in gender- month.
segregated settings from now on, and
that they must abide by a strict Islam- Hospital officials in Jalalabad said
ic dress code. Under the U.S.-backed they received the bodies of five peo-
government deposed by the Taliban, ple killed in the explosion. Among the
university studies had been co-ed, for dead were two civilians, including a
the most part. child, and three others who according
to witnesses were in a targeted border
On Friday, the Taliban shut down the police vehicle and were believed to be
Women’s Affairs Ministry, replacing Taliban.
it with a ministry for the “propaga-
tion of virtue and the prevention of The Taliban were not immediately
vice” and tasked with enforcing Is- available for comment about possible
lamic law. casualties among their ranks.
On Sunday, just over a dozen women On Saturday, three explosions tar-
staged a protest outside the ministry, geted Taliban vehicles in Jalalabad,