Since the Taliban announced a new government in Afghanistan in September, life has been difficult for women and girls. The United Nations says more than 23 million Afghans are facing acute hunger and a million children under the age of five are at risk of dying. Most secondary schools remain closed denying girls a right to an education. Women no longer have a voice in government, the majority is not allowed to work and violence against them is on the rise. The Taliban insist they are not the Taliban of 20-years ago and issued a special degree on “women’s rights” which says women should not be considered property and cannot be forced into marriage.

Joining the discussion:

• Mahbouba Seraj is the Executive Director of Afghan Women Skills Development Center and a leading advocate for women’s rights.
• Shaharzad Akbar is the former chair of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission.
• Sanam Naraghi Anderlini is the Founder and Executive Director of International Civil Society Action Network.
• Soraya Lennie is an author and journalist based in Kabul.

For more:

In one of Kabul's poorest neighbourhoods. No running water, outdoor toilet, freezing house, kitchen that doubles as a bathroom. They lived on a about $2 a day before the collapse of the Afghan Government. For 20 years, the trillions that poured in from abroad went elsewhere… pic.twitter.com/j4viTDIciP

— Soraya Lennie ثریا لنی (@soraya_lennie) February 7, 2022

BREAKING: President Biden is expected to issue an executive order to move some $7 billion of the Afghan central bank’s assets frozen in the U.S. banking system to fund humanitarian relief in Afghanistan and compensate Sept. 11 victims, source tells @AP https://t.co/pSimEOz9vR

— The Associated Press (@AP) February 11, 2022

Almost six months after the Taliban took power Afghanistan's economy has collapsed and up to eight million people face starvation https://t.co/3lYpBlj5aM

— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) February 8, 2022