Afghan women continue to take their rightful place in the transition of their country. Serving as #VoicesofHope in the fight for equality and opportunities for all Afghans, here are two recent newsworthy updates.
Challenging oppressive standards enforced by the Taliban, Afghan women continue to take their rightful place in the transition of their country. Serving as #VoicesofHope in the fight for equality and opportunities for all Afghans, here are two recent newsworthy updates:
- For the first time ever, a female Afghan journalist’s byline has been featured in the foreign press. On May 26, Zahra Nader (along with Mujib Mashal and Taimoor Shah) was published in the international version of the New York Times.
A laudable achievement for any journalist, Zahra’s coverage documented Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada’s takeover as leader of the Taliban’s battle against the Afghan government. A featured journalist with Sahar Speaks, an organization “formed in response to the appalling lack of Afghan female reporters working for the international press in Kabul,” Zahra’s article is no doubt the first of many much needed contributions from women journalists in Afghanistan.
- On June 1, H.E. Roya Rahmani officially began her duties as Afghanistan’s Ambassador to Indonesia, presenting her credential letter during a formal ceremony attended by the envoys of seven other countries. Making progress on a promise by President Ashraf Ghani to “appoint at least four women ambassadors,” Ambassador Rahamni joins H.E. Shurkria Barekzai, Afghan Ambassador to Norway, as the first female leaders to assume their duties of diplomatic missions outside of Afghanistan.
In the face of unimaginable adversity, the examples set by Zahra Nader and Ambassador Roya Rahmani remind us of the critical role of women in all levels of a prosperous and equitable society.
