New law that gives a husband the right to demand sex every four days sparks protest; activists say empowering females in patriarchal society requires males
By Heidi Vogt | Associated Press
KABUL—There are a handful of them at every women’s rights gathering in Afghanistan: men.
Crowds of men threw stones and shouted insults at women last week protesting a restrictive marriage law that critics say legalizes marital rape in Afghanistan, but a few men marched and chanted alongside the women.
These are the men—many of them prominent male politicians and intellectuals—who are taking up the battle for women’s rights and calling for change in this patriarchal society. The act of solidarity is more than just a bright spot; activists say men’s support for women’s rights is vital in a country where men hold sway in government and in families.
Many people working on women’s issues agree: To empower the women, you first need to enlist the men.
Sherwali Wardak, who runs women’s literacy and small-business training programs in rural Afghanistan, said the key to getting women involved is to persuade the men in their lives to allow it.
“The most important factor of working with women is to encourage the men to allow their women to enroll in the rehabilitation or development project,” Wardak said.
When he doesn’t get permission from the men, Wardak says, they often don’t let their wives or daughters leave the house to travel to the centers he sets up. He says he’s received threats because of the work he does.
“They write, ‘Close this project because it is working for Christianity,’ ” he said. It’s a common accusation of those who support women’s rights in Afghanistan—that the advocates are stooges of the Christian West.
Crowds that swamped a group of women protesting a law Wednesday that they say legalizes marital rape were full of similar vitriol. The law gives a husband the right to demand sex every four days and regulates when a woman can leave the house. The law is not being enforced pending a judicial review ordered by Afghanistan’s president after the legislation sparked an international uproar.
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(Submitted by Rohila Pritam)