海角大神

Rabia Balkhi was one of the first female Persian poets. She was killed by her brother, a king,聽hundreds of years ago for falling in love with a slave and daring to write poetry in a male-dominated culture. Much like her, women of modern-day Afghanistan, including journalists, still face violence because聽of their writing, or are murdered because of love affairs.

In late 2016, the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) investigated聽5,575 cases of violent crimes against women, noting that most cases go unreported due to聽traditional practices, stigmatization, and fear of consequences for victims. A 2009 United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) report states that women participating in public life face threats, harassment, and attack. In聽extreme cases, some have been killed for holding jobs that are seen to disrespect traditional聽practices or are considered 鈥渦n-Islamic.鈥澛燦ow, about 11 centuries after Ms. Balkhi鈥檚 murder, her nation鈥檚 daughters have launched a nonprofit organization to stand up for their rights through writing. It鈥檚 called .

Founded in 2013 by Afghan activists Noorjahan Akbar and Batul Moradi alongside a collective聽of writers, students, and activists, the nonprofit hopes to improve women鈥檚 lives by simply聽telling their stories, in their own words. Their first book, 鈥淒aughters of Rabia,鈥澛燼n anthology of聽Afghan women鈥檚 writings inspired by Balkhi鈥檚 story, was published the same year.

One of the collective鈥檚 members is Roya Saberzada, a painter and writer who lives in Mazar-e-Sharif. Ms. Saberzada is unafraid of laughter, but her smile suddenly聽disappears when speaking about the status of women in Afghanistan. 鈥淭he situation is bad,鈥� she聽says. 鈥淰iolence increases every year.鈥� Yet she remains optimistic, because awareness is growing. 鈥淭he more women are aware of their rights, the less violence they will聽face,鈥� she says, adding that there鈥檚 still much work to be done.

Ms. Akbar, who was featured in Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women of the World in 2012 for her advocacy聽work, says she wanted to use this book to raise awareness of gender inequality among Afghan聽women 鈥� who rarely have access to feminist literature 鈥� but also among men who wish to join聽their fight.

鈥淚n the streets of Kabul, many vendor children were selling extremist books written聽and published in Pakistan for 30 Afghanis (40 cents). Most of these books were about women聽and they spread misogyny under religious pretenses. We wanted to provide an alternative,鈥� she says.聽Using Akbar鈥檚 personal savings, the organization managed to print 1,500 copies.

鈥淎ll the copies were distributed within a month. People from six provinces came to Kabul and took the books back to their provinces and schools,鈥� she recalls. In order to make the contents of the book accessible to everyone, they then decided to publish it on social media and on a website. 鈥淲e drew a lot of attention and many other women began to send their writings,鈥� Akbar says. They have now published poems, memoirs, and articles written by more than 140 women, and some men, hundreds of which have been translated into English thanks to the work of volunteers based in Kabul, Mazar-e-Sharif, and Washington, D.C.

Over the past couple of decades, international nongovermental organizations and institutions have tried to foster women鈥檚 rights in the country with initiatives often funded by the Afghan government, but the results of these efforts generally remain imperceptible. For Afghan women to find empowerment, Akbar says the change must come from them.

鈥淚t was very important for me to work independently and not to receive any financial assistance from governments or foreign embassies because I have always wanted us, the women of Afghanistan, to value our own priorities,鈥� she says, adding that unless Afghan women start seeing themselves as independent humans with human rights, a shift in mentality and gender equality will be unlikely.

In September 2017, the collective published its second book, 鈥淵ou Are Not Alone,鈥� a short guide for women facing聽gender-based violence that provides practical tips for seeking legal aid, forming networks of聽support, and protecting mental health. It is available in Persian,聽Pashtu, and English. Profits from its sales allow the nonprofit to finance higher education聽scholarships for young women in Afghanistan, and to continue producing literature educating women about their rights.

This story was reported by Hasht E Subh, a news outlet in Afghanistan. The Monitor is publishing it as part of an international effort by more than 50 news organizations worldwide to promote solutions journalism. To read other stories in this joint project, please click here.