Chapter Two
Background of the Subject
The widows of Afghanistan have been witnessed unfamiliar approaches that have harmed their human munificence and generosity. In this case, we can point out to the advices of Ahmad Shah Ghazi to his prince, Teimur Shah. Based on Ahmad Shah’s account, a widow belongs to her husband’s family and no stranger can marry her (all dynasties always wanted to keep their social and personal honor). According to Ahmad Shah, the divorce was a dishonor and humiliation to the husband’s dynasty and Teimur Shah was obeying his father’s advices.
Unpleasant approaches toward the women were not only in the past, but also in recent years, during Taliban era. In this era, the women were being hit and maimed in public and they were deprived of any basic human rights. After disintegration of Taliban the situation of Afghan women has been going much better, but they are two million people who are the remnants of war and are away from their rights.
Despite bulks of problems and difficulties, there have been done few researches in the situation of the widows of Afghanistan and also the widows are still living in harsh conditions. According to a report done by UNIFEM in 2006, 65% of the 50000 widows settled in Kabul are intended to commit suicide due to financial problems. Also, based on a research done by Research and Evaluation Unite of Afghanistan, the possibility of working of children is very high because the sexual norms and rules do not let the women work outside the house.
According to Diora Zalson on the effects of drought on widows, the widows are two times and their children five times more in danger of malnutrition comparing to their married counterparts.
There are many different reasons for harsh situation of the widows, but the most important one is negligence of the government. In four international conferences on women affairs, Mexico in 1975, Copenhagen 1980, Norway 1986 and Beijing 1995, there we can find no clue of concern regarding the widows. Even in the Beijing Conference in 1995 that was held for human rights, elimination of poverty, violation against women, education, health care and armored conflicts, nobody talked about the widows.
In the constitution of Afghanistan only article 53 is talking about support for the families led by women, but in practice, there has been little attention. This claim is clearer in cyclic report of the Islam Republic of Afghanistan in relation to the application international treaties of economic, social and cultural rights in 2007.
Leading the family, financial problems, living lonely and wrong attitudes of the society toward the widows double mental problems of the widows. Financial problems have kept the widows away from society. Insecurity in economic issues cause that the widows be concern of their own and their children’s future. The main problem of the widows is poverty and harsh economic situation that pave the way for other problems. Their poverty roots from personal obstacles such as illiteracy, indifference of the government, no welfare policy for the widows and betterment of their lives. While based on Afghanistan Agreement the mass of poverty the women who lead their families would reduce to 20% in last 2010. There are only a few month ahead and it seems impossible.
Chapter Three
Theoretical Topics
According to big dictionary of Sokhan, the widow is a woman whose husband is not present due to divorce or death. But in other cultures and languages, the word “widow” is a cursed word approaching its subjects unfairly. In a country like Afghanistan unidimentional thoughts, tribe-based discrimination and narrow-mind people deepen the problems and do not let the women to have access to their legal rights.
A study on women rights in South Asia, in the countries such as Bangladesh, Pakistan, India and Seri Lanka has explained the situation of women unpleasant. In Bangladesh the supervision of children belongs to the husband’s family. Although the Koran says that the women have a portion of inheritance, in most of Islamic countries in South Asia the women rights are denied and they are deprived of their inheritance rights.
A research on the widows in Kashmir indicates that the widows in there have economic, shelter, literacy, health care, dependency to their relative and mistreatment problems. Such women have to work at home and push their children to work outside the house. 40% of these children are illiterate among them the girls are more vulnerable. Most of these women are concerned of their financial support in the future. In India, there are 33 million widows who are in poverty and critical financial situation.
The situation of widows is unclear in Iran. Based on the studies, 59.8% of in the families led by women the women feel disable and 60.2% of them are concerned of their future. Most of them have economic, marriage, supervision of the children and psychic problems.
In Afghanistan, there are many widows who have lost their husband during last decades of war. These women have problems in the society such as cultural and traditional limitations, lack of access to education, health care, job and remarriage problems.
A research shows that the poorest women in Afghanistan are the widows. Based on the research, if a woman loses her husband in adolescence, she will be very vulnerable. She has lost her bread-maker and because she is young she will have economic problems and cannot work outside. She has to stay with her brother, her father, her son or her groom or her husband’s relatives. Because the poverty is a widespread phenomenon in Afghanistan, such women would be known as an extra human being in the family so that she would have to work hard.
The widows of Afghanistan have many problems in taking tutelage of their children. Based on our traditions and culture, the children of a widow must live with their father and if a woman wants to take tutelage of her children, when she wants to remarry, if her new husband doesn’t agree, she has to submit her children to her ex-husband. In a poor widow case, she is not allowed to take tutelage of her children.
The traditions of Afghanistan that are much often applicable create many problems for the widows of the country. Young Afghan widows cannot decide what is good for them and have to follow what her husband’s family dictates her. Older women have less social limitation, but they have health dilemma instead. Only traditions and superstitious beliefs are not weakening the rights and spirits of women but indifference from the government, international society, civil society and even women advocacy organizations is another problem.
The indifference and nonchalance of four world conferences on the women and their families (Mexico 1975, Copenhagen 1980, Norway 1985, Beijing 1995) and Convention of Violation Against Women is very vivid. There is no document in named conferences indicating any support for older widows. For instance, in Beijing Conference 1995, in none of twelve grounds such as eradication of poverty, violation against women, health care, education, women and armed conflicts and human rights never discussed the widows. There have been no research and census on the widows of Afghanistan and the government has never made any specific and transparent policy for protection of them.
In addition to lack of family laws particularly in regard to the women, the slowness of legal reforms and applicable laws increase the social and economic pressure over the widows.
According to article 53of the constitution of Afghanistan, the government is responsible for vulnerable and woman-led families. Although Hamed Karzai has issued a decree in 2009 in regard to evaluation of the situation of vulnerable families, the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs and related organizations such as Human Rights Commission have not done any remarkable action. Concerning mentioned problem, only there has been a program called “National Job Program for Afghan Women” in which the women were taught about government, security, law, human rights, social and economic development, but there is no footprint of widows in the program.
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