Rights of Women in Afghanistan
WASHINGTON (KCBS) The group Human Rights Watch has released a report showing why women's rights should be a priority in any political agreement with insurgent forces in Afghanistan.
Conditions for women have generally improved since the days of Taliban rule in Afghanistan.
But the Human Rights Watch study shows that there are still many places in the country where women are attacked and killed with impunity.
Podcast
Girls education is threatened and women are routinely forced out of jobs.
"Women do suffer tremendously in the areas of Afghanistan that are still under Taliban control," said Vikram Singh, the Senior Advisor to Special Envoy Ambassador Richard Holbrooke.
Holbrooke is the U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan.
"Part of our effort with the Afghans is to rest control of those areas from these most extreme of the insurgents and to bring some peace and stability that can be beneficial to all of the Afghan people," said Singh.
But Human Rights Watch wants more. Its leaders want to see a focus on women's safety and rights included in any efforts to reintegrate former Taliban fighters.
