Freedom on the Frontlines: Afghan Women’s Fight for Liberation
Dr Lina AbiRafeh is an activist, academic, and aid worker recognised as one of the world’s leading women’s rights experts. She has worked on gender issues in developing and humanitarian contexts around the world for nearly three decades.
The history of Afghanistan is one of occupation.
The country had been previously occupied by the British and the Soviets, and later by their own political forces – the Mujahideen and the Taliban. The Taliban assumed power over the country in 1996, and remained entrenched until the events of 11 September 2001. The Americans, armed with the language of “liberation” of Afghan women, “occupied” Afghanistan for two decades. In August of 2021, the Americans executed a hasty withdrawal, creating a vacuum for the Taliban’s return. Today, Afghanistan is once again occupied.
The history of Afghan women is no different. They have long suffered ideological occupations. Afghan women’s rights have always been highly politicised, with each political period bringing strong pushes against – or for – Afghan women’s rights and freedoms. At the same time, each occupation has been met with strong opposition from Afghan women and their movements, whose voice and agency is once again under threat today.
My book, Freedom on the Frontlines: Afghan Women and the Fallacy of Liberation, explored the complex and often contradictory experiences of women in Afghanistan living through decades of American ideological occupation from 2001 until 2021. It examined the tension between the external narratives of women’s liberation promoted by outside forces and the lived realities of women on the ground. This tension, I argue, is crucial to understanding not only the past but also the precarious future of any gains made, albeit fragile. In the wake of the recent US withdrawal in August 2021, the book delves into the post-withdrawal landscape to offer a nuanced understanding of women’s struggles and the fragility of progress in conflict zones.
One of the central arguments of Freedom on the Frontlines is that the rhetoric of women’s liberation was often instrumentalised by the occupying forces to justify their presence and garner international support. Images of women discarding burqas, accessing education, and entering the workforce were powerful symbols used to portray the intervention as a mission to liberate “oppressed” women. The reality on the ground was far more nuanced. This narrative denied Afghan women’s agency, obscuring the complexities of their lives. More dangerously, it illustrated the limitations of externally imposed and imported change.
While some women undoubtedly benefited from increased access to education and employment opportunities, these gains were often contingent on specific circumstances and subject to the whims of the occupying forces. Moreover, the focus on visible markers of “progress,” such as choices of attire, often overshadowed deeper issues of power dynamics, social norms, and economic realities. For many women, the presence of foreign troops did not translate into genuine empowerment or a fundamental shift in their social status. In some cases, the increased visibility of women in public spaces even led to heightened risks and challenges.
Furthermore, Freedom on the Frontlines highlighted the diversity of women’s experiences and perspectives, telling the story from the perspective of those who are most important – Afghan women themselves. This presented a counter to the dominant narrative of a homogenous group of “oppressed women” waiting to be liberated. This narrative ignored the agency and resilience of women who were already navigating complex social and political landscapes, actively resisting the occupation and advocating for their rights – on their terms.
Unfortunately, this is not unusual. The case has often been made that Western feminism thrives on the notion of “liberating brown women from brown men,” extending well beyond Afghanistan to other so-called “developing” countries. In Afghanistan, women did not subscribe to this view and opposed the hijacking of their rights – and their lives.
Diverse, nuanced, and sometimes hidden forms of agency were often overlooked in the dominant narrative of liberation, which focused primarily on Western-defined notions of freedom and empowerment. Liberation rhetoric offered little space for Afghan women to define themselves, setting a dangerous precedent for the manner in which aid interventions are orchestrated. I argue that it is through the lived experiences of Afghan women that progress can be measured and regress can be understood. The voices and stories that I included in my book moved beyond simplistic narratives of liberation to recognise the diversity of women’s experiences and perspectives.
My previous book on Afghanistan – Gender and International Aid in Afghanistan: The Politics and Effects of Intervention – also examined the role of cultural and religious traditions in shaping women’s lives. While some traditions undoubtedly contributed to women’s marginalisation, others provided crucial sources of support and community. The simplistic portrayal of these practices as an obstacle to women’s liberation failed to recognise the complex ways in which women negotiated and reinterpreted these social forces to suit their own needs and aspirations. Often, women found ways to exercise agency within the existing social structures, challenging patriarchal norms from within rather than through externally imposed changes.
The withdrawal of US forces in 2021 brought these complexities into even sharper focus. Today, Afghanistan continues to be increasingly precarious as the country navigates both a humanitarian and a human rights crisis. The gains made by women since 2001 are all but lost, and the $780 million the US spent to promote women’s rights in Afghanistan is being brought into question. Every day, there are reports of increasing restrictions on Afghan women’s freedom of movement, access to education, and participation in public life. The resurgence of the Taliban is problematic for all Afghans, but it has been particularly detrimental to women’s rights, with the imposition of strict interpretations of religious law leading to the erosion of hard-won freedoms. Around seventy decrees and directives have been issued by the Taliban that directly target the autonomy, rights, and the daily lives of women and girls. For example, since the Taliban takeover, at least 1.4 million girls have been banned from attending school beyond grade six. Gains made in education over the last two decades – arguable the most critical progress – have all but disappeared.
The post-withdrawal reality underscores the fragility of externally-imposed change in conflict zones. Sustainable progress requires more than just top-down reforms; it necessitates a fundamental shift in social attitudes and power dynamics. Afghanistan cannot be reduced to a “teaching moment,” and the international community must recognise that women’s empowerment cannot be achieved through military intervention or superficial changes imposed from the outside. Instead, it requires a long-term commitment to supporting local actors who work to promote gender equality and social justice.
The implications of the US withdrawal extend beyond Afghanistan. It serves as a cautionary tale for future interventions, highlighting the limitations of military force in achieving social and political change. Future international interventions must adopt a more nuanced and context-sensitive approach to promoting human rights and gender equality around the world.
Supporting local women’s organisations and initiatives that are working to empower women and promote gender equality is the key to making meaningful change a reality. Women have the answers and know what needs to be done in their communities, and those on the outside can support by providing whatever tools and resources Afghan women require to implement changes on their own terms.
Long-term commitment is crucial in understanding that sustainable change takes time and requires a long-term commitment to supporting local efforts. This counters the short-term quick-fix method of aid delivery – particularly in countries in crisis.
My friend Aziza, a women’s rights leader and partner from my time in Afghanistan, was very clear in her view of the situation. “The international community let Afghanistan down. They left people in the dark about their peace negotiations or their plan to exit. It all happened overnight. We moved back in time. Twenty years of constructing a new Afghanistan is reversed in one week.”
I spoke to Aziza frequently in 2021 as the Taliban was reclaiming the country. Her voice provides the foundation for the book. “Things are not going to get any better,” she told me. “We will not have achieved what we had hoped. What we set out to do. What we started to do. And now we have to adapt to whatever that may come in order to survive.” The full conversation was published in Freedom on the Frontlines.
Today, only one percent of women in Afghanistan feel they have influence in their communities. And today, my book feels more relevant than ever, as we witness protracted crises in Palestine and elsewhere – occupations that leave unthinkable destruction in their wake. Throughout my decades in humanitarian aid, I have argued that women and girls bear the brunt of this destruction more acutely – and for far longer. Their lives continue to be upended well after the crisis has subsided.
Aziza’s words underscore the gravity of the situation: “…A lifetime of work for a cause that will now be undone. Everyone is in survival mode. We do not know what will come of this. No woman has any choice anymore. With nothing to look forward to, we are told to just deal with it, to try to live. But trying to live is different from living….”
Freedom on the Frontlines does not offer closure. The fight for Afghan women’s rights – and women’s rights globally – continues. It is arguably under threat now more than ever. The struggle for women’s liberation is not a project that can be completed through military intervention or external imposition. It is a continuous process that requires a fundamental transformation of social attitudes and power dynamics. The future of women’s rights depends on our collective commitment to supporting local actors, addressing root causes, and learning from the complexities of the past. The stories of women in Afghanistan – their struggles and their resilience – serve as a powerful reminder of the importance of this work.
This is not just a fight for Afghanistan. It is for justice, equality, and dignity for us all.
*all images included in this article were taken by the author during her time in Afghanistan between 2002-2006.
The opinions expressed are those of the contributor, not necessarily of the RSAA.
Freedom on the Frontlines: Afghan Women and the Fallacy of Liberation
Afghan women were at the forefront of global agendas in late 2001, fuelled by a mix of media coverage, humanitarian intervention and military operations. Calls for “liberating” Afghan women were widespread. Women’s roles in Afghanistan have long been politically divisive, marked by struggles between modernisation and tradition. Women, politics, and the state have always been intertwined in Afghanistan, and conflicts have been fuelled by attempts to challenge or change women’s status. This book amplifies the voices of hundreds of Afghan women and men from 2001 to 2021. Regardless of external perceptions, the true gauge of progress or liberation lies in the voices of the Afghan people.
Gender and International Aid in Afghanistan: The Politics and Effects of Intervention
Through the lens of gendered aid intervention, this book seeks to understand how the promise of freedom has largely fallen short–for both men and women. Topics include the tenuous relationship between social indicators and aid dynamics; the advancing of the gender agenda through Afghanistan’s 2005 parliamentary elections; and the journey from policy formulation to interpretation to implementation through the voices of policy-makers, policy implementers, NGO leaders, Afghanistan specialists and ordinary Afghan women and men.
