In exile, she remains active for democracy and education for girls in a country oppressed by the Taliban
The first woman to hold one of the highest political positions in Afghanistan, the Vice President of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly, was born into a polygamous and conservative family. With the return of the Taliban to power, Fawzia Koofi – who will be one of the speakers at the international summit of Santander WomenNOW, organized by Vocento and which will make Madrid the European capital of women again on June 16-17 – withdrew from exile that her fight against discrimination against women started when she was a child and became the first in her family to go to school. “My father was a member of the Afghan parliament and represented a conservative view of society,” he said. «I was never the favorite daughter, because my mother wanted to have a son. So I’ve faced difficulties from birth, which fueled my political views and my fight against discrimination.”
She was born in 1975 and studied medicine. She left her calling to turn to politics when “I could see before my eyes how the Taliban tortured and oppressed women. That forged my conscience and I started promoting women’s rights. She herself had two serious attacks. In one they hit him in the shoulder and touched his right hand, with which he was writing.
-You had two serious attacks, in Tora Bora in 2010 and in Kabul ten years later. How do you overcome this kind of violence?
If you strongly believe that society needs to change, especially in a country like Afghanistan where women have always been silenced, you know that your voice can make a difference and change the lives of others. The attacks gave me more reasons to fight. And I took on the security challenges at a personal cost. Extremist military groups, including the Taliban, are not afraid of US bombings, but they do fear women’s power. Because women’s participation in social and political life will undermine the conservative views of the Taliban.
-How do you continue your struggle from exile?
-I’m not physically in the country, but technology keeps us connected. So in a way I’m there every moment, talking to people and doing humanitarian work. I maintain my office and schools in Kabul and the provinces. It is very hard to imagine how the future that we had won with our blood, that of millions of Afghans, has been lost. Sometimes I have to gather my strength because it becomes unbearable to know how many women and all citizens are suffering. The Taliban have started killing people and there is nothing I can do to change this painful situation.
-Are we in Europe able to understand the situation in Afghanistan?
-It would be unfair to say that the Europeans do not understand or help the Afghans. For example, the Spanish government has really rescued many people at risk and has evacuated a large number of activists, for which I am grateful. But in general, some countries do not want to understand the detailed situation in Afghanistan, which can undermine global security, as is the case with Ukraine. I hope that the other nations will face the Taliban with greater vigor and that Europe will unite to defend the human rights of Afghans who are in a terrible moment. But that does not happen and the atrocities remain allowed.
-What are those details that escape us?
-The situation is changing very quickly and, after Ukraine, the world has turned its attention elsewhere, as happened with Iraq in 2003. As then, the Taliban have grown stronger and are preparing to come to Europe. At this point, I know that in Afghanistan there are many extremist militias who intend to use the vulnerability of the borders created by the conflict in Ukraine to reach European territory.
According to Fawzia Koofi, there are two scenarios that could be feasible for Afghanistan. The “negative”, in which “the Taliban will continue to triumph with their atrocities and killings as they are doing now”, leading to “a new civil war” that will only start the cycle of violence all over again. The second possibility envisioned by Koofi is “positive”, the product of “collective work in a political agreement with civil society”, made possible by the funding and support of the international community. The result would be a “legitimate government” that would include women and respect civil rights.
How do you feel today that the Taliban has ordered all women to wear the burqa?
-They use the Islamic interpretation as a weapon of power. They do it from the start. In Afghanistan, the Islamic hijab has always been respected, but now the Taliban requires the wearing of a burqa that covers the face. If the wife disobeys, the husband of the family is punished. They are thus prevented from leaving their homes, which basically means they are expunged from public life. The world must not remain silent about these disturbing facts.
What do you remember about the peace negotiations with the Taliban in which you participated?
-I remember everything. The Taliban have not kept their promises. They said women could go to school and university, work, do business, hold public office… But they lied. They weren’t serious or honest. They just wanted the world to believe them during the negotiations.
-You have two daughters. What future do you want for them?
I hoped to build that future so that my daughters and other girls don’t have to go back to the past I lived, to a world where they are invisible. I really wanted to avoid it, but that’s the current situation again. So I believe that the future will continue to be the struggle for an equal society based on justice and education for all. It will continue to support the people to restore democracy and that those of us who are now in different countries can return.
Source: La Verdad
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