RASC News Agency: Sources in western Afghanistan report that the deeply traditional behaviors and restrictions imposed by the Taliban have led to a rise in suicide rates among girls and women. A local source in Badghis province, speaking anonymously to RASC News Agency on Thursday, May 23, stated that the rate of suicides among young girls and women has reached unprecedented levels compared to the previous year.
The source explained that the primary reasons for these suicides are forced marriages and the deprivation of girls from education. The source added that the Taliban’s rule in Afghanistan has brought numerous challenges to the people and inflicted severe harm on half of the country’s population. According to the source, the Taliban are the principal perpetrators against Afghanistani girls and women, imposing unreasonable restrictions and harsh pressures that have driven many to suicide.
Similarly, another source in Ghor province, also speaking anonymously, told RASC News Agency that since the rise of the Taliban, the rate of misogyny and violence against women in the western provinces has increased, causing significant concern among Afghanistani girls and women. The source added that women in many families are unable to resist the traditional dominance of their family heads and, similarly, cannot stand up against the Taliban at the community or national level. As a result, they face familial and social violence.
The source mentioned that the level of violence during the Republic era was considerably lower and not as alarming as it is under Taliban rule; currently, violence has surged dramatically. According to the source, girls and women in Ghor province are compelled to commit suicide due to their inability to comply with their families’ demands. Additionally, several residents of Herat province have reported that numerous factors in the highly restrictive society drive women to suicide.
Arif, a pseudonym for a resident of Herat, told RASC News Agency that the Taliban have created conditions so dire that citizens would rather hang themselves than submit to the group’s illegitimate demands. He stated that all these emerging disorders stem from poverty, lack of adequate economic conditions, and the stringent measures imposed by the Taliban. We were unable to obtain comments from Taliban officials on this matter.
