Hoping to end decades of repression against women in this country, a proposed Afghan constitution to be released soon enshrines equal rights for all and bans forced marriages, bridal dowries, and other forms of discrimination. The draft constitution guarantees women at least one seat from each of the 32 provinces on the wholesi jirga, the national parliament, and a minimum of 25 seats in the mushran jirga, the senate, Fatima Gailani, a member of the Constitutional Review Commission, said Thursday. The total number of seats in each assembly has not yet been decided. "Women will no longer be treated like animals in this country," said Shukria Barakzai, another member said.
| Assuming anyone pays any attention to the constitution, they can progress to second-class citizenship, while oxen and donkeys retain their status as beasts of burden... |
The draft document says the government must provide women with education and health care not only equal to men, but that additional provisions must be written to care for pregnant women and educate widows whose husbands were killed during the last two decades of war. |