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Afghan women unite in cyberspace against Taliban repression

woman
Afghan women are forbidden to leave the house without a male relative  

In this story:

No school, no work, no play

Aid worker expelled

RELATED STORIES, SITES icon



July 14, 2000
Web posted at: 11:03 a.m. HKT (0303 GMT)

ATLANTA (CNN) -- The fight for democracy and the rights of women in Afghanistan is being seen and heard with the help of today's modern technology.

 VIDEO
VideoCNN Interactive Correspondent Allison Tom shows how the group is using the Internet to aid its cause
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The Internet has become instrumental in drawing attention to the cause, and an independent political organization called the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan, is using cyberspace as the key tool in spreading the word.

"It really was the only tool that enabled us to be in contact with other people in other countries and we think it is the only tool that can tell people around the world about the suffering of our people, of our women and children and the way that they can help us," RAWA lobbyist 'Sajeda' told CNN.

'Sajeda' does not show her face and uses a fake name to protect her identity.

She and another activist are currently in the United States telling people about life in Afghanistan under the Taliban rule.

girl
The Taliban doesn't allow girls to get an education  

No school, no work, no play

In recent years, the Islamic Taliban has imposed new restrictions on women; particularly in employment, travel and education.

"Taliban officially announced all of these restrictions on women, that they are not allowed to go to school, they are not allowed to work, not allowed to go outside without being accompanied with a close male relative."

RAWA's Web site carries photos, documents and reports of alleged atrocities in Afghanistan.

Offline, emails are shared with women in refugee camps and inside Afghanistan who do not have access to the Internet.

"They, with tears in their eyes, they say -- so we are not alone and there are still people they take care about our suffering and they want to help us," 'Sehar' said.

Others, including Mavis Nicholson Leno agree that the Internet has a profound impact on humanitarian issues. Leno, wife of U.S. television comedian Jay Leno, is a spokesperson for the Feminist Majority Foundation.

Leno
Leno  

"It creates a brilliant way to have a very active participation in world politics, particularly with regard to human rights, a way that was never available to people without the Internet," Leno said.

And for RAWA, the Web also acts as a virtual headquarters for the group. The site is administered by supporters in Pakistan.

Aid worker expelled

The plight of women in Afghanistan was given fresh focus this week when a female U.S. aid worker was accused of being a spy and expelled from the country.

Mary MacMakin told reporters in the northwestern Pakistani town of Peshawar on arrival from the Afghan capital Kabul on Thursday that she had provoked Afghanistan's Taliban rulers by her "truthful" reports about the situation there.

MacMakin, 71, detained in Kabul Sunday along with seven female Afghan staff, was released Wednesday and given 24 hours to leave. She arrived in Peshawar in the North West Frontier Province bordering Afghanistan on a regular flight of an International Committee of the Red Cross plane.

MacMakin
MacMakin departed Afghanistan on Thursday  

Asked if she planned to return to Afghanistan, MacMakin, whose expulsion follows new Taliban restrictions on Afghan women working with international aid organizations, said: "I hope."

She said the male staff of a nongovernmental organization (NGO) she runs would continue to work and look after the projects in Afghanistan despite her absence.

On the cause of her expulsion, MacMakin said the Taliban authorities seemed to have been provoked by "truthful things" she had been reporting in a newsletter about the situation in Afghanistan, which was also reported back to the United States.

"It has a fallout. I have been provoking them, I must say."

Reuterscontributed to this report.

ASIANOW


RELATED STORIES:
U.N. official: Taliban agree to let women work
July 12, 2000
Afghanistan's Taliban arrest U.S. aid worker
July 10, 2000
Pakistani interior minister talks tough with Afghanistan
July 6, 2000
Fighting between Afghan rivals enters second day
July 2, 2000
Taliban free 46 prisoners in Afghanistan
June 30, 2000
Taliban say Russian generals aiding Afghan opposition
May 30, 2000

RELATED SITES:
Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA)
Islamic Republic of Pakistan
Afghan Info Center
Taleban Islamic Movement Official Web Site Home Page
CIA: The World Factbook 1999: Afghanistan

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