Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai, an outspoken champion for girls’ education, has turned her focus towards Afghan women whose rights and freedoms Afghan rulers in Taliban rule since the takeover in 2021 have stripped away from them. She is a strong advocate for gender equality and in 2012 survived an assassination attempt by Pakistani Taliban.
“These are dark times in Afghanistan regarding women,” said Malala in an interview with VOP Asian Network, indicating that such oppression was systematic. “The restrictions are so extreme that they defy reason,” she lamented, lamenting the deterioration of women’s rights-via bans on education and employment.
These policies have been referred to as “gender apartheid” by the United Nations, a term Amnesty International hopes one day will be recognized as an international crime. The Taliban states such laws are in accordance with both Islamic and Afghan societal values, but the world disagrees.
Bread & Roses: Documenting Afghan Women’s Resistance
Malala co-produced Bread & Roses, a documentary that gives a face to Afghan women’s resilience under the Taliban’s rule. Here, through Afghan filmmaker Sahra Mani, the film captures the stories of three women: a dentist forced to abandon her practice, an activist fleeing at the border, and a government employee, stripped of her job and independence.
The film not only documents their struggles but symbolizes the fight of millions of Afghan women who refuse to be silenced. “Afghan women continue to resist,” Malala emphasized. “Their courage is a lesson for all of us to stand in solidarity with them.”
Sahra Mani, who escaped Afghanistan after the Taliban’s take-over, said that the footage was taken in stealth mode with many risks involved. “Those women trusted us with their stories,” Sahra said. “Their courage in seeking justice is unparalleled.”
International Solidarity and a Call to Action
As Bread & Roses builds up for its worldwide premiere on Apple TV+ on 22nd Nov., Malala hopes it will set the world in action. She has urged governments and organizations to apply pressure on the Taliban to restore women’s rights.
Malala said once again, “If Afghan women, despite everything, are rising up, then we must rise with them. Their fight for liberation is not just their fight-it is ours too.”
This documentary highlights the tenacity of Afghan women while at the same time emphasizing the necessity for immediate international intervention in this issue.
