The crumpled papers in Bibi Nazdana’s hands represent her most prized possession — her divorce, hard-won after a grueling two-year legal battle. To her, they are a symbol of freedom from a life she never wanted, a life she was thrust into as a child bride. But now, under Taliban rule, those same papers are worth nothing. The courts that once granted her freedom have been restructured, and her divorce has been invalidated as part of the Taliban’s extreme interpretation of Sharia law.
Nazdana’s struggle is emblematic of the broader erosion of women’s rights in Afghanistan since the Taliban’s takeover in August 2021. The hardline regime has systematically undermined legal protections for women, nullified thousands of court rulings, and effectively silenced women in the judicial process. For women like Nazdana, this new era in Afghanistan’s history is a return to the shadows, where freedom, once within reach, is now elusive once more.
The Struggle for Freedom
Nazdana’s ordeal began when she was just seven years old, promised in marriage to a man as part of a ‘bad marriage’ — a tradition used to settle family disputes by exchanging daughters to turn ‘enemies into friends.’ The man, Hekmatullah, came to claim his bride when Nazdana turned 15, but she refused to accept a life with him. Defying her family and tradition, she sought protection from the courts under the previous US-backed Afghan government. For two long years, she fought for her freedom, and eventually, the court ruled in her favor, allowing her to separate from Hekmatullah.
“I was told by the judge, ‘You are now separated and free to marry whomever you want,’” Nazdana recalls. That freedom, however, was short-lived. When the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021, Hekmatullah, now a newly minted Taliban member, appealed the ruling. Within just 10 days of the Taliban’s arrival in Kabul, Nazdana’s hard-fought divorce was overturned.
Under the new Taliban regime, women are no longer allowed to represent themselves in court. When Nazdana attempted to plead her case, she was told her brother would have to speak for her. “The court told me it was against Sharia for me to appear in person,” she said. Despite her brother’s best efforts to explain that forcing Nazdana back to her former husband would endanger her life, the court ruled in favor of Hekmatullah. With her legal options exhausted and the threat of being forcibly returned to a man she feared, Nazdana and her brother made the heart-wrenching decision to flee.
The Collapse of Afghanistan’s Legal System
Nazdana’s case is just one of tens of thousands. Since the Taliban’s return, more than 355,000 cases have been reviewed by the group’s restructured courts. According to Abdulwahid Haqani, media officer for Afghanistan’s Supreme Court, most of these cases involve criminal matters, land disputes, and family issues — including many divorce cases like Nazdana’s.
Under the previous government, Afghanistan had a relatively progressive legal framework that included protections for women. Laws such as the Elimination of Violence Against Women (EVAW) law, enacted in 2009, were hailed as significant achievements. Women, like former Supreme Court judge Fawzia Amini, played a pivotal role in creating a more equitable legal system for Afghan women, advocating for women’s shelters, orphan guardianship, and laws against human trafficking.
However, these gains have been rapidly dismantled. The Taliban claim that rulings made under the former government were “un-Islamic” and have invalidated countless judgments, including divorce decrees, without regard for the previous legal processes or the civil code that had been in place for decades. “The previous corrupt administration’s decision to cancel Hekmatullah and Nazdana’s marriage was against Sharia and the rules of marriage,” explained Abdulwahid Haqani, dismissing the ruling in Nazdana’s favor as invalid because Hekmatullah wasn’t present in court.
The Taliban’s justice system is now entirely governed by their interpretation of Sharia, specifically Hanafi Fiqh, a school of Islamic jurisprudence dating back to the 8th century. While they claim it has been updated to meet modern needs, many Afghans, especially women, see the system as a step backward. The Taliban have removed all former judges — both male and female — replacing them with individuals who share their hardline beliefs.
For the women who once worked in Afghanistan’s judiciary, the changes are devastating. Fawzia Amini, who fled Afghanistan after the Taliban returned to power, says there is little hope for women’s rights if no women are allowed to participate in the judicial process. “We played an important role,” she reflects. “If a woman divorces her husband and the court documents are available as evidence, then that’s final. Legal verdicts can’t change because a regime changes.”
Silencing of Women in the Legal System
One of the most immediate consequences of the Taliban’s return has been the exclusion of women from any role in the judicial process. Women are no longer allowed to serve as judges, prosecutors, or lawyers, and they are often barred from representing themselves in court. Abdulrahim Rashid, the director of foreign relations at Afghanistan’s Supreme Court, justified the decision by claiming, “Women aren’t qualified or able to judge because in our Sharia principles, the judiciary work requires people with high intelligence.”
This decision not only undermines decades of progress but also leaves Afghan women more vulnerable than ever. With no women in the judiciary and no representation in legal matters, there is little recourse for those seeking justice. For Nazdana and countless others, this means that the courts are no longer a place where they can seek protection. Instead, they are a tool of oppression, used to strip women of their autonomy and enforce the Taliban’s vision of an Islamic society.
The Taliban’s reshaping of the legal system is part of a broader campaign to control women’s lives. Since coming to power, they have imposed numerous restrictions on women, including bans on education beyond the sixth grade, restrictions on movement without a male guardian, and limitations on employment. These measures, coupled with the overhaul of the judiciary, are designed to limit women’s participation in public life and confine them to the home.
Under this new regime, women are once again at the mercy of men. Marriages, divorces, and family matters are settled without their input, and the laws that once offered them protection have been erased. Nazdana’s case is a stark reminder of the fragility of women’s rights in Afghanistan. Her divorce, once a symbol of her freedom, has been reduced to a piece of paper with no legal standing.
As Afghanistan’s women face an increasingly bleak future, many have called on the international community to intervene. Human rights organizations and Afghan women’s groups have urged the United Nations and foreign governments to pressure the Taliban into restoring women’s rights and access to education, employment, and the legal system.
But for women like Nazdana, living as refugees in neighboring countries, help seems far away. “I have knocked on many doors asking for help, including the UN, but no one has heard my voice,” she says. She clutches the papers that once signified her victory, now little more than a reminder of what she has lost. “Where is the support? Don’t I deserve freedom as a woman?”
Nazdana’s story is not unique, but it is emblematic of the struggles faced by Afghan women under Taliban rule. Stripped of their rights, silenced in court, and denied the basic protections they once had, these women are fighting an uphill battle for justice. The return to a system that places women’s lives in the hands of men — often against their will — is a step back into the past, undoing years of hard-fought progress.
The international community must not turn a blind eye to the plight of Afghan women. For women like Nazdana, who have already lost so much, the fight for freedom is far from over. In a world that has moved forward in so many ways, Afghanistan’s women are asking for the chance to move forward with it — not to be left behind in the shadows of a regime that seeks to erase their voices. For now, Nazdana waits, clutching her papers and hoping that someone will hear her. Her divorce, once her symbol of freedom, is now a reminder of the fight she — and thousands of Afghan women — still face.
