Left Trapped Under Debris, Untreated: Afghan Women Lament Taliban's 'No Skin Contact With Males' Rule After Earthquake

(MENAFN- Live Mint) Almost two days after the earthquake , the relief did not touch even a single woman in Afghanistan due to strict gender rules and cultural restrictions, ANI quoted a New York Times report.

The report mentions that Taliban's "no skin contact with unrelated males" rule prohibits male rescuers from physically assisting women, even in life-threatening situations. Due to this rule, there has been delays or denial of medical care to women trapped under rubble.

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Lamenting Taliban restrictions and cultural barriers' 19-year-old Aysha survivor from Andarluckak in Kunar Province stated that injured women and girls facing a dire lack of medical care were left behind and many without help.

She also described a catastrophic humanitarian situation in Afghanistan and said many women were left trapped under debris or untreated . "Some of them bleeding, were pushed aside," said Aysha, as per New York Times, adding "They gathered us in one corner and forgot about us."

Ban on women's enrollment in medical education:

Taliban had long imposed ban on women studying medicine and working in public roles, which has resulted in a severe shortage of female healthcare workers, resulting in making it difficult to provide medical care to women in rural areas.

Earlier in 2024, the Taliban imposed a ban on women's enrollment in medical education, and the dearth of female doctors and rescue workers has been all too evident in the wake of the earthquake.

Women were left under stones:

A male volunteer who travelled to Mazar Dara – Tahzeebullah Muhazeb – stated that the all-male medical team were hesitant to pull women out from under the rubble of collapsed buildings.

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He added that all the trapped and injured women were left under stones, waiting for women from other villages to reach the site and dig them out.

"It felt like women were invisible," NYT quoted Muhazeb as saying, who added, "The men and children were treated first, but the women were sitting apart, waiting for care."

According to NYT, rescue workers dragged dead women out by their clothes , so as not to make skin contact. Even some women had to rely on strangers from neighbouring villages to rescue them.

Not only the rescue teams arrived late, a few women were ignored or not prioritised for medical care.

Over 2,200 people died and 3,600 others were injured in the magnitude six quake that flattened countless hamlets and villages, according to figures released by Afghanistan's government.

What the UN says:

The response by authorities has epitomised the dual standards that women and girls face in Afghanistan. "Women and girls will again bear the brunt of this disaster, so we must ensure their needs are at the heart of the response and recovery," the special representative for UN Women Afghanistan, Susan Ferguson, said in a statement this week.

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Expressing concerns over the Taliban's gender policies, the United Nations and human rights organisations emphasised the need for gender-sensitive disaster response planning and policies that ensure equal access to aid for all individuals.

According to the NYT report, which cited more than half a dozen doctors, rescue workers and women in areas hit by the quake, that the Taliban have not released a gender breakdown of the casualties and women have faced an especially harsh ordeal.

Taliban's strict cultural and religious norms state that only a woman's close male relative – her father, brother, husband or son – is permitted to touch her. While, Women are not allowed to touch men outside their family.

With agency inputs.

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