8am: Women and girls in the country say that foreign women tourists, by portraying a distorted and unrealistic picture of Afghanistan, ignore the gender apartheid and, in effect, help reinforce the Taliban’s crimes. These women said that the Taliban allow images, voices, and even public dances of foreign women tourists to be freely broadcast, while in Afghanistan, they label women’s voices as “awrah” (shameful) and cut off female journalists’ voices during press conferences. According to them, the Taliban are exploiting the presence of foreign tourists to whitewash their misogynistic image, while inside the country, particularly in provinces like Kandahar and Panjshir, women are not even permitted to travel without a chadari or burqa. Click here to read more (external link).
