On 29 September, the French National Bar Council (Conseil national des barreaux, CNB) held an evening in Paris entitled “Solidarity with women in Afghanistan – What the law can do”, with talks by Chékéba Hachemi, journalist Annick Cojean and Fabienne Servan-Schreiber.

It was a chance to raise awareness of the dire situation of Afghan women, and to discuss the notion of “gender apartheid”.

Chékéba Hachemi: “We are starting to accept the situation”

Chékéba Hachemi, co-founder of Stand Speak Rise Up!, denounced what women in Afghanistan have been living through since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021. She first explained how decades of war have “drained the country of its brains”.

She then described the torture the Taliban inflict on women and girls: banned from studying, working, travelling alone, speaking in public… In five years, they have been erased from Afghan public life, and from international priorities.

“What I fear is seeing that we are starting to accept the situation.”

She also presented the work the association carries out on the ground: food aid, health and education projects, and emergency response to climate and social disasters.

Annick Cojean’s testimony

Journalist Annick Cojean spoke about her time in Afghanistan and the Afghan women she met there. She shared a figure that says a great deal about their daily lives: “Today, they only leave their homes once or twice a month.”

Shut in and deprived of a future, many are seeing their mental health collapse. With no hope left, more and more of them are attempting to take their own lives.

Thank you to the CNB

Thank you to the CNB and to Julie Couturier for organising this evening, and to all the speakers for their insights into what the law can do in the face of gender apartheid.