A number of women, human rights activists, and members of the Afghan civil society residing in Canada held a protest rally in front of the Calgary City Hall in support of women and girls in Afghanistan.
The protesters stated that this rally was in response to the recent arrests of dozens of women and girls in Herat and the restrictions imposed in that province.
Participants at the protest carried signs and Afghan flags, calling for the international community to pay serious attention to the “deteriorating situation of women in Afghanistan.”
Speakers at the gathering emphasized that Afghan women have been deprived of education, work, and public spaces for five years, describing this situation as “gender apartheid.”
They also called for the official discussion of the status of women in Afghanistan in the parliaments of Western countries and international organizations.
This protest took place amid reports that morality police in Herat have recently arrested dozens of women and girls for not adhering to the required dress code.
It is noteworthy that the Ministry for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice has recently intensified restrictions on women’s mobility, detaining several women from different areas of Herat, including Jebrail, on charges of not complying with hijab regulations.
