Standing Beside Afghanistan’s Iron Lady

On Feb. 26, 2015, Kubra Khademi, a female Afghan performance artist, protested the country’s widespread street harassment of women by wearing a suit of armor with large breasts and buttocks around Kabul. Her protest made her a social media star for a few days. But while her eight-minute performance triggered a good deal of conversation on the issue of street harassment, it also led to a backlash against Khademi herself: her character, morality, intentions, and motivations in question. Now, almost two weeks later, she is reportedly in hiding.

Street harassment is an endemic obstacle for women in Afghanistan, significantly inhibiting their mobility outside of the home. Further exacerbating the situation is the fact that the country’s public transportation system is in shambles, and incapable of facilitating women’s safe movement around town.

Although every Afghan woman faces street harassment on a daily basis, there is a lack of social consensus on this being a serious problem worthy of the people’s and government’s collective action. Though street harassment is an issue for the mothers, sisters, wives, and daughters of every proud Afghan man — to use the common narrative of women’s social status in relation to men — Afghan society tolerates it under a variety of pretexts, with citizens arguing that: “This is how it is;” “Women should be more careful;” “Women should dress modestly;” “Women should not go out unless they really have to;” “Society is tormented and sexually frustrated;” and “What can men do because sex is a natural drive and thus justifiable,” among others.

This is despite religious and traditional moral norms that prohibit harassment in a Muslim-majority nation like Afghanistan. As the Hadith states: A perfect Muslim is “one from whose tongue and hands the other Muslims are secure.” This definition of “Muslims” seemingly includes women.

Khademi’s intervention, it seems, was aimed at triggering a national discourse on the issue of street harassment, elevating the issue in the public conscience and highlighting it as a serious problem in need of collective action. Though she managed to focus the conversation on street harassment for a little while, it appears that Afghans are not organized enough to sustain it, especially when society reacts by focusing on the messenger and not the message.

Indeed, Khademi has reportedly received death threats for her performance — illustrating Afghan society’s default defense mechanism. And national and international media outlets are talking more about Khademi and less about her cause or practical ways to change the commonplace harassment. While some Afghans may not personally agree with such an emotional frame for protest, mainly because of the high probability of a personalized reaction to it, there is huge potential for following up on the issue that Khademi has raised.

Regardless of how distant Khademi’s definition of protest was from commonly perceived notions of social morality for Afghan women, what she did was an act of bravery and an exercise of her freedom of expression, a constitutionally protected fundamental right under Article 34. Her physical protection, therefore, is the duty of Afghanistan’s security agencies.

With Khademi now in hiding, her work can be carried on by Afghan youth groups including Afghanistan Analysis and Awareness, Afghanistan Forward, and Afghanistan 1400; human rights organizations like the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission; and Afghan women’s organizations, including the Afghan Women Network and Afghan Women’s Charter.

Khademi’s cause is one that deserves continued attention and honest follow-up by all of the above organizations, as well as the National Unity Government. In fact, it would easily fit in on First Lady Bibi Gul’s women-focused agenda. Plus, she has the legitimacy and power to lead an alliance in support of urgent action against harassment.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s first few post-inauguration instructions included an order to develop legislation on ending harassment. Now is perhaps the best time to follow through on that promise, especially since the Afghan Parliament is back from the winter break and in session. Now is the time to test the government’s political will when it comes to building women’s agency in the most practically effective way: by supporting women’s safe mobility through legislation on harassment and initiating transport sector reform. Now is the time for the government to prove that, unlike the previous administration, it is determined to actively support women’s causes, and not just because the international community is providing support to female-empowerment programs. Now is the time to see who will come forward and continue the conversation that Khademi started.

Aref Karimi/AFP/Getty Images