Women’s Voices

Introduction Amid the towering walls of denial and hatred, voices have risen that not only bear witness to suffering but embody resilience. One such voice is that of Mehra Barkzai, a member of the ge...

by Leila Noori (pseudonym) It’s 5:30 a.m. The call to prayer echoes from the small mosque next to our house in Karte-Sakhi. The pale light of dawn peeks through my bedroom window. I might have slept...

Introduction In the darkness of fear and oppression, the voice of Afghan women shines like a flame of resistance against silence. Voice of a Woman in Darkness and Hope is an effort to document the u...

On a dusty summer afternoon, I stood against a cracked wall, watching people hurry by. Women and men passed me as if I were invisible. My hand rested on my little boy’s shoulder to keep him close in...

F. Ahmadi This year, when I saw the photos of the top scorers of the national university entrance exam (Kankor) flooding social media — boys wearing gold medals, wide smiles, families proud and cel...

Maryam (pseudonym) The nightmare returned — the same nightmare that turns a city into a trap and every breath into something bitter. Once again, Kabul feels like a place where even existing as a wom...

Narrated by: Anonymous I am an Afghan woman—once a literature teacher in Kabul, now an unwelcome exile living on the outskirts of Shiraz. I am neither a journalist nor a political activist, but I car...

✍️ The Diary of a Secret Hairdresser Every day starts with the same nightmare. A pounding on the door. Women screaming. Then silence. This morning, at 5:30 a.m., I woke with my heart racing. Three...

✍️ By: Hamia Naderi As the world marks World Population Day on July 11 — a day emphasizing universal access to sexual and reproductive health — thousands of women and girls in Afghanistan still liv...

Narrator: Anonymous Edited and Compiled by: Hamia Naderi I had spent good days at the Ministry of Education. The hand that slid over the papers in the office and the sentences I wrote in my own lar...

Narrator: Shegufa Khalili Edited and Compiled by: Hamia Naderi The Shadow of Dread At the cold dawn of June 2, 2025, the B-17 area of Islamabad trembled under the heavy boots of Pakistani police. Hom...

Narrator: Anonymous Edited and Compiled by: Hamia Naderi It was an autumn day, one of those days when the cool breeze gently caressed your face, and the sunlight still carried a hint of warmth. She...