Female Suicides Burgeoning Under Afghanistan’s Taliban Rule

A United Nations investigation reported by the UK’s Guardian newspaper reveals a worsening mental health crisis that includes a sharp increase in the number of suicides by women since the Taliban took over Afghanistan some two years ago. Those behind the report caution that figures are likely understating the issue because of stigma-related and other hesitations in families reporting suicide—one of the key indicators of the survey. The situation worsens whenever life for women and girls becomes increasingly difficult, such as the imposition of restrictions on participating in the public sphere. Examples cited in the report include freedom of dress, freedom of movement, and access to “education, work, health, and justice.” Women are prevented from entering health care professions, but male practitioners are prohibited from treating women and girls. The high rates of depression are attributed to widespread domestic violence, “harsh discriminatory” policies, and lax enforcement of the protections that are afforded by law.