Following the suicide of a female protester in Kunduz, a human rights organisation, Freedom Now, has said that protesting women face violence and abuse from the Taliban for demanding their rights.
This organisation has emphasised on the protection of the lives of civil activists.
“We are deeply saddened by reports from Afghanistan that an activist has committed suicide following her release from Taliban’s prison,” stated Freedom Now.
Afghanistan Women's Solidarity Movement confirmed that a member of this protest group committed suicide in Kunduz province.
Officials from this women's rights activist group said that Bibi Gul, a 21-year-old, was detained at the onset of the Taliban regime. Following her release from prison, she struggled with persistent thoughts of suicide.
They said that Bibi Gul, who had thrown herself into a well in Kunduz province on December 23, died at a hospital in this province on December 31.
Zahra Haqparast, the head of the Afghanistan Women's Solidarity Movement, confirmed her suicide to Afghanistan International.
The Afghanistan Women's Solidarity Movement members stated that the 21-year-old girl, who participated in anti-Taliban protests using the alias “Zahra Mohammadi”, was arrested by the Taliban alongside another group of women's rights activists in Kunduz province in September 2021.
Sara Hamdam (alias), a member of the movement closely associated with Bibi Gul, revealed that following her release from a Taliban prison, Bibi Gul consistently expressed thoughts of suicide whenever confronted with the group's restrictions.
Hamdam mentioned that Bibi Gul had completed high school in Kunduz before the Taliban came to power. However, following the group's closure of universities to girls, she was unable to take the entrance examination and pursue higher education.
Bibi Gul's family and Taliban officials in Kunduz have not commented on this matter.
