Western Nations Should Evacuate Afghan Policewomen at Risk, HRW Says

Countries That Funded Training Should Resettle Those at Risk

• Taliban authorities have threatened Afghan women who had served in the police under the previous government, adding to the risks they face from their families who opposed their work.
• Afghan policewomen have been doubly betrayed, first by the former government, whose officials were responsible for widespread sexual abuse, and then by countries that ignored the abuse when it happened and have not granted asylum.
• Countries that supported programs to train and hire women in the Afghan police, including the US, Canada, Germany, Japan, and those in the EU, should support Afghan women seeking asylum and prioritize these women for refugee resettlement. 

Taliban authorities have threatened Afghan women who had served in the police under the previous government, putting them at risk, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. 

The 26-page report, “Double Betrayal: Abuses against Afghan Policewomen Past and Present,” documents threats from Taliban authorities since August 2021 that have forced many former policewomen to go into hiding out of fear of being identified. 

While employed by the former government, hundreds of policewomen also experienced sexual harassment and assault, including rape, from male colleagues and supervisors who were never held accountable. Former and current policewomen in Afghanistan and countries where they are in hiding or seeking asylum described ongoing psychological distress and trauma related to this past abuse and their fear of retaliation from their families and the Taliban. 

“Afghan policewomen have been doubly betrayed, first by the former Afghan government, which allowed serious sexual abuse against them to continue unchecked, and then by countries that ignored that abuse and have been unwilling to resettle or grant asylum to women seeking protection,” said Fereshta Abbasi, Afghanistan researcher at Human Rights Watch. “Since the Taliban takeover, former policewomen have had to flee after threats from the authorities and increased violence from families who opposed their working as police.” 

The report is based primarily on 24 interviews with women who were police during the previous government, including 10 in-person and 9 remote interviews with women in five provinces in Afghanistan, and 5 remote interviews in the United States, Sweden, Italy, Iran, and Pakistan. We also interviewed former and current United Nations officials and civil society activists familiar with the issues. 

Former policewomen described receiving intimidating phone calls from Taliban officials telling them to report for questioning and warning of unspecified consequences related to their former work. Several former policewomen and female corrections officials have been killed, apparently by relatives who believe their work “shamed” the family. The Taliban have not conducted credible investigations into these murders. Women described abusive searches of their homes by Taliban forces who sometimes assaulted their relatives and damaged personal property.

The women interviewed said that under the previous government they were subjected to frequent sexual harassment and assault, including rape and other forms of sexual violence as well as demands from superiors for sex in exchange for promotion or to avoid dismissal. The widespread nature of these abuses was well-known since at least 2013, including among countries supporting the previous government, but police officers responsible for abuse were not held accountable.

Women employed under the former government as civil servants, including those in the police, lost their jobs when the Taliban took power. While the Taliban ordered some policewomen to return to work in selected areas, including searching women at checkpoints and guarding female prisoners, the majority have struggled to find alternative income. Afghanistan’s economic collapse has hit the former policewomen particularly hard.

Many have fled to neighboring Iran or Pakistan or have tried to get to other countries to obtain asylum. Most of those interviewed reported long-term psychological distress and trauma from the abuse they have experienced but were unable to find or afford tailored psychosocial support. 

The Taliban should end all harassment and threats against former policewomen and others who worked for the former government and credibly investigate incidents of violence. Countries that had previously supported programs to train and hire women in the Afghan police, including the US, should now support those seeking asylum and prioritize these women for refugee resettlement. 

The US should ensure that female police remaining in Afghanistan or temporarily in third countries seeking US protection should be eligible for resettlement at least on the same level as other vulnerable categories. The United Kingdom, European Union and its member states, Canada, and Japan should increase refugee resettlement places for Afghan refugees, prioritizing women at risk. 

“The Taliban’s oppression of women and girls hits former policewomen doubly hard,” Abbasi said. “Governments that funded and trained women in the Afghan police force should also press the Taliban to end all abuses against women and girls.”

Selected Quotes from Former Policewomen

Under the Former Government:

“The district police chief came to her house at night and raped her. Her husband was away that day. She cried in front of me. She said she couldn’t file an official complaint because she feared her husband would divorce her, and she would lose custody of her children.” – A former police officer describing an incident that took place during the former government.

“Everything seemed to be fine if you look from outside; for those who have worked inside, it was different. I have witnessed bodyguards harassing women, stopping them, and even touching them.… The head of intelligence for my station really harassed me. He told me that he can do whatever he wants to me.” – A former policewoman from Khost describing the situation under the former government.

Since the Taliban Takeover:

“I received a call from the Taliban telling me to come back to my job. I gave them a fake name, but they accused me of lying and said that I must show up for my job at any cost. I got scared and cut off the phone call. Again, I received a phone call and this time I was asked, ‘Will you come by yourself, or should we come and drag you by the hair and bring you?’” – A former policewoman then in hiding.

“Over the phone I have been threatened, and every second is a threat.… Whenever I go to bazaar, I wear a mask and glasses so no one can recognize me.… If people find out, they might rat me out to the Taliban that I used to work for the police.” – A former policewoman then in hiding.