{"id":1337,"date":"2018-01-12T00:40:03","date_gmt":"2018-01-12T00:40:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/southandcentralasiablog\/?p=1337"},"modified":"2018-01-12T00:40:03","modified_gmt":"2018-01-12T00:40:03","slug":"afghanistan-virginity-tests-on-women","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/southandcentralasiablog\/2018\/01\/12\/afghanistan-virginity-tests-on-women\/","title":{"rendered":"Afghanistan virginity tests on women"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>BBC<\/h1>\n<h1 class=\"story-body__h1\">The shame of Afghanistan&#8217;s virginity tests<\/h1>\n<div class=\"byline\"><span class=\"byline__name\">By Aria Ahmadzai &amp; Camelia Sadeghzadeh<\/span><span class=\"byline__title\">BBC World Service<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"with-extracted-share-icons\">\n<div class=\"story-body__mini-info-list-and-share\">\n<div class=\"story-body__mini-info-list-and-share-row\">\n<div class=\"mini-info-list-wrap\">\n<ul class=\"mini-info-list\">\n<li class=\"mini-info-list__item\">\n<div class=\"date date--v2\">29 December 2017<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"share-tools--event-tag\">\n<div id=\"comp-pattern-library-5\" class=\"distinct-component-group container-twite\">\n<ul class=\"sharetools sharetools--reveal\">\n<li class=\"twite__channel-out twite__channel-out--facebook twite__channel-click-extracted--facebook\"><a class=\"extracted__channel-link extracted__channel-link--facebook\" href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-asia-42112827?intlink_from_url=http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/topics\/c8nq32jw5r5t\/afghanistan&amp;link_location=live-reporting-story#\"><span class=\"off-screen\">Share this with Facebook<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"twite__channel-out twite__channel-out--twitter twite__channel-click-extracted--twitter\"><a class=\"extracted__channel-link extracted__channel-link--twitter\" href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-asia-42112827?intlink_from_url=http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/topics\/c8nq32jw5r5t\/afghanistan&amp;link_location=live-reporting-story#\"><span class=\"off-screen\">Share this with Twitter<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"twite__channel-out twite__channel-out--messengerdesktop twite__channel-click-extracted--messengerdesktop messenger-show\"><a class=\"extracted__channel-link extracted__channel-link--messengerdesktop\" href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-asia-42112827?intlink_from_url=http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/topics\/c8nq32jw5r5t\/afghanistan&amp;link_location=live-reporting-story#\"><span class=\"off-screen\">Share this with Messenger<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"twite__channel-out twite__channel-out--email twite__channel-click-extracted--email\"><a class=\"extracted__channel-link extracted__channel-link--email\" href=\"mailto:?subject=Shared%20from%20BBC%20News&amp;body=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Fnews%2Fworld-asia-42112827\"><span class=\"off-screen\">Share this with Email<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"twite\"><a class=\"twite__share-button\" href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-asia-42112827?intlink_from_url=http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/topics\/c8nq32jw5r5t\/afghanistan&amp;link_location=live-reporting-story#share-tools\"><span class=\"twite__share-text\">Share<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"topic-tags\">\n<div id=\"u63074639812111855\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"story-body__inner\">\n<figure class=\"media-landscape has-caption full-width lead\"><span class=\"image-and-copyright-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"js-image-replace\" src=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/660\/cpsprodpb\/87D7\/production\/_98957743_virginitytest.jpg\" alt=\"Neda, 18, took a lift home with two male friends and was later forced to undergo a virginity test\" width=\"1854\" height=\"1043\" \/><span class=\"off-screen\">Image copyright<\/span><span class=\"story-image-copyright\">BBC NEWS<\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"media-caption\"><span class=\"off-screen\">Image caption<\/span><span class=\"media-caption__text\">Neda, 18, took a lift home with two male friends and was later forced to undergo a virginity test<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"story-body__introduction\">&#8220;My life has been turned upside down. I used to have a good life. But now everything has changed for me.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Neda sits on a threadbare Afghan rug. A shy 18 year old from Bamiyan in central Afghanistan, she adjusts her headscarf as she recalls the day doctors forcibly subjected her to an intimate and degrading &#8220;virginity test&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>It was 2015 and she had just finished a late-night theatre rehearsal. The walk home would have taken nearly two hours. So, together with another girl, she accepted a lift from two male friends.<\/p>\n<p>Coming from a working-class background, Neda says her weekly pocket money didn&#8217;t cover her everyday costs. Her mother often asks her to go without lunch if she has to pay for a ride back home.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Even to this day, I sometimes blame myself for being in this situation\u2026 for getting in a car with men. I blame myself for bringing shame upon my family. But I also know that was my only way of getting home&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>After receiving a complaint, Bamiyan authorities suspected that they had engaged in premarital sex on their journey back home. Neda and her friend were taken in for questioning.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I was accused of debauchery and sent to the medical centre for a virginity test,&#8221; Neda says as she clasps her hands around her tea cup.<\/p>\n<p>The doctors reported that her hymen was still intact. Her case, however, is still travelling through Afghanistan&#8217;s judicial hierarchy.<\/p>\n<p>Neda has been cleared of the charges by the local prosecutor&#8217;s office. But, astonishingly, her case now has to be ruled on by the state Supreme Court. It is yet to make a decision.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"story-body__crosshead\">&#8216;No place for tests&#8217;<\/h2>\n<p>Despite the absence of official statistics in Afghanistan, anecdotal evidence suggests that the tests are a common occurrence.<\/p>\n<p>Bobani Haidari, a gynaecologist practising in Bamiyan Province, told the BBC that she can be asked to carry out 10 virginity tests in a single day.<\/p>\n<p>Some women are reported to have undergone multiple tests.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"media-landscape has-caption full-width\"><span class=\"image-and-copyright-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"responsive-image__img js-image-replace\" src=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/624\/cpsprodpb\/17CC3\/production\/_98957479_hospital.jpg\" alt=\"A room in an Afghan health clinic where virginity tests are carried out on young women\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1080\" \/><span class=\"off-screen\">Image copyright<\/span><span class=\"story-image-copyright\">BBC NEWS<\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"media-caption\"><span class=\"off-screen\">Image caption<\/span><span class=\"media-caption__text\">A room in an Afghan health clinic where virginity tests are carried out<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The tests, often done without a woman&#8217;s consent, have drawn widespread condemnation, with opponents saying they are inhumane and fail to protect the dignity of women.<\/p>\n<p>Studies have also discredited the practice. The World Health Organization says &#8220;there is no place for virginity or &#8216;two-finger&#8217; testing&#8221; as it has no validity.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Virginity tests don&#8217;t have any scientific basis and should be banned. The test is in violation of the country&#8217;s Constitution, Islamic law and international regulations,&#8221; Soraya Sobhrang, a commissioner at the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, told the BBC.<\/p>\n<p>The practice has given rise to underground businesses that promise to restore women&#8217;s virginity by repairing their hymen. As well as being illegal and invasive, it is also dangerous and expensive.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"story-body__crosshead\">Embarrassed and ashamed<\/h2>\n<p>Neda still struggles to talk about what happened, even two years on.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Even if you haven&#8217;t done anything wrong, this is a very difficult examination,&#8221; she says as she nervously plays with her hands in her lap.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;But it was made even more insulting for me as I knew the local doctors at the clinic. I was so ashamed. I knew I hadn&#8217;t done anything wrong but I was still so embarrassed.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"media-landscape has-caption full-width\"><span class=\"image-and-copyright-container\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"responsive-image__img js-image-replace\" src=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/624\/cpsprodpb\/482B\/production\/_98957481_013060433.jpg\" alt=\"A group of young Afghans attend a music festival in Kabul\" width=\"2964\" height=\"2048\" \/><span class=\"off-screen\">Image copyright<\/span><span class=\"story-image-copyright\">GETTY IMAGES<\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"media-caption\"><span class=\"off-screen\">Image caption<\/span><span class=\"media-caption__text\">Young Afghans attend a music festival in Kabul. Women are expected to remain virgins until marriage in Afghanistan&#8217;s conservative society<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Women are expected to remain virgins until marriage in Afghanistan&#8217;s deeply conservative society. A woman&#8217;s virginity remains a highly prized possession, seen as a symbol of modesty and purity.<\/p>\n<p>Women believed to have had premarital sex face public shame, prison, or may even become victims of so-called honour killings.<\/p>\n<p>Forced virginity tests remain legal despite President Ashraf Ghani&#8217;s pledge to end the invasive examination. The test is frequently ordered by prosecutors and law enforcement officers in cases where women are accused of committing &#8220;moral crimes&#8221;.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"story-body__crosshead\">Destroying lives<\/h2>\n<p>Afraid of what other people thought about her in the wake of the test, Neda became a recluse and started skipping school.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Because I was a good student, I used to have a good relationship with my teachers. But after the test I thought all my teachers were judging me. Even all of my best friends kept a distance from me. It felt like everybody hated me.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Everything has changed now. I have drifted apart from all of my friends.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>She continues to feel guilty about her situation and says her family blamed her for bringing shame and dishonour to their name.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;My mother told me because of what I had done they had to deal with courts and law enforcement. My family has to hang their heads in shame\u2026 and that&#8217;s all because of me.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Despite her experience, Neda is determined not to be beaten by her ordeal.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;This test destroys the lives of young girls. It doesn&#8217;t really have an impact on men. But it destroys all future prospects of a woman.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I will do my best to fight it. I will continue my singing in the theatre and will try to make a better future for myself\u2026 but I can&#8217;t be sure what the future holds for me.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>BBC The shame of Afghanistan&#8217;s virginity tests By Aria Ahmadzai &amp; Camelia SadeghzadehBBC World Service 29 December 2017 Share this with Facebook Share this with Twitter Share this with Messenger Share this with Email Share Image copyrightBBC NEWSImage captionNeda, 18, took a lift home with two male friends and was later forced to undergo a virginity test &#8220;My life has&#8230; <a href=\"https:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/southandcentralasiablog\/2018\/01\/12\/afghanistan-virginity-tests-on-women\/\">Read more &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1337","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article-post"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/southandcentralasiablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1337","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/southandcentralasiablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/southandcentralasiablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/southandcentralasiablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/36"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/southandcentralasiablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1337"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/southandcentralasiablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1337\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1338,"href":"https:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/southandcentralasiablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1337\/revisions\/1338"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/southandcentralasiablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1337"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/southandcentralasiablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1337"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/baileyonlineclassroom.com\/southandcentralasiablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1337"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}