What is peace? For many, peace may simply mean the absence of war and conflict. However, in my view, peace is something much deeper. True peace means feeling secure in one’s home, society, and even within oneself. Real peace is only achieved when individuals can live freely and peacefully, without facing social pressures and limitations. In a society like Afghanistan, true peace remains an unattainable dream for many women.
My life in the beautiful province of Bamyan, one of Afghanistan’s most scenic regions, highlights the stark contrast between superficial tranquility and real peace. While Bamyan is relatively more secure compared to many other provinces of Afghanistan, this is just one aspect of peace. In Bamyan and other parts of Afghanistan, women and girls, despite living in environments less affected by war, are still in search of real peace. Peace for them is not just physical security but the freedom of mind, emotions, and society.
True peace is realized when every individual, especially women, is able to make decisions about their own lives. However, in Afghanistan many girls face limitations and societal pressures from the moment they are born. In a society where men hold the power, women have no independence to choose their own life paths. Afghanistani girls, from an early age, are forced to accept the decisions of others. Even when they enter school, many girls are stopped at lower grade levels and are married off without any choice in the matter.
In reality, many Afghanistani girls are married at 18 or 20, a stage in life when they should be discovering themselves and making decisions about their future. Instead, they are forced into marriage. For many of these girls, their husband’s home becomes not a place of peace and security, but a place where they live under more pressure and restrictions. They cannot freely express their desires, and their lives are governed by unwritten rules that prevent them from achieving true peace.
However, peace for a woman means freedom and the right to choose. Peace means that girls can pursue their dreams, continue their education, find their desired profession, and ultimately make their own decisions about their lives. This is the kind of peace that many Afghanistani girls do not have access to, they are deprived of the opportunity to have an independent and secure life.
In my opinion, true peace is only possible when these limitations are removed and women live in a society where they can freely express their desires and dreams. True peace means feeling secure in one’s personal, familial, and social life. It means having equal rights with others, the freedom to choose one’s life path, and the ability to make significant decisions.
For this type of peace to be realized, fundamental changes must be made in social, cultural, and familial structures. Educating and raising awareness among girls and their families about human and social rights is the first step towards achieving this peace. As long as society fails to create a safe and free space for women, true peace will never be achieved in such a society; peace for Afghanistani women will remain nothing but a dream that never comes true.
– Zahra
Letter received from our students participating in our Mentorship program. Name and text altered for protection of our students and for grammatical changes.
