Afghanistan: What's Next for Women and Girls

Nearly two years ago, the world watched in shock as the Taliban quickly and unexpectedly retook control of Afghanistan. The country’s rapid fall prompted a hasty evacuation and U.S. troop withdrawal following 20 years of war. Since then, the Taliban has reneged on promises to rule justly and respect human rights, instead imposing increasingly harsh restrictions, especially on Afghan women and girls.

The Northwestern Roberta Buffett Institute for Global Affairs, Central Asia Institute and Northwestern Pritzker School of Law's Center for International Human Rights hosted a panel discussion on the current situation in Afghanistan, and the challenges facing Afghan women and girls, in particular. The event featured Najia Mahmodi, former Chief Prosecutor for Elimination of Violence Against Women before the Supreme Court at the Attorney General's Office of Afghanistan and current Research Associate at Northwestern Buffett; Martin Smith, producer, writer, narrator and foreign correspondent who will screen excerpts from his new PBS FRONTLINE docuseries, America and the Taliban and Alice Thomas, Executive Director of the Central Asia Institute. The discussion was moderated by Juliet Sorensen, a Clinical Professor of Law associated with the Northwestern Pritzker School of Law's Center for International Human Rights.