A 14-year-old Afghan girl was beheaded and killed in an attack by
two men, one of whom apparently asked her to marry him.
The attack happened Tuesday, a day before new legislation was introduced in
Congress calling on the U.S. government to take steps to help protect Afghan
women and girls as the U.S. military prepares to exit Afghanistan.
Gasitina, a student, was beheaded in the Imam Sahib district of Kunduz
province. The attack was initially reported by local media, and was confirmed by
Amnesty International researcher Horia Mosadiq in an email.
The girl was fetching water when she was accosted, according to reports. The
men, who have not been identified, were arrested by police. The girl and her
parents had refused a marriage proposal by one of the men, according to the
Amnesty International report.
This was the 15th deadly attack on a female victim in Kunduz in 2012, the
human rights organization said.
"Amnesty International is very concerned about the violations against women
in Afghanistan," said Cristina Finch, director of the organization's Women's
Human Rights program.
Amnesty reported a similar incident in October, when a young woman was
murdered and her throat slashed. In that case, the woman apparently refused to
work as a prostitute.
Although it appears such attacks are increasing in frequency, it may be that
the world outside Afghanistan is just beginning to hear about them, Finch
said.
On Wednesday, Sen. Bob Casey, a Democrat from Pennsylvania, and Kay Bailey
Hutchison, a Republican from Texas, introduced the Afghan Women and Girls'
Security Promotion Act. If passed in its current form, the bill addresses how
women's security will be monitored as the U.S. military withdraws from the
country.
The bill also calls for improved gender sensitivity among Afghanistan's
national security forces and recruitment of women within the ranks of those
forces.
Amnesty International USA's executive director Suzanne Nossel applauded Casey
and Hutchison for introducing the bill.
"As the United States military transitions out of Afghanistan, Afghan women's
human rights continue to be at grave risk and demand urgent attention," Nossel
said in a statement. "The fate of women will be a crucial determinant of that
country's prospects for a stable and prosperous future."
In a report on Afghan violence against women, Amnesty International wrote
that one of the justifications of the U.S. military going into the country in
2001 was to ensure the protection of human rights, including women's rights.
"More than 10 years after the overthrow of the Taliban, modest advances have
been made for girls and women in Afghanistan," the report said. "But much
remains to be done.
Peace talks between the Taliban, Afghan government and the
U.S. jeopardize even these modest gains as the U.S. searches for a quick
exit."
By
Jeff Stacklin/The Lookout
http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/afghan-girl-beheaded-refusing-man-marriage-proposal-185239042.html
