Himalayan News Service

Kabul, May 6:

An Afghan women’s group has expressed concern at the continuing violence against women,

including the recent stoning to death of one, and criticised the security forces for not taking steps to protect them.

The National Association of Afghan Women (NAAW) at a meeting here warned that failure by the security forces to check repression of women, like during the fundamentalist Taliban regime, would affect peace and security in the society, the official Bakhter News Agency reported.

The agency did not say when the meeting took place. The meeting cited various incidents of violence against women, including the stoning to death of a woman in Badakhshan, murder of a woman and her child in Herat and the “merciless” killing of four women in Baghlan.

Such incidents had spread fear and a sense of insecurity among women all over the country, it said.

Speaking at the meeting, NAAW deputy chairperson Najiba Sharif condemned the violence against women and said it was part of a design by “enemies” to disturb peace in the society ahead of the September parliamentary elections.