Media restrictions and the implications for Gender Equality in Afghanistan

UN Women is generating a Thematic Briefing Series to analyse the gender dynamics of pressing themes facing Afghanistan. These briefings weave subnational and regional elements into thematic concerns – including media restrictions, legal and justice system changes, and profile gender equality and women’s rights issues. The Thematic Briefing Series aims to provide United Nations (UN) personnel, officials from other multilateral institutions, donor representatives, and international non-governmental organization (INGO) counterparts with rigorous gender-sensitive analysis and suggestions for action. The first thematic brief look at media restrictions and the implications for gender equality in Afghanistan. The brief concluded that the indirect ramifications of dismissing women staff in the media sector removes them from public space, contributing to the retreat of women into domestic environments. The justification underpinning this retreat is often that of protecting women, which normalizes the narrative that women are inherently vulnerable and require protection, erasing their agency and vital contribution to a pluralistic society.