Kandahar Treasures

After decades of war and violence, Kandahar and Southern Afghanistan remain impoverished and insecure. There is a lack of economic opportunity in the region for both men and women. The women of Kandahar, in particular, continue to face violence, severe restriction of movement, poverty, lack of rights, lack of access to education, and lack of access to basic health. Over 90 percent (90%) of women in Kandahar are illiterate, unable to read simple street signs or sign their names. As a traditionally conservative and patriarchal society, women are restricted to housework and childcare and are often confined to their homes-risking violence if they venture out without a male family member. Illiteracy and restricted movement contributes to lack of access to medical care or basic health information such as hygiene or children's health. While women continue to face these restrictions, many are also widowed by the ongoing violence and now find themselves in the position of primary breadwinner for their family. Kandahar Treasures believes that these women, who are now earning an income through the revival of traditional embroidery, are central to brining peace to Afghanistan as they invest in their children and gain the confidence, education, and economic leverage to stand up for their rights.

Afghan Embroidery

Women from Southern Afghanistan practice a rare form of embroidery with silk thread, Khamak (pronounced kha-mahk), an intricate art that involves counting the threads of fabric weave rather than drawing and copying patterns. This technique, inspired by Islamic geometric design and floral motif, is thought to be at the root of a number of embroidery techniques throughout South Asia and the Middle East. Due to the longstanding war, it is also an art form at risk of extinction. Traditionally Khamak was used to decorate the shawls of Southern Afghan men, table linens, and women's head-coverings. Today, the women of Kandahar Treasure build on these traditional motifs while creating new designs. They produce Khamak today as a vital source of income; a way of preserving a dying traditional art; and an opportunity to escape the stress of daily life and focus on creativity and beauty.

Region: Southern Asia, north and west of Pakistan, east of Iran

Capital: Kabul

Population: 33,609,937 (July 2009 est.)

Size: slightly smaller than Texas

Independence: 19 August 1919 (from UK control over Afghan foreign affairs)

Currency: Afghanis (AFA)

Language: Afghan Persian or Dari (official) 50%, Pashto (official) 35%, Turkic languages (primarily Uzbek and Turkmen) 11%, 30 minor languages (primarily Balochi and Pashai) 4%, much bilingualism

Literacy Rate: 28.1%

Life Expectancy: 44.64 years

Infant Mortality Rate: 151.95 deaths/1,000 live births

HIV Prevalence Rate: 0.01% (2001 est.)

Poverty Rate: 53% (2003)

All statistics from CIA World Factbook 2007 & UNDP Human Development Report 2006

Afghanistan is a conflation of different cultures and religions. However, years of civil war, Soviet invasion and Taliban rule have made it one of the poorest and least developed nations in the world. 

The Soviet Union invaded and occupied Afghanistan in 1979. When the occupation ended in 1989, defeated by the Mujahedin forces who were backed by the US, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and the United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan was left in a state of violent conflict. The Taliban, an Islamic Fundamentalist group that had received the majority of US funding, began to capture cities throughout Afghanistan in 1994, and by 1996 had captured the country's capital, Kabul, claiming control over the country (The US withdrew funding from the Taliban in 1991). Besides causing the death and displacement of millions, the Taliban regime greatly restricted people's freedom, violated human rights, and destroyed the country's infrastructure and institutions. The Taliban was formally overthrown in 2001, though its presence in Afghanistan is still felt.

Women
Under the Taliban, oppression and violence against women was sanctioned. They faced discrimination in every aspect of their lives. Afghan women were not allowed to go to school, work outside of their homes, or appear in public without wearing a burqa (full-body covering that exposes only the eyes) and accompanied by a male relative. They were denied access to health care and were forbidden to speak out. Women who had been professors and doctors found themselves without work and subject to violence. As a result female rates of illiteracy skyrocketed, leaving an entire generation of girls uneducated. Women suffered from anemia and vitamin D deficiency because they did not have access to sufficient sunlight. This legacy remains as women still face discrimination at the hands of both government and society.

Health
Afghanistan has one of the least-developed health care systems in the world: medical training is nearly nonexistent, government services are minimal, and there is no welfare system. The majority of rural areas do not have hospitals or doctors and most Afghans do not have access to clean water. As a result, the country has extensive health problems: high rates of maternal mortality, low life expectancy, widespread malnutrition, poor sanitation and hygiene, and high instances of preventable diseases. Because male physicians are banned from caring for female patients and women were prevented from training to be doctors under Taliban rule, today, women have particular trouble accessing health care.

Education
Taliban rule devastated the education system in Afghanistan, now considered one of the worst in the world. Poor teacher training, lack of government funds invested in education, and the destruction of school buildings has resulted in the very low literacy rate of 28.1 percent. In rural areas, the number of children that attend school is particularly low because families need children to earn an income.