You should all think over this question: Afghansitan is a patriarchal, Muslim society like Pakistan, Iran and Malaysia. Then Why the position of women is so different across these countries?
Re: I need yr views/opinion!!!
Malaysia is not traditionally a patriarchal society, it was traditionally matriarchal, apart from the ethinc Chinese and immigrant Gujrati communities. Even today, in traditional Malay families the groom moves in with the bride's family. In the present day, Malays take their Islamic studies very carefully. Many Malays that I have met are easily able to separate their own cultural traditions from Islam than some other ethnic groups - I'm not sure why.
Iran/Persia is a highly developed society with a written history that is centuries old. Women were permitted to own property, work, inherit equal shares, etc., but it seems that these privelages were mostly for the wealthy or artistocratic classes. But keep in mind that Persia is also the country that brought us purdah.
Afghanistan is a tribal society in almost every sense of the word. Women have been considered property for thousands of years. Northwest Paksitan and Balochistan could also fall into this definition.
The Punjab and Sindh in Pakistan are very much influenced by traditional Hindu culture where the husband is khuda majazi and she becomes the property of his family upon marriage.
This is a really brief answer to your question, but you can research further on this.
Re: I need yr views/opinion!!!
When we talk about structural violence, then patriarchy is one built-in mechanism in the social structure of a society that leads to discrimination against women across the board. In my view, its not just the religion but "culture" that favors patriarchy in varied degrees and which reflects the dynamic power relations underpinning the male-female relationship. Just because these are muslim states does not mean they ought to have the same set of customs or traditions. Its the confluence of various factors no doubt (religion being one) but history and culture of a place and particular people play a very important role. Amana has beautifully summed this up in her post.
Re: I need yr views/opinion!!!
tx guys for yr input. More views- from diff members wl be appreciated.
Re: I need yr views/opinion!!!
In order to honestly answer the question, one needs to focus on the disparity between men and women within those societies, rather than just the relative position of women with respect to an individual's ideals.
The average Afghan man means squat with respect to how society is run. In the rural areas, one is hard-pressed to find a meaningful freedom Afghan men enjoy that women don't.
Perhaps the only one I can think of is freedom of movement...but even then, that's often out of necessity, and given the harsh environment is probably not much of a freedom.
True disparity arises in the cities, where we see traditionalist mindsets trying to reconcile with radically different urban living conditions. Women often get a raw deal in this environment. But then, that's often a function of how sophisitcated a societies urban culture is.