Afghan Women's Shelter Receives International Equality Prize from Finland
A non-governmental organization (NGO) in Afghanistan that helps women find refuge and fights for their rights in the country that is under the authority of the Taliban has been honored with Finland's International Gender Equality Prize for 2023.
The 'Afghan Women Skills Development Centre' (AWSDC) in Kabul will receive 300,000 euros in support from the Finnish government as a result of the winning bid.
Just over two years ago, when the Taliban retook control of Afghanistan, 27 different groups were running shelters for women all around the nation. Now just AWSDC remains, serving eight family centers in eight different districts in Afghanistan.
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) acknowledged the gender persecution of women and girls in Afghanistan while presenting the prize at an event in Tampere on Monday afternoon.
For twenty years, Finland has campaigned for women's rights and gender equality in Afghanistan, and the nation was the largest beneficiary of Finnish development assistance for many years. According to Orpo, Finland is still offering this crucial support to the best of its ability.
Afghan journalist and women's rights activist Mahbouba Seraj has seen "domestic violence at its darkest" and runs the institution; she accepted the award on behalf of the NGO.
Seraj mentioned that upon arrival at the centers, some girls and women had suffered injuries such as amputations of limbs or ears.
She went on to say that the majority of the women who seek refuge at the shelter have escaped violent husbands or in-laws, or are young girls escaping parental pressure to marry against their will.
"With the money made possible by this, I am going to go back home and I am going to spend it on a project that is going to take all of those women involved and I am going to make sure that they all know this award was given to me by one of the most amazing countries in the world that has gender equality as the first order of its government," Seraj stated during her speech of acceptance.
Two organizations have been honored with the International Gender Equality Prize since their inception in 2017. In 2021, the platform We Will Stop Femicide was recognized for its efforts to end violence against women in Turkey. In 2019, the prize went to Equality Now, an NGO that fights against discriminatory laws and practices worldwide.