TAKHAR - Cases of violence against women have increased in north-eastern Takhar province, where 180 cases were registered over the past four months, compared to 100 incidents registered during the same period last year, an official said.

Takhar women’s affairs director Razmara Hawash told Pajhwok Afghan News during an interview that her department was deeply concerned about the increasing incidents of violence against women.

The incidents registered included self-immolation, running away from homes, beating, forced marriages, among others, she said. Ms. Hawash said 16 women were murdered last year and four others were killed over the past four months.

Earlier this year, a man shot dead his wife in Taloqan, the provincial capital, and another three women were found dead under mysterious circumstances.

Similarly, an 18-year-old girl was found dead in Kwaja Ghar district, six months after she had allegedly been forced to marry an imam, who already had two wives. Her killers are still at large, according to local residents.

However, Ms. Hawash said the provincial Women’s Affairs Department was satisfied with the progress being made by the judiciary, security organs and the media in dealing with incidents of violence against women and investigating them.

Takhar police spokesman, Abdul Khalil Aseer, said most individuals involved in incidents of violence against women had been detained and referred to the judiciary.

Last year, there were 4,500 incidents of violence against women and girls across the country, according to the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC).

Source: Pajhwok Afghan News