The death of Lieutenant Negar, a top policewoman, in the Taliban heartlands of the southern Afghanistan left her family and friends in tearful tragedy. Her untimely death was a very sad incident and a great shock for other policewomen. Reports say that she died in hospital a day after being shot by assassins, months after her predecessor, Lt. Islam Bibi, who was also gunned down in July. Two gunmen drove up on a motorbike and fired at her on Sunday. She suffered a bullet wound to the neck, and the attackers got away, reports add.

Recently, women are falling victim in large extent amid a relentless Taliban insurgency. The United Nation human rights chief, Navy Pillay, said on a visit to Kabul “I do have serious concerns that the human rights situation in the country is deteriorating.” She adds, “I had lengthy discussions with civil society activists. They have made it clear to me that they feel that the gains of the (last) 12 years are vulnerable and at risk of being reversed. Afghanistan needs to brace itself to ensure that the tumultuous changes that will take place before the end of 2014 do not trigger a serious deterioration in human rights.”  She stressed that she had heard growing evidence of a sharp reversal in human rights, especially for women, despite more than a decade of international intervention and billions of dollars of aid.

The death of this policewoman, took place soon after the anxiety expressed by government over the scarcity of policewomen among the Afghan military forces. It is believed that the recruiting campaign for policewomen diverts the attention of Taliban militants towards targeting women more than ever before. The radical policy of the hard-line conservatives namely Taliban against women is crystal clear. Their historical violence against women at the time of their regime, and the current threatening actions being taken against them are demonstrating their political lines. The doors of schools are still close to women in some parts of the country, their social mobility and political activities are restricted. Despite the government’s struggle for recruiting women police, the insurgents are in the intention of widening the range of their attacks for counteracting the government’s ambition. Her death, one of the latest in a string of attacks on prominent Afghan women, could make it even harder to recruit female officers in a deeply conservative nation where just one percent of the police are women.

The serial attacks targeting women across the country dishearten them. They fear to take part actively in social, cultural and political contexts. Moreover, the bloody incidents happening one after another are great warnings for women. Instability and terrorist acts are challenging their lives openly and restrict their basic rights to a large extent. Thus, such issues imbibe the process of female police recruitment in the country and it is a bitter pill for the government to swallow.

I justify women for not willing to join military forces. The great reasons behind this issue are that their security is not ensured, and it is said that even they feel insecure from their male-colleagues. As a result, a report quotes a female police officer as this, ‘We have received warnings from the Taliban that they will kill each of us within three months. They said that they will kill every single policewoman in Helmand within three months.’ In addition, they see the bloody corpses of the women activists and there are high cultural hurdle ahead for them. So, there will remain no logical reason for them to join the police.

 According to Associated Press, women in parliament have faced numerous threats. Last month insurgents ambushed the convoy of a female Afghan senator, seriously wounding her and killing her 8-year-old daughter and a bodyguard. But police women seem to be a favorite target, and several have been threatened or killed recently, including Lt. Col. Malalai Kakar, one of the best-known policewomen in the country, who was shot dead by the Taliban in 2008.

The high ambition of Lt. Negar was highly praiseworthy when she said in a recent interview with the New York Times, that she loved her job, and felt it was important that women came forward to work for the police. After her two female colleagues were killed in July, she said her role was to give courage to the thirty or so other women police officers in Helmand and boost their morale.

Now it is time for government’s reaction against the cruel and inhuman actions of the insurgents. As government is launching a campaign for female police recruiting, it is not possible unless ensuring the safety of policewomen and taking serious actions against the insurgencies. Policewomen should be honored and respected against the cultural hurdles. If such actions are not responded strongly, then on one hand it will put a strong negative effect on the minds of women and on the other hand it will show the inadequacy of the government. So, a pragmatic strategy and effective mechanism are needed to be thought of as a solution to the problem.

In spite of instability prevailing in the society, the brave Afghan women still stay confident and will never lose their morale in such incidents. As a result, those women who are released from hostage and were ambushed or wounded continue their job fearlessly. In contrast with the threats that they receive for their jobs, they never resign or show fear. I do not have doubt that those women, who are sacrificed mercilessly for the support of their country and compatriots, are the heroine and their names will be registered in history or at least in the minds of people. Their service which may end in the cost of their lives is holy war (Jihad) which is in dire need of the country. So, women’s significant role in our community is highly appreciable. They are playing their parts manly and proved their power in one way or another.