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Mursal Nabizada

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Mursal Nabizada
Nabizada in her role with the Afghan Parliament
Member of the House of the People
In office
2019–2021
ConstituencyKabul
Personal details
Bornc. 1991
Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan
Died (aged 32)
Kabul, Afghanistan
Manner of deathAssassination by gunshot

Mursal Nabizada (Pashto: مرسل نبی زادہ; c. 1991-2023) was an Afghan politician, women's rights activist, lawmaker and critic of the Taliban[1] who served as a Member of the House of the People from Kabul.[2] Nabizada[3] was later killed in Kabul in January 2023 by the Taliban.

Career

Nabizada was elected to the House of the People, the lower chamber of the National Assembly, to represent Kabul in the 2018 Afghan parliamentary election.[4] She was elected as a Parliamentary Defense Commissioner in the Wolesi Jirga where she received a total of 1,396 votes. The inaugural session of the term was held on 29 June 2019.[5] She served in the National Assembly until the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021, and was one of the few female members of parliament who stayed in Kabul after the takeover.[2][6][7]

Outside parliament, she worked for the Institute for Human Resources Development and Research.[2] She was also an active member of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). She attended many conferences such as the one in New York in 2020 hosted by the IPU.[8]

In December 2022 the Taliban issued a statute denying women access to participate in public spheres of work such as non-governmental organizations, university matriculation, and were barred from being employed.[9][10][11] Nabizada was a strong critic of the gender apartheid in Afghanistan and was an advocate against the forced marriage of women and girls.[12][13][14]

Personal life

Nabizada was born in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan in the Arzaan Qemat neighborhood of District 12.[15][16] Nabizada received her bachelor's degree from Balkh University in Northern Afghanistan.[17][18]

Death

At around 3:00 am on 15 January 2023, Nabizada was shot to death on the first floor of her home in Kabul,[19][6] along with one of her personal bodyguards named Ismail,[20][6] by unknown assailants.[21] She was 32.[2] Her brother and a security guard were injured.[22] Another security guard fled with money and jewelry.[6] Her murder was the first of a Member of Parliament since the 2021 Taliban takeover.[23][24] The Taliban targeted former members of the National Resistance Front and opposition figures in Parliament who supported the intervention of the United States in Afghanistan where Mursal Nabizada's and six hundred others were murdered.[10]

Before her death, Nabizada was given a humanitarian visa to try and escape Afghanistan, however despite being given the opportunity to leave she did stayed in Afghanistan in protest of the fear tactics carried out by the Taliban.[25] Mariam Solaimankhil stated, "a true trailblazer – a strong, outspoken woman who stood for what she believed in, even in the face of danger. Despite being offered the chance to leave Afghanistan, she chose to stay and fight for her people.”[26][27] "According to the complainant [filed by the IPU for the violations of human rights], Nabizada had previously expressed concerns to fellow members of parliament living in exile in Afghanistan that she had been repeatedly threatened and harassed by an unidentified senior intelligence official from the Taliban Ministry of Interior Affairs. The official reportedly told her that he intended to coerce her into marriage. Nabizada claimed she refused to give in to those threats of forced marriage." She was an advocate against the forced marriage of women and girls, her work mainly addressed the gender apartheid in Afghanistan.[12][13][27]

Four months prior to Nabizada's death in October 2022, the Canadian Parliament worked to help other women seeking asylum out of Afghanistan, specifically nine other women members of Afghanistan's Parliament.[citation needed] The Canadian Parliament proposed a motion to grant transportation and asylum for nine women to evacuate Afghanistan as they faced significant risks as women fighting for justice in Afghanistan against the Taliban.[citation needed] After Nabizada's death, the Canadian Parliament promised to help bring 40,000 Afghan refugees from Afghanistan and grant them asylum Canada by the end of 2023.  [28]

Investigation

Police officers Khalid Zadran and Police Chief Molvi Hamidullah Khalid were the officials in charge of the investigation of Nabizada's death.[17][29] However, Antonio Gutierre a secretary general for the United Nations, made a statement arguing that the Taliban is acting with complete impunity towards women and suggests seeking an independent investigation.[30][31] A statement was released by the UK Parliament regarding Nabizada's death stating they, "strongly condemn the actions of their killers." In this statement, the UK Parliament would like to create a plan to help other women escape Afghanistan safely. This statement was signed by a total of 17 UK Parliament members.[32][33]

References

  1. ^ Swan, Melanie. "Mursal Nabizada, former Afghan MP and critic of Taliban, is shot dead". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d "Mursal Nabizada: Gunmen kill former Afghan MP at home in Kabul". BBC News. 16 January 2023. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  3. ^ "Today, the third legislative year of the 17th term was opened by the Afghan president. We promise to implement the peace process successfully this year together with the government, politicians and the international community and to serve the Afghan nation well". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  4. ^ "The Results of Afghanistan's 2018 Parliamentary Elections: A new, but incomplete Wolesi Jirga". Afghanistan Analysts Network – English. 17 May 2019. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
  5. ^ "Election of the New Speaker of National Assembly of Afghanistan". www.asianparliament.org. 10 July 2019. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
  6. ^ a b c d "Former Afghan MP Mursal Nabizada shot dead in Kabul". The Guardian. 15 January 2023. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  7. ^ "Former Afghan lawmaker Mursal Nabizada shot dead in Kabul". Al Jazeera English. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  8. ^ "Tribute to Afghan MP Mursal Nabizada". Inter-Parliamentary Union. 16 January 2023. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  9. ^ Goodyear, Sheena (16 January 2023). "A former Afghan MP was killed in Kabul. Her friend worries she won't be the last". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
  10. ^ a b Wimpelmann, Torunn (14 August 2019), "Chapter 6. Discrete Moves and Parallel Tracks: Gender Politics in Post-2001 Afghanistan", Gender, Governance and Islam, Edinburgh University Press, pp. 101–119, doi:10.1515/9781474455459-007, ISBN 9781474455459, retrieved 4 December 2023
  11. ^ Rubin, Barnett R. (April 1997). "Women and pipelines: Afghanistan's proxy wars". International Affairs. 73 (2): 283–296. doi:10.2307/2623829. ISSN 1468-2346. JSTOR 2623829 – via JSTOR.
  12. ^ a b https://www.ipu.org/sites/default/files/documents/afghanistan-e_4.pdf
  13. ^ a b Noroozi, Ebrahim (18 January 2023). "Afghan women say they are 'dying in slow motion' after killing of former female MP". The World. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  14. ^ "Former MP Mursal Nabizada's killer arrested: Kabul police". Ariana News. 17 February 2023. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  15. ^ "Former Woman Legislator Of Afghanistan Shot Dead At Her House". ABP News. 15 January 2023. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  16. ^ "Former female MP shot dead in Kabul by unidentified gunmen | Tajikistan News ASIA-Plus". asiaplustj.info.
  17. ^ a b "Former MP Mursal Nabizada's killer arrested: Kabul police". Ariana News. 17 February 2023. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  18. ^ "Afghan Biographies". Afghan Biographies. 15 November 2023. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
  19. ^ Soni, Mallika (15 January 2023). "Ex-Afghan woman lawmaker, who stayed in Kabul after Taliban takeover, shot dead". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  20. ^ "Former lawmaker Mursal Nabizada shot dead at her residence in Kabul". All India Radio. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  21. ^ "Former Afghan Parliament member killed in Kabul: Afghan authorities". Asian News International. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  22. ^ "Afghanistan: Former female lawmaker shot dead in Kabul". Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  23. ^ "Former Afghan female MP shot dead in Kabul home". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 15 January 2023. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  24. ^ "Gunmen Assassinate Female Former Afghan Lawmaker". Voice of America. 15 January 2023. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  25. ^ Ghazi, Sahar Habib (16 January 2023). "Assailants Shoot Dead 30-Year-Old Female Afghan Politician in Her Home". Vice. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  26. ^ "Algemeen Ambtsbericht Afghanistan" (PDF). European Country of Origin Information Network. June 2023.
  27. ^ a b "CIVIC SPACE TAKES FURTHER HIT FROM TALIBAN'S DEPLORABLE NGO BAN FOR WOMEN AS ACTIVISTS AND JOURNALISTS CONTINUED TO BE TARGETED". Monitor Tracking Civic Space. 22 February 2023. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  28. ^ Bodnaruk, Candice (5 April 2023). "Canada's First Special Representative on Islamaphobia Under Attack". Washington Report on Middle Eastern Affairs. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  29. ^ "Breaking News, Latest News and Videos". CNN. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  30. ^ Tremblay, Stephanie (16 January 2023). "Office of the Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General". United Nations. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  31. ^ Kohsark, Wakil (15 January 2023). "Former Afghan lawmaker Mursal Nabizada shot dead in Kabul". Aljazeera. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  32. ^ "CIMM – Afghan Members of Parliament". Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration. 8 February 2023. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
  33. ^ Chamberlain, Wendy (16 January 2023). "The death of Mursal Nabizada, former Member of the Afghan parliament". Early Day Motions United Kingdom Parliament. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
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