Our Core Activities and Services

“Everything bad happened so quickly, I was not able to bear this difficult life transition. I lost my employment and income and had to hide myself out of fear of persecution by the Taliban. The Taliban tracked my husband and detained him for 9 months, and we found him in another province with wounded injuries on his body and serious mental problems. It is very good to have spaces for women so that they can easily express their feelings and pains without fear and seek solutions. Now, I feel lighter and more relieved, and I can control my emotions, anger, and thoughts.”

- Client at WJO Counseling Center, Kabul

“I was a victim of sexual violence. The man threatened me, saying that he had recorded a video of us while we were close and might share it with my family and relatives. I was shocked and had to meet him. I allowed him to have intercourse several times, fearing the release of the video and the aggressive and brutal behavior of my parents. Later, he refused to marry me, and I begged him not to leave me behind, as I had lost my virginity and no one else would marry me. But he ran away and left the country. I felt very helpless, lonely, and hopeless. I had no one to share my feelings with or ask for support, and all I could think about was ending my life. I was contemplating how, where, and when to do it.” Following the counseling sessions, my thoughts, understanding, and vision about myself and life have changed. I now feel like a strong, confident, and informed woman. I have accepted my past as a bad experience and a lesson learned, and I will not allow it to affect my present life. I learned many important skills and techniques during the counseling sessions. They taught me how to manage my thoughts and feelings, control my anger, and get along better with family members and friends. As a victim of sexual violence, I would like to help other women and girls who have gone through similar situations. I have learned to find happiness within myself and not to expect it from others at the cost of my well-being.”

- Client at WJO Counseling Center, Kabul

“I found my life miserable and painful, and I attempted to commit suicide twice, but my children helped me to survive. A close relative helped me to visit the Shelter in District 13 and learn tailoring and stitching skills. In the meantime, they referred me to the WJO counseling center to meet the assigned psychologist.

In the beginning, I participated in the group counselling and the counsellor requested me to attend the individual counselling as well. She helped me to relax my mind and my body by doing certain stress management exercises and body scanning techniques. She listened to me, and I shared all my painful feelings, thoughts, and experience with her and later, I found myself light and relieved.

The counselling sessions helped me to have a new life and to be hopeful. I learnt to list our problems and seek for the solution using our personal resources and ability. Now I have a better relationship with my children, and they accepted that their father died in an accident and meanwhile, I am earning AFN 50 per month stitching clothes for internally displaced persons’ children.”

- Client, Women Protection Shelter, Kabul

“I graduated from university in 2020. I felt very good because I was going to get a job and change my family's life. But the black regime of the Taliban came and in addition to depriving us of work, they also denied us from continuing our education.

After the Taliban came, I felt that I could not step towards my dreams again, but when I entered the Lawyering Skills Program of the Women for Justice Organisation, I found the motivation to stand up again. I am now busy teaching school subjects to students. I regained my spirit with the Lawyering Skills Program and realized that nothing ends, and you have to continue living and fight. I wish to become a successful human rights lawyer and use the skills I learned in this program to defend the rights of Afghan women.”

- Marwa, graduate of WJO’s Lawyering Skills Program

“This program is one of the most special programs that I have ever participated. By participating in this program, we did not feel the closure of universities”

- Mursal, 22 Years old. She was a 7 semester student of Islamic Law at Kabul University before higher-education for women were banned.

“I was hopeless. The WJO lawyering skills program become the only source of motivation for me. The WJO trainers encouraged me to try new subjects. I learned new interesting and useful subjects in this course. I started to use my time in an efficient way, with my newfound knowledge. I taught my sisters to improve their reading and writing skills. I feel like I am a different person and I understand why so many people value education so much. I feel it in myself. I am aiming for the highest scores to be eligible for WJO internship program so I can get hired. I thank the professors, founders and organizers of this program from the bottom of my heart.”

-Halay, 22 years old. She was a fourth year in the Law Faculty of Kabul University before higher-education for women was banned.