"BEING A WOMAN HERE IS A CRIME"
The Australian Women's Weekly|June 2023
Ona dangerous and shocking trip back to Afghanistan, investigative reporter Yalda Hakim discovers the terrifying realities of life as a woman under the new laliban rule, and.meets some brave schoolgirls who are fighting back
Yalda Hakim
"BEING A WOMAN HERE IS A CRIME"

Since the Taliban swept to power in August 2021, I had travelled to Afghanistan several times as an international correspondent for the BBC. The shambolic nature of their takeover and the little experience the one-time insurgents had in running a country meant I was able to freely travel to places that were once deemed the most dangerous on Earth.

I was now heading back to the country, following a two-week break in Sydney to visit my parents. I was slightly nervous about making this journey. A lot had changed since my last visit in June 2022. Women had been banned from universities, from public parks, from going to gyms; they could no longer travel long distances in the country or abroad without a male chaperone. The Taliban had also issued an edict stating that, unless it was absolutely necessary, they should refrain from leaving their homes.

The flight to Kabul is always an emotional one for me. I’ve been back and forth to the Afghan capital more than 15 times over the past 15 years. Each time feels like the first time. I have a deep connection with this city. It is where I was born almost 40 years ago. It is where my parents fled from when I was just six months old, locking up their home at first light in 1984 and never looking back. They travelled over the mountains, by foot and horseback using people smugglers and local tribesmen to guide them to Pakistan. Eventually they would settle in Australia.

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The Australian Women's Weekly

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The Australian Women's Weekly

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The girls from Oz
The Australian Women's Weekly

The girls from Oz

Melbourne music teacher Judith Curphey challenged the patriarchy when she started Australia's first all-girls choir. Forty years later that bold vision has 6500 members, life-changing programs and a new branch of the sisterhood in Singapore.

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The Australian Women's Weekly

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In 2018, 10-year-old Jack Berne started A Fiver for a Farmer to raise funds for drought relief. He and mum Prue share what happened next.

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AFTER THE WAVE
The Australian Women's Weekly

AFTER THE WAVE

Twenty years ago, the Boxing Day tsunami tore across the Indian Ocean, shredding towns, villages and holiday resorts, and killing hundreds of thousands of people from Indonesia to Africa. Three Australians share their memories of terror, loss and survival with The Weekly.

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PATRICIA KARVELAS How childhood tragedy shaped me
The Australian Women's Weekly

PATRICIA KARVELAS How childhood tragedy shaped me

Patricia Karvelas hustled hard to chase her dreams, but it wasn't easy. In a deeply personal interview, the ABC host talks about family loss, finding love, battles fought and motherhood.

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10 mins  |
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Ripe for the picking
The Australian Women's Weekly

Ripe for the picking

Buy a kilo or two of fresh Australian apricots because they're at their peak sweetness now and take inspiration from our lush recipe ideas that showcase this divine stone fruit.

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5 mins  |
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Your stars for 2025
The Australian Women's Weekly

Your stars for 2025

The Weekly’s astrologer, Lilith Rocha, reveals what’s in store for your astrological sign in 2025. For your monthly horoscope, turn to page 192.

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MEL SCHILLING Cancer made me look at myself differently'
The Australian Women's Weekly

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One year on from going public with her bowel cancer diagnosis, Mel Schilling reveals where she's at with her health journey and how it's changed her irrevocably.

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9 mins  |
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Nothing like this Dame Judi
The Australian Women's Weekly

Nothing like this Dame Judi

A few weeks before her 90th birthday, the acting legend jumped on a phone call with The Weekly to talk about her extraordinary life – and what’s still to come.

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10 mins  |
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