Of the 162 candidates who have nominated for election to the Wolesi Jirga in Herat province, 18, or 11 percent of the above total, are women.

On a recent visit to Herat , we spoke with two of these women – who shared many similarities.

Twenty-six year old Ms. S.* is one of these candidates. Educated in Iran, where she grew up and her family now lives, Ms. S. worked in the local office of the Ministry of Women's Affairs in Herat province and is familiar with women's issues, particularly in that area. “I will reflect my understanding of women's issues in this province in my work as a representative to the Wolesi Jirga,” she said.

Having completed her education in Iran , Ms. S. realized that there were opportunities made available to her in this host country that were inaccessible in her native Afghanistan .

“When I compared Iran to Afghanistan , I would wish to be Iranian not Afghan – because my country was not developed in the same way and did not have so many opportunities,” she said. “But then I thought ‘Why?' I want to develop this country to reach the same level. I wanted to be proud of my Afghan nationality. Generations of women here have been deprived of their civil rights. If I am elected as a representative at the Wolesi Jirga, I would proposed family courts and female judges in order to help restore the rights these women have missed. Afghanistan must develop enough to become independent, self-sufficient.”

Ms. S. believes that a woman cannot be a candidate without the support of her family; she also claims that only an educated family would support their educated daughter, sister or spouse.

“I see this as a sort of insurance that female candidates will be educated, literate, and progressive,” she said, “because this is their background. It is what they have learned.”

Another female candidate in Herat , Ms. M., is in her late 30s. She, like Ms. S., has never married. In addition to a supportive family, Ms. M. believes that being unattached is advantageous to her candidacy.

“I have a few friends who considered running for office,” Ms. M. said. “Some had supportive husbands and some did not. But in either case, these women did not know how it would be possible for them to move to Kabul to take their seat in the Wolesi Jirga. They could not go alone, and they couldn't uproot their entire family either. It is this issue that prevented them from running.”

Women with unsupportive families could not even consider the possibility of nominating themselves for office. In one instance, she recounted, a friend was forbidden by her husband and brothers from submitting her candidacy because it would mean that her photograph would be publicly displayed.

“They told her that having her photograph taken, or allowing it to appear on posters or ballots would bring shame to her family,” Ms. M said.

The Women's Rights Officer at the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission, NAME, is well aware of these sorts of obstacles that face female candidates. And these are just the obstacles to getting on the ballot. Once this has been achieved, women face other obstacles at the ballot box.

“While I was out in more rural areas of the province speaking to communities about voter registration, I heard strong opposition to women candidates,' NAME said. “One man told me he would rather cut off his own hand than vote for a woman. Some men laughed when he said this but several others agreed.”

In order to overcome these attitudes, NAME said it is necessary to go to the men directly. “Because they are the ones who control whether or not a woman will vote,” she said. “I think it is very important to talk to Mullahs and influential elders in the community. Without their endorsement, women will not run for office or vote. They control women's political rights.”

According to many men she has spoken with, a resounding reason for this tight reign on women's rights is perception that more rights for women is equivalent to the erosion of men's rights.

“Men who say that they will not vote for a woman believe that her entire platform will be based on taking rights away from men,” she said. “This is obviously not the case. Female candidates I have spoken to favor the elimination of all forms of discrimination against all people. Women desire equality – this means that all groups have the same opportunities and rights – not that one group has less than another.”

When asked about campaign tactics, both women admitted that they had not finalized their strategies yet; however, the women alluded to financial constraints that were being factored into their final decisions. Due to the cost of advertising, printing posters and hiring transport and other expenses, both women planned to focus on face-to-face activities such as visiting the constituency in person, speaking at public gatherings when possible and other events. The campaign period is yet another challenge for women from more traditional communities – where families prefer that their wives or daughters do not go out and speak with strangers.

Still, among those who have nominated as candidates, some will go on to make up 25 percent of the lower house of the first Afghan National Assembly for the first time in almost 30 years.

“Once [female representatives] get to Kabul they will show the doubtful what they are capable of,” NAME said. “Hopefully, we will slowly start to see changing attitudes as a result.”

* Candidates names have been concealed.