Country dossiers

Three places where the contours of control become sharply visible

The dossiers below are not complete country portraits, but sharp cross-sections through different forms of women's oppression: bans on education, coercive dress codes, discriminatory family rules and systemic exclusion.

Dossier 01

Afghanistan

Exclusion

Afghanistan shows how the oppression of women can be turned into an almost complete model of governance. According to consulted UN sources, the country remains an extreme example of how girls and women are pushed out of education, work and public presence.

What becomes visible

The core is not one isolated rule, but a stack of exclusions. When education, work and public space disappear at the same time, autonomy shrinks on almost every level.

Why this matters

Restrictions on education affect not only knowledge, but also economic independence, professional future and political visibility.

Education

UNESCO described Afghanistan as the only country where girls and women remain excluded from secondary and higher education on a large scale.

Public life

UN Women points to a continuing rollback of gender equality under Taliban rule.

Effect

Oppression becomes spatial here: the world in which a woman may appear literally becomes smaller.

Dossier 02

Iran

Dress coercion

In Iran, the conflict around compulsory veiling becomes a visible focal point of a broader struggle: who owns the female body in public space, and who decides what obedience means?

What becomes visible

Clothing here is not just fabric, but law, control and punishment. The state turns outward appearance into a political test.

Why this matters

When everyday visibility becomes punishable, it affects not only clothing choice, but also freedom of movement, dignity and citizenship.

Crackdown

Amnesty International documented an intensified campaign against women and girls who defy imposed dress rules.

Persecution

OHCHR reported that women and girls still face persecution and pressure two years after the wave of protests.

Effect

Public space becomes not neutral, but guarded. Visibility itself becomes a risk.

Dossier 03

Saudi Arabia

Family law

Saudi Arabia shows that reform and inequality can coexist. Certain restrictions have been loosened, but legal and social structures still keep women in an unequal position at crucial points.

What becomes visible

Not all control happens through visible prohibitions. Sometimes inequality is stabilized precisely in family law and everyday dependencies.

Why this matters

Anyone with fewer rights in marriage, divorce or guardianship carries structurally greater risk in private life, even when the public image looks more modernized.

Codification

Human Rights Watch criticized the personal status legislation because it codifies discrimination against women.

Guardianship logic

Even where formal steps forward are taken, structures of dependence can continue to shape practice and interpretation.

Effect

Control here partly shifts from open prohibition to a legal network that makes autonomy conditional.