Introduction

Afghanistan (a Wikipedia link) is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of central and south Asia. It is bordered by Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan to the north, Pakistan to the east and south, and Iran to the west. It is estimated to have between 35 and 50 million people. The capital and largest city is Kabul.

The country is practically 100% Islamic, which means that close to zero percent of the country is secular. Certainly nothing to do with government or education is secular.

To give the country its full name: the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.

History

Afghanistan has a rich and complex history (a Wikipedia link) that is shaped by its central location as a crossroads between Asia and the Middle East, marked by conquest, empire-building, and prolonged conflict.

Ancient and Medieval Eras

• 330 BCE: Conquered by Alexander the Great, introducing Greek culture and establishing local Hellenistic kingdoms.
• 7th Century: Arrival of Islam as Arab armies moved through the region and transformed the local culture and society.
• 13th Century: Overrun by Mongol forces led by Genghis Khan, causing devastation.
• 16th Century: Babur (a descendant of Genghis Khan) created the Mughal Empire with its capital at Kabul. He then expanded into India.

Foundation and British Rivalry

• 1747: Ahmad Shah Durrani began the modern Afghan nation by uniting local tribes and founding the Durrani Empire.
• 19th Century: Three Anglo-Afghan Wars against the British marked the strategic imperial rivalry known as the “Great Game” with Tsarist Russia.
• 1919: Emir Amanullah Khan declared independence from Britain following the Third Anglo-Afghan War.

Modern Conflicts and Regime Changes

• 1978: A communist coup d’état overthrew the government. That threw the country into turmoil and led to a nationalist uprising.
• 1979–1989: The Soviet Union invaded to support the communist regime, battling U.S.-backed Mujahideen resistance fighters until the Soviet withdrawal.
• 1992–1996: The collapse of the communist government led to a civil war among rival Mujahideen factions.
• 1996: The ultra-conservative Islamist group known as the Taliban seized control of Kabul and imposed strict Islamic law.
• 2001: A U.S.-led military coalition invaded following the 9-11 attacks. They quickly toppled the Taliban.
• 2004–2021: Saw the establishment of a Western-backed Islamic republic and a lengthy insurgency by the Taliban.
• 2021: U.S. and NATO forces withdrew, leading to a Taliban offensive that captured Kabul and re-established the Islamic emirate.

Current day

Religion in Afghanistan (a Wikipedia link) is as follows (as of 2020):

• Islam: 99.9%
  • Sunni: 88.4%
  • Shia: 11.5%
• Other religions: 0.1%

The “Other” group comprises of people who have to practice their religion in secret (if at all). Religious minorities such as Sikhs, Hindus, and Christians have reportedly faced persecution.

Afghanistan is one of the seven countries in the world (the other six being Iran, the Maldives, Mauritania, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Sudan) where being an atheist or a convert can lead to a death sentence.

Since apostasy (the formal abandonment, renunciation, or disaffiliation from a religious or political belief, cause, or organization) is a crime under the sharia of Afghanistan, apostates are not treated kindly. Apostates, including atheists, are considered safe-ish if they were brought up as Muslim and do not make their beliefs (or lack thereof) public. Apostates are usually disowned by their families. Apostasy and conversion from Islam carry death sentences in Afghanistan’s Islamic legal system. Mob lynchings have also been known to happen.

Issues

The primary issue for the non-religious is that it is a crime that is punishable by death to not support Islam in Afghanistan. That is great for those who do well from such a society, but is a tragedy for anyone who is not convinced that Islam is the way to go.

There is also the issue of whether someone is the right sort of Muslim, e.g. problems based on the differences between Sunni and Shia. The Taliban enforces an ultra-conservative interpretation of Sunni Islam. While they do not officially ban Shia religious practices outright, their strict social codes, erasure of Shia jurisprudence from official legal frameworks, and systemic exclusion marginalize the Shia community.

Women are pretty much forced to wear full-body coverings in public.

Homosexuality is taboo in Afghan society; according to the penal code, homosexual intimacy is punished by up to a year in prison. Under Sharia law offenders can be punished by death.

In May 2022, the Taliban dissolved Afghanistan’s Human Rights Commission.

In January 2025, the International Criminal Court issued two warrants against the Taliban supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada and the Chief judge, Abdul Hakim Haqqani, for committing crimes against humanity with the oppression and persecution of Afghan women and girls.

There are of course many consequences for having a brutally controlled country and society, especially based on the religion of Islam. Here are some:

• Afghanistan remains one of the world’s least developed countries.
• It’s nominal GDP per capita is comfortably the second lowest in the world (only ahead of Yemen).
• Female teachers and female students are forbidden in secondary schools.
• As of 2018 the literacy rate of the population age 15 and older is 43.02% (males 55.48% and females 29.81%). Yep, over 55% of the population can’t read.
• Afghanistan ranks near the bottom globally in science, technology, and innovation.
• The average life expectancy is estimated to be around 60 years.
• The country’s maternal mortality rate is 396 deaths per 100,000 live births and its infant mortality rate is 66 to 112.8 deaths in every 1,000 live births. Yep, about 1 in 10 infants die.
• The internet is heavily controlled and restricted in Afghanistan by the Taliban government, which implements targeted filtering, regional fiber-optic cuts, and occasional nationwide blackouts under the stated goal of preventing “immoral activities” and vice.
• Dissent is punishable by death.

In terms of secular considerations, the country of Afghanistan is a tragedy and every sympathy goes out to those who suffer under its horrific structure.

To anyone in authority in Afghanistan who might read this: why the need for such brutal and murderous control? Don’t your ideas and practices stand without violence and oppression?

Secular and atheist groups

Unfortunately, due to the intense risk of persecution and death (as sanctioned by the government), secular and atheist groups cannot operate in Afghanistan.

Because apostasy (the act of renouncing or abandoning a religion) carries a potential death sentence in Afghanistan, anyone who is disenchanted with religion there needs to be extremely careful in what they say or do.

The following is a list of societies, groups, and on-line organisations who have motivations and philosophies that are not based on religion. The links are to the organisations’ web sites.

• Secular Rescue. From their web site: “Secular Rescue works to protect atheists and freethinkers who exercise their basic human rights to freedom of expression, conscience, and nonbelief—and encourage others to exercise those rights, as well“.
• The Afghan Atheist Organisation (AAO). From their web site: “Afghan Atheist Organization (AAO) has established in 2018 with the motto ‘Rationality and Enlightenment’. We are struggling to form a developed society where being good without god is an accepted and respected path of life. We do this by defending civic freedoms and secular government, by connecting with intellectuals with no religious or traditional faith, and by the reforms and continuous development of self-oriented world-view”.

See also Irreligion in Afghanistan (a Wikipedia link).

Forum

Regarding this forum, remember:

• this is a place to help others, so please be polite,
• that we’re trying to reduce the effects of religion in this society,
• that participants may have been badly affected by religion,
• to respect the privacy of everyone (including yourself),
• the law.

If your motives or actions are otherwise, you will need to find another venue.