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CNN Live At Daybreak

Some Afghan Women Choose to Follow Taliban Guidelines

Aired November 30, 2001 - 06:49   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: A lot of people here in the U.S. have closely been following the role and the situation of women in Afghanistan, and the Taliban collapse may signal the dawn of a new era for Afghan women. But our Brianne Leary found that many women are still following some of the Taliban's strict guidelines.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIANNE LEARY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Although it may not look like it, the dust has begun to settle in Afghanistan's fourth largest city, Jalalabad, since the Taliban fled about two weeks ago. Businesses are up and running, television too, and music is back with a vengeance.

Things in this rather tense city seem to be getting back to normal, with one exception.

(on camera): For westerners, one of the most reviled aspects of the Taliban regime was forcing women to wear this: the burka. Blue seems to be the most popular color.

(voice-over): When an Afghan girl reaches puberty, her family gives her the traditional coverall. From then on, her identity is hidden from the outside world. But now that the Taliban has been all but destroyed, why do the women here still cling to the burka?

HAJI BARYIALY, JALALABAD GOVERNOR'S BROTHER: Burka is part of our culture. Taliban didn't bring burka to Afghanistan. Afghan women carried it for a long time. This is their choice. Nobody will force them. In the past also. Nobody forced them.

LEARY: That's one Afghan man's belief. But how do women feel?

Adila (ph), a schoolteacher here in Jalalabad, explained why she continues to wear the burka.

"It is not by force," she says, "because we read the history about it in our book in the time of Kalif Abbas (ph). So it's tradition. Now, we are used to wearing it. Otherwise, when we go outside without it, we feel like we wear nothing."

But in today's Afghanistan, wearing a burka or not isn't simply about freedom. It's about freedom of choice, something women the world over can relate to. Brianne Leary, CNN, Jalalabad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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