At least 20 employees of state-owned Afghan Gas Enterprise in northern Jawzjan province on Tuesday, April 4, while some of those removed had nearly 15 years of experience in the sector.
A letter, a copy of which was seen by Amu, sent to the enterprise by the Taliban has ordered the removal of 52 staff members, including 20 women employees, and has mentioned that the decision is made under a new structure.
Taliban has said that all these posts were contracted but employees of the enterprise said that all those sacked were official employees.
Fatima, 55, said she has worked in the Afghan Gas Enterprise in Jawzjan for 33 years. Her name is also among those who have been removed from their posts.
Fatima who is the only breadwinner for her eight-member family said that she has no idea how she will feed her children.
According to the employees, ahead of their removal, their salaries were reduced from 19,000 Afs ($218) to 7,000 Afs and 5,000 Afs ($80 and $57) and then they were removed.
“I spent most of my life here in this directorate and it was not a directorate but a home for me. This act by Taliban is a crime,” she said.
Adila, a woman who worked in Afghan Gas Enterprise for five years, said her monthly payment was reduced to 7,000 Afs from 19,000 as a first step ahead of her removal.
“We were allowed to sign our attendance only on Thursdays and we went to a separate room for that and then we returned home. I have a bachelor’s degree and have worked here for over five years,” she said. “I know that the Taliban has removed us to appoint their own people here.”
Other women employees who have been removed from their posts said that they have attended their jobs by wearing the same hijab as Taliban has ordered them over the past 19 months.
This comes as Taliban banned women from working in non-governmental organizations back in December, a decision that led to a significant reduction in aid agencies’ activities in Afghanistan.
