Afghan women struggle under male guardian rules

Under the Taliban government's austere interpretation of Islamic law, the "mahram" practice long rooted in Afghan society has become compulsory. On a recent visit to their former university in Kabul, Mariam and a female friend were stopped from entering the building to collect a transcript. "At the entrance, the Taliban told us that we needed a mahram," said Mariam, whose name has been changed to protect her identity like other women AFP interviewed. "But my brother was at work, my friend's brother wasn't old enough and her father had died...