Concerns grow for two LGBTQIA activists arrested by Taliban

Maryam Ravish and Maeve Alcina Pieescu were imprisoned after trying to escape Kabul 

BY DIVA STAFF, IMAGE PROVIDED 

Two leading underground Afghan LGBTQIA activists have been arrested and imprisoned by the Taliban in Kabul, Afghanistan. 

Lesbian activist Maryam Ravish and trans activist Maeve Alcina Pieescu attempted to escape Kabul on 20 March with the help of Roshaniya, an Afghan LGBTQIA network. They were set to fly out of Kabul with Maryam’s partner Parwen Hussaini. 

According to Roshaniya, when Maryam and Maeve boarded the plane they were detained by a Taliban intelligence unit who discovered LGBTQIA content on their phones. “Maeve and Maryam were beaten by the Taliban,” Nemat Sadat, CEO of Roshaniya, said. “They are expected to be tortured to reveal the names of other LGBT [people] and sentenced to a long jail term or possibly executed.” 

Roshaniya is now working with the Peter Tatchell Foundation in London to press for their release. 

Parwen Hussaini, Maryam’s partner, managed to board the flight and escape to Iran. Since the arrest, both Maryam’s and Parwen’s families have threatened her life. “We have no word from Maryam to know what situation they are in now. It is possible they would be placed in solitary confinement and stoned to death—it is possible for them to receive a death penalty,” Parwen recounted in a video explaining what happened. 

She further pleaded to human rights and LGBTQIA organisations to help free Maryam and Maeve so that the three can relocate to a safe place. Before the arrest, Maryam and Parwen were planning on getting married in a European city. 

Maeve’s sister, who now lives in the US, also commented on the grave danger that the pair are in. “My family in Afghanistan is very anxious about Maeve being tortured and killed. During the Taliban’s interrogation, Maeve confessed that she is not a Muslim and doesn’t believe in Islam. This is scary for our family since the penalty for apostasy — under sharia law — is death. We ask from the world governments to demand that Maeve be released from prison and safely leave the country.”

Nemat Sadat, CEO of Roshaniya, has urged international human rights and LGBTQIA organisations to pressure the Taliban to release Maryam and Maeve. “Maryam and Maeve now face the death penalty for simply wanting to be free and happy,” Nemat said. 

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