receive "due just treatment" (Ahmed-Ghosh 3). Further developments occurred during the reign of Amir Habibullah Khan, which began in 1901. Habibullah's views on women were influenced by the arguments of a reformist named Mahmud Tarzi. Tarzi argued that an ideal society should provide women with an education as well as with equal opportunities in employment. Habibullah agreed with Tarzi's perspective, which led to changes in the country's laws on education and marriage rights. In addition, Habibullah's wives "were seen publicly unveiled and in western clothes" (Ahmed-Ghosh 3). However, conservative tribal leaders were strongly opposed to Habibullah's efforts to improve women's lives in Afghanistan. As a result of this opposition, Habibullah was assassinated in the year 1919. Habibullah's son, Amanullah, took further steps toward the empowerment of women in Afghani society. Amanullah discouraged polygamy and supported the development of an educational system that was open to women as well as men (Emadi 62-63). However, as in the case of his father, Amanullah's reforms were violently opposed by conservative men in the nation. In 1929, the conservatives gained the upper hand and Amanullah was forced into exile.
In the following years, other Afghan leaders made attempts to defy tradition by increasing rights for women. This trend developed rapidly in the 1950s, when the Soviet Union began supporting the Afghani government. The Soviet Union, which had been established in Russia in 1917, was concerned with the promotion of Marxism in the nations of the world. Following the Second World War, the Soviet Union sought to expand its influence in Eastern Europe as well as in the nations of Central Asia, such as Afghanistan. The Soviet Union's socialist plans included an effort to reform and modernize the societies in countries like Afghanistan. Along with this, "a need was perceived for women to be economically active to help Afghanistan...