What makes me sad

Now, many of you would not have thought that such a thing like female police officers exist in Afghanistan. They do. With current developments, though, the past tense might soon have to be applied to this wonderful and encouraging species.
Last Sunday, the most high profile female police officer, Malalai Kahar, stationed in Kandahar, has been shot dead by unknown gunmen, on her way to work. Ironically, Malalai was the head of Kandahars department of crimes against women. Her son, who was with her in the car, was wounded as well but survived.
Not much later, a spokesman for an extremist Taliban movement, which targets government officials, claimed responsibility: "We killed Malalai, she was our target and we successfully eliminated our target".
Kandahar is the birthplace of extremist Taliban; during the years Taliban were in power, women in Kandahar were stopped from working outside their homes, and were only allowed onto the street with Burka and male accompanist.
Malalai was the first women to enrol in the Kandahar police force after the fall of the Taliban. To me, seeing persons like her, is a sign of hope in a country where men have been brainwashed of women rights and women continue to be discriminated in almost every sphere of life. Learning about her dead, and knowing that this wasn't the first assassination of brave women like her, simply for the work they are doing, and for the change which they symbolize, brought tears into my eyes.