The problem is the population never owned the country. They didn't liberate themselves. And they're at home as conquered populace.
Someday the west will learn that Democracy can't be "gifted". People have to want it. People have to fight and die for it. And then, and only then, maybe, you'll get democracy.
The only chance that women in the article will see any freedom again, is if she take up arms start shooting the people who say "you can't".
I wish Americans stopped viewing social change as a matter of shooting bad guys. The entire Afghanistan debacle is, in a sense, America giving people an endless supply of guns, saying "Can't you guys just shoot all the bad guys? Come on! We'll give you as much ammo as you want!"
Fat good it did anyone.
America, for example, was armed by the French during their revolutionary war. I'd say that result was exceptional.
France's most recent armed revolution also resulted in representative state.
At some point, you have to throw in the towel and cut your losses—even when those losses are really, unimaginably terrible. 20 years is certainly past that point.
There's a lot of good we could do in the world with the resources we put into Afghanistan.