United Nations, Jan 21: A delegation led by the highest-ranking woman at the United Nations urged the Taliban during a four-day visit to Afghanistan that ended Friday to reverse their crackdown on women and girls. Some Taliban officials were more open to restoring women’s rights but others were clearly opposed, a UN spokesman said.
The UN team met with the Taliban in the capital of Kabul and the southern city of Kandahar. It did not release the names of any of the Taliban officials. The meetings focused on the restrictive measures the Taliban have imposed on women and girls since they took power in August 2021, during the final weeks of the US and NATO forces’ pullout after 20 years of war.
The team, headed by UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, found that some Taliban officials “have been cooperative and they’ve received some signs of progress,” said UN deputy spokesman Farhan Haq. “The key thing is to reconcile the (Taliban) officials that they’ve met who’ve been more helpful with those who have not.” Haq stressed that “there are many different points of authority” among the Taliban and that the UN team will try to get them to “work together to advance the goals that we want, which include most crucially, bringing women and girls back to the full enjoyment of their rights.” Mohammed, a former Nigerian Cabinet minister and a Muslim, was joined on the trip by Sima Bahous, executive director of UN Women, which promotes gender equality and women’s rights, and Assistant Secretary General for political affairs Khaled Khiari.
As the Taliban did during their previous rule of Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, they gradually re-imposed their harsh interpretation of Islamic law, or Sharia. Girls have been barred from school beyond the sixth grade and women are banned from most jobs, public spaces and gyms.
In late December, the Taliban barred aid groups from employing women, paralysing deliveries that help keep millions of Afghans alive, and threatening humanitarian services countrywide.
In addition, thousands of women who work for aid organisations across the war-battered country are facing the loss of income they desperately need to feed their own families.
Limited work by women has been allowed in some sectors, including the health field.
“What we’ve seen in terms of basic rights for women and girls is a huge step backwards,” Haq said. “We are trying to do more and we’ll continue on that front.”
In a statement, Mohammed said her message to the Taliban was very clear – “these restrictions present Afghan women and girls with a future that confines them in their own homes, violating their rights and depriving the communities of their services.”
She stressed that delivery of humanitarian aid is based on the principle requiring unhindered and safe access for all aid workers, including women. (AP)
