By Amu TV
August 13, 2024
Credits @FFHR.CZ
In a statement marking the third anniversary of the Taliban’s return to power on August 15, 2021, Human Rights Watch (HRW) declared that the Taliban has created the “world’s most serious women’s rights crisis.”
HRW highlighted that Afghanistan is also facing one of the globe’s worst humanitarian crises, with aid severely underfunded and thousands of Afghans forced back into the country from Pakistan. The organization noted that many Afghans are still waiting to emigrate to Western countries.
“Afghanistan is the only country where girls are banned from education beyond the sixth grade,” HRW stated. The Taliban has also restricted women’s freedom of movement, barred them from many forms of employment, dismantled protections against gender-based violence, and limited their access to health care. Women are also prohibited from playing sports and visiting parks.
Fereshta Abbasi, an Afghan researcher at HRW, described the situation as Afghan women and girls “living their worst nightmares under the Taliban.” She urged governments to support efforts to hold the Taliban leadership accountable for serious crimes in Afghanistan.
HRW further reported that since January 2024, the Taliban has detained women and girls in Kabul and other provinces for what they call “bad hijab.” The statement also noted that the Taliban has severely restricted freedom of expression and the media, and has detained and tortured protesters, critics, and journalists.
The humanitarian crisis has been exacerbated by cuts in foreign assistance, which have severely harmed Afghanistan’s healthcare system, worsened malnutrition, and led to preventable illnesses. HRW pointed out that restrictions on women and girls have impeded their access to health care, threatening their right to health, and the Taliban’s bans on education will lead to future shortages of female health workers.
“The third anniversary of the Taliban’s takeover is a grim reminder of Afghanistan’s human rights crisis, but it should also be a call for action,” Abbasi said. She urged governments engaging with the Taliban to consistently remind them that their abuses violate Afghanistan’s obligations under international law. She also called on donors to provide targeted assistance to those most in need and to find durable solutions to the humanitarian crisis.
HRW revealed that since September 2023, over 665,000 Afghan migrants deported by Pakistan have returned to Afghanistan. Thousands of Afghans who fled after the Taliban takeover remain in limbo in countries like Iran, Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates, and others, as resettlement processes in Western countries, including the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, and Canada, have been slow and inadequate.
Source: amu.tv
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