The UN Security Council said it is deeply alarmed by reports that the Taliban has suspended access to universities and jobs in non-governmental organizations for women and girls.
According to a statement issued late Tuesday, the UNSC reiterated its call for “full, equal and meaningful” participation of women and girls in Afghanistan and called on the Taliban to reopen schools and swiftly reverse these policies and practices, which represent an increasing erosion of the respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms.
The Security Council said it is also “profoundly concerned by reports that the Taliban has banned female employees of non-governmental organizations and international organizations from going to work.”
The UNSC said this would have a significant and immediate impact on humanitarian operations in the country, including those of the United Nations, and the delivery of aid and health work, and that these restrictions contradict the commitments made by the Taliban to the Afghan people, as well as the expectations of the international community.
The Security Council reiterated its full support to the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), and the importance of the UN special representative carrying out her mandate, including through monitoring and reporting on the situation.
On December 24, the Taliban issued an order, banning women from working in the country’s non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
The decision by the Taliban caused a global outcry. However, a Taliban minister said in an interview with local media outlets in Kabul on Tuesday, that a decision on the return of women to universities will be made in the first month of the next solar year, which corresponds to April 2023.
