Taliban has barred Richard Bennett, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan from visiting the country, accusing him of spreading “propaganda against Afghanistan”.
According to a statement from the Taliban’s chief spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid, Bennett has been deemed “untrustworthy” by the Taliban administration and will no longer be allowed to enter Afghanistan.
In an interview with Deutsche Welle, Mujahid claimed that Bennett’s reports on gender apartheid under the Taliban were baseless and reiterated that women’s rights are being upheld within the framework of Islamic law.
He asserted that 22 percent of the Taliban’s current workforce comprises women, although these claims have not been independently verified.
Mujahid also dismissed the previous Afghan government’s Ministry of Women’s Affairs as a concession to “the whims of the United States and the West.”
Bennett’s recent report to the United Nations highlighted systematic violations of women’s rights in Afghanistan and siad the Taliban has been instituting a regime of gender apartheid.
He also called for the prosecution of Taliban officials responsible for human rights abuses at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
More than three years after the Taliban seized power following the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces, the regime remains internationally isolated.
No foreign government has recognized the Taliban’s authority, and the international community continues to condition recognition on significant policy changes, particularly concerning the rights of women and girls.
The U.N. mission in Kabul has said it continues to monitor and report on the human rights situation in the country, amid ongoing challenges in accessing and delivering accurate information.
