An Afghan women’s rights movement has criticized the international community and the United Nations for remaining silent on the Taliban’s treatment of women and girls, accusing global powers of compromising on the issue.
The movement, Junbish Naveen Ayinda Zanan Afghanistan, led by activist Nargis Sadaat, called on the U.S. and other world leaders to end all financial and political support for the Taliban and urged them to advocate for the rights of Afghan women.
“We, the women of Afghanistan, while reminding the U.S. of its responsibilities as a powerful and influential country, call on the U.S. and other world powers to stop any financial and political support for the Taliban and to stand with our people in the establishment of an inclusive government based on the will of the Afghan people,” the movement said in a statement.
The group emphasized that over the past three years, the Taliban has enacted numerous decrees aimed at erasing women from public life. One recent decree declared that women’s voices and faces are considered “awrah”—forbidden—outside the home. This policy, the statement said, has shocked the world and demonstrates the Taliban’s disregard for women’s rights, reducing them to tools in a male-dominated society.
The movement accused both the United Nations and the U.S. of contributing to Afghanistan’s current situation by failing to adequately challenge the Taliban’s oppressive policies. It stressed that the Taliban should not be recognized by the international community, describing their actions as constituting “gender apartheid.” The group also condemned the regime’s mistreatment of minorities, calling for global condemnation of the Taliban’s policies.
The statement underscores the growing frustration among Afghan women’s rights activists, who feel abandoned by the international community as they continue to face severe restrictions under Taliban rule.
