Taliban clampdown on women's rights hampering Afghan reintegration, UN official says

A senior UN official on Friday said restrictions on women's rights are hindering Afghanistan's reintegration into the international community, adding that the Taliban's participation in upcoming talks in Doha is not “legitimisation” of the isolated government.

Since seizing power in August 2021, the Afghan Taliban have banned schooling for girls older than 12 and have curtailed many basic freedoms for women, including widespread restrictions on employment.

“By being deeply unpopular [the restrictions] undermine the de facto authorities' claims to legitimacy,” Roza Otunbayeva, head of the UN mission in the country, Unama, told the Security Council.

“And they continue to block diplomatic solutions that would lead to Afghanistan's reintegration into the international community.”

No country has yet given full diplomatic recognition to the Taliban.

Last year marked the start of several rounds of UN-hosted talks on Afghanistan to consider strengthening international commitment to the country.

The Taliban were not included in the first set of talks in May 2023 and then refused an invitation to the second in February 2024 because they wanted direct talks with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and the exclusion of other representatives.

The third UN-convened meeting of special envoys and representatives on Afghanistan is set for June 30 and July 1 in Doha, which the de facto authorities have agreed to attend.

The Taliban accepted an invitation from Mr Guterres to participate in talks, extended by under secretary general for political and peacebuilding affairs Rosemary DiCarlo during her mid-May visit to Afghanistan.

“For this process to truly begin, it is essential that the de facto authorities participate at Doha,” Ms Otunbayeva said, warning however that high expectations “cannot realistically be met in a single meeting.”

Ms Otunbayeva said it “cannot be repeated enough that this sort of engagement is not legitimisation or normalisation.”

The UN agenda reportedly contains no discussion of women’s rights, and no Afghan women have been invited to participate in the meeting.

Tirana Hassan, executive director of Human Rights Watch, criticised the exclusion of women from discussions. UN Security Council Resolution 1325 mandates full participation of women in international peace and security talks.

“Excluding women risks legitimising the Taliban’s abuses and triggering irreparable harm to the UN’s credibility as an advocate for women’s rights and women’s meaningful participation,” she said.

Since 2021, more than 50 edicts, orders and restrictions have been placed on women and girls, from travel restrictions and dress codes to the banning of secondary education, NGO work and beauty salons.

Afghanistan is ranked last on the Women, Peace and Security Index, with its women as well as UN officials having referred to the situation as “gender apartheid”.

Afghan women living under Taliban rule – in pictures

MATCH INFO

What: 2006 World Cup quarter-final
When: July 1
Where: Gelsenkirchen Stadium, Gelsenkirchen, Germany

Result:
England 0 Portugal 0
(Portugal win 3-1 on penalties)

RESULTS

5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 (Turf) 1,200m
Winner: AF Majalis, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer).

5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Sawt Assalam, Szczepan Mazur, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami.

6pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Foah, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel.

6.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Faiza, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.

7pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 80,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: RB Dixie Honor, Antonio Fresu, Helal Al Alawi.

7.30pm: Rated Conditions (TB) Dh 100,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: Boerhan, Ryan Curatolo, Nicholas Bachalard.

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Some of Darwish's last words

"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008

His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.