Afghanistan Urges UN Pressure on Taliban Over Women’s Rights
DID Press: Afghanistan’s mission to the United Nations in Geneva has called on the international community to maintain pressure on the Taliban over what it described as ongoing violations of women’s and girls’ rights, as the 62nd session of the U.N. Human Rights Council gets underway.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the Afghan mission described the current session of the Human Rights Council as a critical opportunity to address the deteriorating human rights situation in Afghanistan. It said the Afghan delegation is participating to amplify the voices of women and girls who have been deprived of fundamental rights under Taliban rule.
The session, running from June 15 to July 7 in Geneva, will provide a platform for highlighting the challenges faced by Afghans who have been denied access to education, employment, public participation and other basic freedoms, according to the statement.
The mission stressed that restrictions on girls’ secondary and higher education, limitations on women’s employment and social participation, gender-based violence, human trafficking, and the plight of refugees and internally displaced persons represent some of the most serious human rights concerns requiring international attention.
Several side events are also planned during the session, focusing on access to justice for Afghan women, the impact of education bans on child marriage, and ways to expand educational opportunities for women and girls.
In addition to Afghanistan, the Human Rights Council is expected to review reports from special rapporteurs covering issues including education, freedom of expression, arbitrary executions, extreme poverty, climate change, peaceful assembly, internal displacement and human trafficking.
The Afghan mission concluded by stating that the rights of Afghan women and girls are “not negotiable, not postponable, and not forgettable,” urging the international community to continue efforts to hold the Taliban accountable for alleged rights violations.