Afghanistan | No “reintegration” without progress on women’s rights, insists the UN

(United Nations) Restrictions on women’s rights continue to “block” Afghanistan’s “reintegration” into the international community, a senior UN official said Friday, noting that the Taliban government’s announced participation in talks in Doha was not “legitimation”.

Since their return to power, the Taliban authorities have not been officially recognized by any country and apply an ultra-rigorous interpretation of Islam, increasing liberticidal measures against women, a policy described as “gender apartheid » by the UN.

These “restrictions imposed on women and girls”, particularly in terms of education, which “deprive the country of vital human capital”, “contribute to a brain drain which undermines the future of Afghanistan” and “ by being deeply unpopular, undermine the legitimacy claims of the de facto Taliban authorities,” Rosa Otunbayeva, head of the United Nations mission in the country (UNAMA), commented at a meeting of the UN Security Council.

“And they continue to block diplomatic solutions that could lead to the reintegration of Afghanistan into the international community,” she added.

The international community launched a process last year to discuss strengthening its commitment to Afghanistan, through meetings of envoys for Afghanistan in Doha under the auspices of the UN and in the presence of representatives of civil society. Afghan including women.

Taliban authorities have assured that they will attend the third round of talks in Qatar scheduled for June 30 and 1^er July. They were excluded from the first meeting in May 2023, then refused to participate in the second in February unless its members were the only representatives of the country.

A spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said this week that discussions were still ongoing regarding the modalities of this third meeting.

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

“Only engagement through a common, coordinated and principled international position can provide a strong incentive for de facto authorities to adopt policies that will enable their reintegration into the international community.”