The council called on the Taliban to “swiftly reverse policies against women in Afghanistan”.
United Nations:
The UN Security Council on Thursday passed a resolution calling on the Taliban to “swiftly reverse” all restrictive measures against women, specifically condemning its ban on Afghan women working for the UN.
The resolution, adopted unanimously by all 15 members of the council, said the ban announced in early April “undermines human rights and humanitarian principles.”
More broadly, the council called on the Taliban to “swiftly reverse policies and practices that restrict the enjoyment by women and girls of their human rights and fundamental freedoms.”
It cited access to education, employment, freedom of movement and “the full, equal and meaningful participation of women in public life”.
The council also urged “all states and organizations to use their influence” to “promote the immediate reversal of these policies and practices”.
The body stressed the “serious economic and humanitarian situation,” and the “critical importance of the continued presence” of the United Nations Mission in Afghanistan and other United Nations agencies.
“The world will not sit quietly as women in Afghanistan are erased from society,” said Lana Zaki Nusseibeh, the United Arab Emirates’ ambassador to the United Nations.
But despite his country’s vote in favor of the resolution, Russian ambassador Vassily Nebenzia criticized the text, saying it did not go far enough in blaming the West.
“We deeply regret and are disappointed that the move and a more ambitious approach and texts were blocked by Western allies,” he added.
“If you are so honest, why don’t you return the assets you stole from the country without any preconditions,” he said, referring to the $7 billion in Afghan central bank assets seized by the United States after the Taliban took over the country. referred to. In 2021.
In September, the United States announced the creation of a fund based in Switzerland to manage half the money.
The United Nations announced on 4 April that the Taliban had banned Afghan women from working for UN offices across the country, a ban that had previously spared NGOs.
The move sparked outrage from the West and the UN called for a review of the world body’s Afghanistan operations, which is due to run until May 5.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is holding a meeting with envoys from various countries in Doha next week to “reinvigorate international engagement around common objectives to move forward on the situation in Afghanistan in a sustainable manner”. “
Since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, it has reverted to its hardline interpretation of Islam, which marked its first period in power from 1996 to 2001.
The many restrictions placed on Afghan women include barring them from higher education and many government jobs.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)