A new UN report has outlined how the Afghan Taliban brutally restrict women's rights to work, education and freedom of movement.
The report, published by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), covers the period from October to December 2023 and shows that officials from the Ministry of Virtue Promotion and Prevention of Vice enforced strict compliance with hijab and other dress codes. It states that They will visit public places, offices and educational institutions, as well as set up checkpoints to monitor residents in conditions of extreme fear.
According to a UN press release, Roza Otunbayeva, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and Director of UNAMA, said: “Coercive measures that involve physical violence are particularly humiliating and dangerous for women and girls in Afghanistan. “Detention brings great stigma to Afghans.” Women are at even greater risk and it also destroys public trust. ”
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A Taliban fighter stands guard as people receive food distributed by Saudi humanitarian aid organizations in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, April 25, 2022. A senior official from the International Committee of the Red Cross said Afghans would struggle for their lives. The country is bracing for a second winter under Taliban rule and faces a plummeting humanitarian situation. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Norouzi, File) (AP Photo/Ebrahim Norouzi, File)
The Taliban's growing repression of women has concerned human rights groups, and the lack of response from the international community has left many Afghans feeling unheard.
“I think the international community is increasingly turning a blind eye and refusing to acknowledge the Taliban's abuses,” Heather Barr, women's rights associate director at Human Rights Watch, told Fox News Digital.
“There seems to be near complete consensus in the international community that the Taliban's abuse of women and girls is unacceptable, but somehow this has not translated into anything like a coherent and urgent strategy to respond. ” Barr added.
The report is filled with chilling examples of how the morality police have instilled fear across the country by instilling strict dress codes and other morality laws imposed after the Taliban takeover in August 2021. ing.
A Taliban fighter stands guard as a woman passes by in Kabul, Afghanistan, on December 26, 2022. (AP)
The Taliban prohibits women from working or accessing public services if they are unmarried or do not have a mahram or male guardian. The report details three female health workers who were detained for attempting to work without a male guardian. Women without male guardians were unable to go to health facilities for treatment. Ministry officials regularly visit hospitals and other public places to enforce the law.
The report states that in early December, a deputy ministry official told women working in medical facilities that it was inappropriate for unmarried women to work and that they needed to get married or risk losing their jobs. He points out that he was warned.
The Taliban are pursuing a two-pronged war.
Taliban officials are also enforcing the April 2022 Hijab Ordinance, arresting and detaining women around Kabul and other cities on suspicion of violating the official uniform requirement. Women are usually released after a few hours after their male relatives sign a decree promising their female relatives to abide by the law.
“One of the things that has been very alarming to us in recent weeks is the spate of arrests of women and girls accused by the Taliban of wearing a 'bad hijab,'” Barr said.
Barr believes that the Taliban's repression continues to intensify with no end in sight, and that the lives of Afghan women and girls are becoming more difficult day by day.
Afghan women stand outside an amusement park in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, November 10, 2022. The Taliban have banned women from gyms and parks in Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Norouzi) (AP Photo/Ebrahim Norouzi)
Some pro-democracy advocates in Afghanistan have called for increased U.S. and international support for the National Resistance Front (NRF), the main rebel group against the Taliban. So far, calls for further involvement have fallen on deaf ears.
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“I am perplexed by the lack of international support for Afghan women in the National Resistance Front,” says the Afghan-American women's rights activist who is pressuring policymakers to support the NRF's efforts. Jazz Cannon, an advocate with the veterans group Vets4NRF, told Fox News. Digital.
“We know the Taliban won't give Afghan women our rights, and neither will President Biden. But we know who will give them, and that's Ahmad Massoud and the NRF. They are right at this moment. are also fighting for our rights,” Cannon added.
National Resistance Front rebels have launched an offensive against the Taliban in the Panjshir Valley. (National Resistance Front)
The NRF, led by Ahmad Massoud, remains the most formidable Afghan resistance force fighting the Taliban and has vowed to continue fighting despite impossible odds.
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“It is imperative that the international community and the Afghan people come together to support the Afghan National Resistance Front and support the vital struggle to liberate our country from Taliban terror and oppression and prevent Afghanistan from falling into ruin.” “, Ali said. Maisam Nazari, NRF's director of external affairs, told FOX News Digital.
