The international world would find it “nearly impossible” to recognize the Taliban government as long as restrictions on women and girls remain in place in Afghanistan, according to the United Nations envoy to the country and head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).
On Wednesday, Roza Otunbayeva told the UN Security Council that the Taliban had demanded to be recognized by the UN and its member nations, “but they also act against the key values expressed in the United Nations Charter.”
“In my regular discussions with the de facto authorities, I am blunt about the obstacles they have created for themselves by the decrees and restrictions they have enacted, in particular against women and girls,” Otunbayeva told the Security Council.
“We have conveyed to them that as long as these decrees are in place, it is nearly impossible that their government will be recognised by members of the international community,” Otunbayeva said.
Afghanistan’s Taliban government is not officially recognised by any foreign country or international organisation since seizing power in August 2021 as United States and NATO forces were in the final weeks of withdrawing from the country after two decades of war.
The Taliban initially promised a more moderate rule than their predecessors from 1996 to 2001, but have now begun to impose restrictions on women and girls, including prohibiting women from most jobs and public venues such as parks, baths, and gyms. Girls are likewise barred from continuing their education past the sixth grade.
The Taliban has also reinstated their rigorous interpretation of Islamic law, which includes public executions.
Otunbayeva said the Taliban had given her no explanation for the ban, “and no assurances that it will be lifted”, according to the UN News site.
“It is also clear that these decrees are highly unpopular among the Afghan population. They cost the Taliban both domestic and international legitimacy while inflicting suffering on half of their population and damaging the economy,” Otunbayeva said, according to UN News.
