Afghanistan Peace CampaignThe US State Department reiterated that without women’s participation in society and the economy, the “Taliban” will not be recognized.
Speaking at a press conference, the US Department of State’s deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said that equal rights for women and girls in Afghanistan are a fundamental principle of Washington’s policy towards Kabul.
Patel said: “Equal rights for Afghan women and girls continues to be a key tenant of our Afghanistan policy and we continue to reiterate regularly through relevant channels with the Taliban that their self-stated goal of legitimacy can only be achieved –and likely of being impossible to achieve if half of the population is being left out of participating in its society, participating in its economy, and it continues to be a key factor of our approach to Afghanistan policy and it’s something that we’ll continue to work towards.”
Meanwhile, some political analysts and university scholars emphasized the need for full, equal, and meaningful participation of women and girls in the country and said that if this situation continues, Afghanistan will face a crisis.
“We have no higher right than the right to education, the right to work, and individual freedom, which the Islamic Emirate has not yet acted upon and must act on,” said Zakiullah Mohammadi, a university scholar.
“As long as the female population of Afghanistan does not have access to their rights, such as the right to education and work, which are very fitting, we cannot move towards progress,” said Naser Shafiq, a political analyst.
The Islamic Emirate has recently not commented on this matter; however, it has always emphasized that women’s rights in Afghanistan are protected within the framework of Islamic laws.