Human Rights Council Opens Fifty-Third Session, Hears Presentation of the Annual Report of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and Holds Dialogue on the Human Rights of Women and Girls in Afghanistan

The Human Rights Council this morning opened its fifty-third regular session, hearing the presentation of the annual report of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, and holding an enhanced interactive dialogue on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, with a focus on the rights of women and girls.

Volker Türk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, presenting his global update, said engaging with a stable field presence of his Office was a mark of States that were constructively cooperating to advance human rights. He provided an overview of the situation of human rights in the 95 States or territories that accommodated human rights field presences. He concluded by saying that the budget of the Office needed to be doubled and greater political support was needed.

Opening the enhanced interactive dialogue on Afghanistan, Nada Al-Nashif, United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the backlash against women and girls’ rights since the Taliban took power in 2021 had been profound and all-encompassing. Edict after edict had been issued, erasing women and girls from public life and preventing them from accessing and enjoying their fundamental rights and freedoms. She expressed the Office of the High Commissioner’s deep concerns about the discriminatory and restrictive environment and the climate of fear in which women and girls lived in Afghanistan. Extreme discrimination and violence against women and girls should not be accepted, let alone normalised, anywhere, Ms. Al-Nashif said.

Dorothy Estrada-Tanck, Chair of the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls, said oppression, poverty and uncertainty were placing extreme pressures on women and their families in Afghanistan. Declining mental health was a serious concern of every woman. Gender-related killings were occurring in women’s and girls’ own homes, in public spaces and in detention facilities. Women and girls had no recourse or legal protection, while discrimination and violence were being legitimised by the de facto authorities. Blatant forms of gender-based discrimination were perpetrated with total impunity, without any regard for women’s rights, safety or autonomy.

Richard Bennett, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, said it was the Council’s responsibility to do everything in its power to restore, protect and promote the rights and freedoms of women and girls in Afghanistan. Mr. Bennet said the human rights situation for women and girls had only worsened, and there had been no improvements for others in the population who were marginalised, associated with the former Islamic Republic, or who resisted the Taliban’s ideology. He said the international community needed to do all that it could to tackle and reverse the severe deprivation of fundamental rights of women and girls in Afghanistan.

Nasir Ahmad Andisha, Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said the Taliban authorities were openly challenging the very fundamentals of the international normative system which was built over the past 75 years. International efforts to prevent atrocities fell way short of addressing the challenges and expectations. He called for the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on Afghanistan to be strengthened, encompassing an investigative mechanism to monitor and regularly report, investigate and collect evidence of human rights violations and abuses.

Madina Mahboobi, human rights defender, said basic rights seemed like a distant dream for millions of women and girls in Afghanistan today. The sudden and unexpected fall of Kabul in August 2021 had caused unseen chaos across Afghanistan. The situation was catastrophic, a hell on earth. Economic and social conditions could not be revived without the active participation and contribution of women in society.

Shaharzad Akbar, Executive Director of Rawadari, said the Taliban had turned Afghanistan to a mass graveyard of Afghan women’s and girls’ ambitions, dreams and potential. The international community was either passively watching this massive graveyard and issuing some statements, or in some cases actively assisting or complying with this mass burial. Member States needed to refrain from any interactions that further normalised Taliban’s gender apartheid and created an impression of de facto recognition.

In the discussion, some speakers expressed alarm about the increasingly dire human rights situation of women and girls in Afghanistan, following nearly two years of Taliban rule. Women were barred from higher education, the justice system, and from working for international organizations and non-governmental organizations. The continuing ban on girls in education above grade six meant over one million girls were at increased risk of domestic violence and exploitation, including child labour and child marriage. Speakers said the use of cruel, inhuman and degrading punishments, like stoning, flogging and burying under a wall, was deeply concerning, and violated Afghanistan’s obligations under international law. Speakers called on the international community to redouble its efforts to support and empower the Afghan people.

Speaking in the debate on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan were Germany, Australia, European Union, Pakistan on behalf of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Finland on behalf of a group of countries, Belgium on behalf of a group of countries, European Union on behalf of a group of countries, Kyrgyzstan on behalf of a group of countries, United Nations Women, Liechtenstein, Qatar, Republic of Korea, International Development Law Organization, Israel, Luxembourg, Japan, Netherlands, Czechia, Slovenia, Ecuador, United States, France, Spain, United Nations Children's Fund, Costa Rica, United Kingdom, Canada, Venezuela, Maldives, Malaysia, South Africa, Malta, New Zealand, Ireland, Pakistan, Türkiye, Namibia, Kazakhstan, India, Austria, China, Greece, Malawi, Slovakia, Switzerland, Albania, Argentina, Romania, Montenegro, Poland, Ukraine, Cyprus, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Iran, Indonesia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.

Also speaking were Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development, Human Rights Law Centre, CIVICUS - World Alliance for Citizen Participation, Front Line, International Foundation for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, Human Rights Watch, Save the Children International, World Organization against Torture, and Amnesty International on behalf of the International Commission of Jurists and Centre for Global Nonkilling.

The webcast of the Human Rights Council meetings can be found here. All meeting summaries can be found here. Documents and reports related to the Human Rights Council’s fifty-third regular session can be found here.

The Council will next meet this afternoon at 3 p.m. to conclude the enhanced interactive dialogue on the human rights of women and girls in Afghanistan. It will then hold an enhanced interactive dialogue on the High Commissioner’s report on Sudan, with the assistance of the designated expert, followed by an interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea.

Opening Remarks by the President of the Human Rights Council

VÁCLAV BÁLEK, President of the Human Rights Council, opening the fifty-third session of the Council, welcomed 13 delegates who were present due to support from the Voluntary Technical Assistance Trust Fund that supported the participation of least developed countries and small island developing States in the work of the Council, and donor countries. The Presided noted that during its most recent meeting on 13 June, the Bureau acknowledged that the General Assembly still had not made a decision on the representation of Myanmar. Therefore, Myanmar would not be represented in the Council’s fifty-third session. The Bureau agreed to propose to the Council that the two interactive dialogues on Myanmar that were scheduled to take place during the session proceed as scheduled, without the participation of the concerned country. This proposal was accepted by the Council. The Council also approved the draft programme of work.

The President said that a constructive, safe and respectful atmosphere was essential for the Council’s sessions. Disagreement with mandate holders and their reports could always be expressed, but it was unacceptable that they were insulted or personally attacked or threatened when discharging their mandates. Along the same lines, the President said he would follow up on all reported allegations of acts of reprisal and intimidation committed against individuals or groups who had cooperated with the Council, its mechanisms and procedures. There was a focal point for accessibility within the Secretariat. The United Nations, including this Council, had zero tolerance for any form of harassment, including sexual harassment.

Presentation of Annual Report by the High Commissioner for Human Rights

VOLKER TÜRK, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, presenting his global update, said engaging with a stable field presence of his Office was a mark of States that were constructively cooperating to advance human rights. Ninety-five States or territories accommodated human rights field presences. In Colombia, the presence of the Office was extended to 2023 and Colombia recently renewed country visits by the Council's Special Procedures and engaged constructively with treaty bodies. In Honduras, the country office worked with the authorities and civil society on justice, legislative review, and land-related conflicts. However, Mr. Türk said he remained concerned about conflicts regarding access to land and attacks against human rights and environmental defenders. In Guatemala, the United Nations field presence assisted the authorities to address challenges regarding the rights of women, indigenous peoples, and people with disabilities, among others. Mr Türk was concerned about attacks against members of the judiciary, human rights defenders and journalists. Four months ago, in the context of widespread political protests, the Office formalised a two-year workplan in Peru, focusing on accountability and the independence of key institutions. The Office was engaged in discussions with Bolivia to continue monitoring important human rights issues, following the Government’s decision to conclude the technical mission deployed since 2019.

Uganda had chosen not to renew the mandate of the Country Office which was regretful. In Kenya, the team continued to work with security agencies to support policing that was compliant with human rights, notably during demonstrations. In Mauritania, the Office’s support to the authorities focused on ending discrimination, including the persistent issue of slavery; the rights of women and girls; and strengthening the rule of law. Regarding Mali's request for the withdrawal of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali, the Office remained committed to continuing work in Mali in cooperation with the transitional authorities and civil society. Cambodia had been the longest field engagement, and the Office had supported many legal and institutional reforms, but Mr. Türk was alarmed by the shrinking of civic and democratic space in the lead-up to national elections in July.

In Sri Lanka, although the Government had regrettably rejected aspects of the Council's resolutions related to accountability, it continued to engage with the Office on the ground. In the Philippines, a joint programme that addressed concerns identified by the Council had seen strong engagement by the Government, civil society, and the national Commission on Human Rights. In the Pacific, the Regional Office was helping to support Fiji and Tuvalu in the development of a strong regional framework on climate change mobility. With the help of the Office, Mongolia had adopted Asia’s first dedicated human rights defenders’ law, established a national preventive mechanism on torture, and adopted an action plan on business and human rights.

In countries in the Asia-Pacific region, such as Maldives and Timor-Leste, the Office had made contributions in accompanying transitions away from conflict, or towards democracy. The Office was working with the Government of Nepal on the proposed revision of transitional justice legislation. In Ukraine, the Human Rights Monitoring Mission had unimpeded access across all territory under Government control, including to places of detention for civilians and prisoners of war. The Russian Federation was urged to cooperate with all the international human rights bodies to address the serious human rights issues in the country and to cooperate with the Council's Commission of Inquiry; and to allow access to Ukrainian territory occupied by the Russian Federation, and to the Russian Federation itself.

The Office of the High Commissioner had for years sought access to areas under the effective control of de facto authorities in the South Caucasus region. Mr. Türk encouraged Armenia and Azerbaijan to accelerate peace efforts anchored in human rights. He was worried about the deteriorating human rights situation in Afghanistan, where the Taliban de facto authorities had dismantled fundamental principles of human rights, particularly for women and girls. However, some openings for engagement had been possible. Iran continued to engage formally with the Office. However, Mr. Türk said he was concerned about the massive recent increase in executions, as well as continuing discrimination against women.

Mr. Türk urged States to step up their implementation efforts as an expression of their genuine cooperation with the Universal Periodic Review. The Council also established 59 Special Procedures mandates and 14 investigative mandates. On average, Special Procedures mandate holders conducted 60 to 80 country visits per year, and 129 States had extended a standing invitation. However, 19 countries had not received any visits in the past five years, despite requests. It was concerning that several mandate holders had been subjected to personal abuse and threats.

Mr. Türk acknowledged the Government’s agreement to allow the Council’s Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan to base its Secretariat in the country. However, it was regrettable that violent incidents against civilians had increased. Syria had not engaged with the Council's Commission of Inquiry, or the International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism, and had received only three visits by Special Procedures in the past eight years. Eritrea had rejected engagement with the Special Rapporteur on Eritrea, as well as the preceding Commission of Inquiry and the joint Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights-Ethiopian Human Rights Commission investigation.

Ethiopia had cooperated with the Office. However, the State did not engage with the International Commission of Human Rights Experts established by the Council. The military regime in Myanmar had refused to cooperate with the Council's Fact-Finding Mission, the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar, and the Special Rapporteur, and the Office had not had access to the country since 2019. Similarly, the Office had had no access to Nicaragua since 2018, and the Group of Human Rights Experts set up last year had received no cooperation from the Government, while authorities continued to undermine the human rights of the Nicaraguan people. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea had also isolated itself from many possibilities for engagement with the United Nations human rights system.

A recent visit by the Special Rapporteur on Migrants was limited to the situation at the border with Poland. Belarus refused to engage with the Office’s human rights examination mandated by the Council; with the Special Rapporteur on Belarus; or with Special Procedures mandates on civil and political rights. Since 2016, Burundi had not granted access to, or cooperated with, the Council's Commission of Inquiry or the Special Procedures, including the country mandate, and it had demanded the closure of the Office’s field presence in 2019. Mr. Türk was worried by the deteriorating situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including excessive use of force and unlawful killings of Palestinians by the Israeli Security Forces, and apparent extrajudicial executions.

In the past year, China had cooperated with several treaty bodies, leading to important guidance for follow-up. Unlike many more wealthy States, Senegal had ratified all core human rights treaties, and was up to date with all reporting obligations. Belize had also ratified all core treaties, and made significant advances in its reporting. Samoa had ratified six of the treaties, with discussions underway on a seventh, and had a well-functioning follow-up mechanism.

The treaty body system faced a significant lack of cooperation from States parties. Only 37 States were up to date with all their reporting requirements to the treaty bodies, and a total of 601 reports by States were overdue. Last year the Sub-Committee on the Prevention of Torture was forced to suspend its visit to Australia, due to failure to cooperate by officials at the regional level. As of 30 April, there were 385 State party reports awaiting consideration, and over 1,800 complainants were waiting for a decision about their cases.

The United States was encouraged to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child, along with the five other human rights treaties it had not yet ratified. The Office had grown from just two to 101 field presences in the past 30 years, in 95 countries, and was looking to scale up engagement in Brazil, Central Asia, Ecuador, Kenya, Mozambique and the United States, as well as the Caribbean region. Mr. Türk believed it was important to establish a presence for the first time in China and India. The budget of the Office needed to be doubled and greater political support was needed. There needed to be a human rights office in each country to provide support and learnings.

Enhanced Interactive Dialogue on the Situation of Human Rights in Afghanistan

Report

The Council has before it the Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan and the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls on the situation of human rights of women and girls in Afghanistan (A/HRC/53/21).

Opening Statement by the Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights

NADA AL-NASHIF, United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that the dialogue would focus on women and girls inside Afghanistan, in particular the impact of Taliban policies on their enjoyment of fundamental freedoms and rights, including the rights to education, work, freedom of movement, freedom of opinion and expression, and healthcare. Women also faced challenges in accessing remedies, including access to services for survivors of gender-based violence and access to justice, which was particularly impeded by the absence of female personnel in the justice system.

The backlash against women and girls’ rights since the Taliban took power in 2021 had been profound and all-encompassing. Every aspect of women’s and girls’ lives had been restricted. They were discriminated against in every way. Edict after edict had been issued, erasing women and girls from public life and preventing them from accessing and enjoying their fundamental rights and freedoms. Afghanistan was the only country in the world where girls were denied education beyond primary level. Afghanistan was also the only country in the world that banned women from working for international organizations, including the United Nations, as well as outside the home in many sectors. The removal of women from public office further impacted the ability of women and girls to be seen and heard and to participate in decision making processes that directly impacted their lives. The excessive and unjustifiable limitations on movement, including the requirement of a maharam or male chaperone, together with the restrictions on education and employment, left women and girls with limited, and at times, no ability to do things outside of their homes.

The Office of the High Commissioner welcomed the joint report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation against women and girls and the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls, which outlined the systemic nature of the discrimination women and girls were facing today in Afghanistan. The Office was deeply concerned by the discriminatory and restrictive environment and the climate of fear in which women and girls lived in Afghanistan. Extreme discrimination and violence against women and girls should not be accepted, let alone normalised, anywhere. Ms. Al-Nashif expressed hope that the dialogue would show that the international community stood with women and girls in Afghanistan and was committed to find ways to influence the de facto authorities to roll back their deeply regressive policies and uphold the full and equal enjoyment of all human rights by all women, men, girls and boys in Afghanistan.

Statements by the Presenters

DOROTHY ESTRADA-TANCK, Chair of the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls, said last September, the Council had heard from Afghan women directly on how they were being deprived of their rights. Regrettably, the situation not only continued, but the measures taken to remove women and girls from public life and deny them their human rights, notably education, work and freedom of movement, had intensified. Since taking power in August 2021, the de facto authorities had relentlessly issued edict after edict, which restricted the rights of women and girls, including their rights to education, work, health, access to justice and freedom of movement, attire and behaviour. Women were wholly excluded from participation in political and public life, banned from education beyond primary level, and from working in non-governmental organizations, and most sectors, and in the offices of international organizations, including the United Nations. They were banned from accessing public baths, parks, and gyms. The imposed extreme modesty rules of “proper” hijab, and mandatory male guardian policy, together with these restrictions, created an environment in which it was difficult for women and girls to leave their homes.

The oppressive context, poverty and uncertainty in the future were placing extreme pressures on women and their families, exacerbating domestic violence, forced and child marriage, sale of children, child labour, trafficking and unsafe migration. Declining mental health was a serious concern of every woman spoken to, and in a survey utilised in the report. In August 2021, the Taliban suspended the Constitution and all domestic legislation, abolished institutions and mechanisms that promoted gender equality, and provided protection against gender-based violence. Gender-related killings were occurring in women and girls’ own homes, in public spaces and in detention facilities. Women and girls had no recourse or legal protection, while discrimination and violence were being legitimised by the de facto authorities. Women lawyers, who provided advice clandestinely, described the difficulties women faced fleeing family violence, including when the Taliban courts denied women their right to seek a divorce and instructed them to go home. These blatant forms of gender-based discrimination were perpetrated with total impunity, without any regard for women’s rights, safety or autonomy.

RICHARD BENNETT, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, said it was the Council’s responsibility to do everything in its power to restore, protect and promote the rights and freedoms of women and girls in Afghanistan. Mr. Bennet said he had travelled to Afghanistan six weeks ago and met with Afghan key stakeholders. He was unable to report improvements in the human rights situation for women and girls, whose predicament had only worsened, or for others in the population who were marginalised, associated with the former Islamic Republic, or who resisted the Taliban’s ideology. Mr. Bennet had received information from over 2,000 women, who constantly said that they sought urgent action to get women and girls back into education at all levels and to be able to pursue their professions. The de facto authorities needed to comply with their international human rights obligations, rescind all the discriminatory edicts, and restore the rule of law, including legal protections for women, especially those focussed on ending violence against women and girls and prosecuting perpetrators.

Mr. Bennett expressed deep concern that serious deprivations of women’s and girls’ fundamental human rights and the harsh enforcement by the de facto authorities of their restrictive measures may constitute the crime against humanity of gender persecution. His report included a set of recommendations for States, including to ensure women and girls were included as equal partners, in all deliberations and decision forums relating to Afghanistan; continue to support access to education for girls and to call for the immediate reopening of schools and universities with curricula that meet international standards; support women-led organizations working on human rights and gender equality in Afghanistan; protect and support Afghan women and girls seeking refuge inside and outside Afghanistan; take measures to ensure that gender persecution was fully investigated and perpetrators were brought to justice; and mandate a report on gender apartheid with a view to both recognising it and ending it. Mr. Bennet said everyone needed to do all that they could to tackle and reverse the severe deprivation of fundamental rights of women and girls in Afghanistan.

NASIR AHMAD ANDISHA, Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said that at the local level, with heavy-handed tactics the Taliban violently suppressed Afghanistan’s women protesters. At the global level, the latest edict banning women from working in the United Nations and non-governmental organizations, made it the first regime to ban women from working for the Organization just because they were women. The Taliban openly challenged the very fundamentals of the international normative system which was built over the past 75 years. Afghan women had attained the right to education and suffrage in the early twentieth century. In the last two decades, Afghan women had achieved greater access to education, employment, and participation in social, political and economic affairs of the state and society. Over 3 million girls had been going to school and universities. Women had been serving as ministers, judges, members of the parliament, senior civil servants and governors. Afghanistan’s exhausted civil society continued to improvise and resist. On a rare positive note, the struggle for the protection of fundamental rights under immense pressure had moulded the Afghan women groups into a strong, resilient and historically unique women solidarity movement.

At the international level, despite competing demands, the efforts for the protection of human rights, prevention of further atrocities, and establishment of an accountability mechanism were ongoing. The actions, however, fell way short of addressing the challenges and expectations. The challenges were indeed unprecedented; discussions and solutions needed to move beyond routine and rhetoric. Going forward, it was recommended that the mandate of Special Rapporteur on Afghanistan be strengthened, encompassing an investigative mechanism to monitor and regularly report, investigate and collect evidence of human rights violations and abuses. The situation of human rights in Afghanistan should be highlighted. Efforts toward the establishment of an inclusive and representative government in Afghanistan should be redoubled.

MADINA MAHBOOBI, human rights defender, said women and girls in Afghanistan were facing unprecedented uncertainty and unseen limitations on their fundamental rights and freedoms. Basic rights seemed like a distant dream for millions of women and girls in Afghanistan today. The sudden and unexpected fall of Kabul in August 2021 had caused unseen chaos across Afghanistan. Ms. Mahboobi said she chose to stay in the country to make a difference and did not give up hope. Human rights violations were widespread and systemic before the takeover, but after the takeover, the situation had worsened, pushing Afghanistan to the verge of political and economic collapse. The situation was catastrophic; a hell on earth. The recent ban on women working for non-governmental organizations and the United Nations posed serious risk to the lives of millions of women and children. Economic and social conditions could not be revived without the active participation and contribution of women in society.

Ms. Mahboobi said she had held a series of consultations recently in which Afghans, both men and women, shared key demands. These included access to education and employment for women and girls; regular consultation and engagement between the international community and Afghan men and women to ensure the feasibility and responsiveness of interventions for Afghanistan; the protection of human rights defenders, journalists, defence lawyers and other activists and the promotion of freedom of expression, assembly, movement and access to justice; continued funding for humanitarian assistance; and long-term initiatives that promoted gradual economic and social sustainability. Stability and progress in Afghanistan would have a broader impact in the region and beyond, just as violence and instability did. It was time for decisive action. Ms. Mahboobi urged the international community to explore every possible avenue to engage with the de facto authorities and address the crisis that Afghans were grappling with.

SHAHARZAD AKBAR, Executive Director of Rawadari, said she was devastated to be addressing the Council when girls in Afghanistan could not go to school and women could not go to work. It should be possible for Afghan women and men to pursue their rights without fear, harassment and intimidation. In Afghanistan, there was a regular stream of further restrictions on the lives and rights of women. There were ongoing enforced disappearances and illegal detentions, and reports of torture, extrajudicial killings and inhumane punishments. The joint report before the Council offered a comprehensive overview of the widespread and systematic discrimination facing women and girls in Afghanistan. Afghan women were being persecuted for their gender and intimidated and punished for exercising their fundamental rights. The Taliban had turned Afghanistan to a mass graveyard of Afghan women’s and girls’ ambitions, dreams and potential. The international community was either passively watching this massive graveyard and at utmost issuing some statements, or in some cases, actively assisting or complying with this mass burial.

Some of the demands that Afghan women had raised to the Council included that Member States refrain from any interactions that further normalised the Taliban’s gender apartheid and created an impression of de facto recognition. The Council should also renew the mandate of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan in the upcoming session in October and provide for additional resources as needed. The Council should establish an independent international accountability mechanism for Afghanistan to respond to the severity of the situation. As recommended in the joint report, the Council should mandate a report on gender apartheid as an institutionalised system of discrimination, segregation, humiliation and exclusion of women and girls. Additionally, the Council should support the inclusion of gender apartheid in the draft Convention on Crimes against Humanity. The gender persecution against women and girls should be fully investigated to ensure accountability for perpetrators and tackle the rampant impunity for these crimes against humanity committed by the Taliban.

Discussion

In the discussion, many speakers commended the valuable work of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan and appreciated his access to the country. The investigative actions of the International Commission of Inquiry, and United Nations mechanisms were welcomed. Many expressed alarm at the increasingly dire human rights situation of women and girls in Afghanistan, following nearly two years of Taliban rule. The Taliban had dismantled the legal and institutional framework and was ruling through extreme forms of misogyny and unparalleled institutionalised gender-based discrimination. The Taliban was eradicating women and girls from public life, taking away their future, and with them the future of the whole country.

Women were barred from higher education, the justice system, and from working for international organizations and non-governmental organizations. The continuing ban on girls in education above grade six meant over 1 million girls were at increased risk of domestic violence and exploitation, including child labour and child marriage. It had been more than 600 days since schools for girls had been shut down in Afghanistan, amounting to nearly two years of lost schooling. Banning women from working for the United Nations, and national and international non-governmental organizations, was another alarming violation of Afghan women’s rights. These restrictions also undermined humanitarian principles, and severely impacted the delivery of life-saving assistance and basic services to those most in need. The systematic crackdown on women’s and girls’ rights damaged the entire Afghan society, including for boys and men.

Many speakers condemned the de facto authorities’ systematic discrimination against women and girls, which they said was evidence of gender persecution. The use of cruel, inhuman and degrading punishments, like stoning, flogging and burying under a wall, was deeply concerning, and violated Afghanistan’s obligations under international law. Many condemned the excessive and arbitrary restrictions on women’s and girls’ rights to freedom of movement and expression, of assembly and association, to education, work and health, and their right to participate in public life. Speakers denounced all forms of violence against women and girls, including sexual and gender-based violence. The Taliban authorities were called on to reopen the schools and let girls learn, and were urged to immediately revoke and reverse each decision which impacted the human rights of women and girls.

Some speakers maintained that Afghanistan had a duty to comply with various international human rights conventions, including the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, and conventions prohibiting torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment. The de facto authorities were called on to create and support an enabling environment to allow women and girls to have full, equal and meaningful participation in all spheres of society.

A number of speakers expressed their commitment to the people of Afghanistan, saying they would continue to oppose the Taliban’s abhorrent behaviour which dehumanised women and girls. There would be no return to business as usual until the Taliban changed their policies. One speaker noted that the international community needed a principled and unified reaction to send a clear signal to the Taliban, adding that one country had adopted targeted individual sanctions against Taliban ministers responsible for the violations of women’s rights, calling on others to do the same. Supporting human rights defenders and civil society space remained a priority. A victim-centred approach needed to be central to all accountability efforts, and Afghan women and girls should be meaningfully included in every stage of the process. The international community needed to redouble its efforts to support and empower the Afghan people. Some speakers reiterated the call for political dialogue in Afghanistan; it was important to continue cooperation and dialogue with all Afghan parties to maintain the gains which had been made. The protection of the rights and freedoms of women and girls was an integral part of a functioning society.

Questions were asked during the discussion, including how the international community could work cohesively to push back against the Taliban’s actions, which amounted to gender persecution? How could the establishment of an investigative mechanism by the Human Rights Council help collect and preserve evidence for serious crimes committed in Afghanistan? What additional actions could States take to ensure the protection of Afghan women and girls? How could States better support civil society in Afghanistan?