Afghanistan can advance rights – or spiral deeper into failure, Türk says

Mr Vice-President,
Distinguished panellists,
Excellencies,
Colleagues and friends,

It has been three years since the current de facto authorities took control of Afghanistan: three years of drastically declining respect for the rights of the people of the country, against a backdrop of decades of suffering due to armed conflict. 

The report before you examines in particular the period from September 2023 to July this year, with recommendations and options for accountability for the human rights violations and abuses that have taken place over decades. It focuses on equality and the rights of women and girls; the humanitarian crisis and its impact on economic, social and cultural rights; restrictions on media freedoms and the civic space; executions, corporal punishment and ill-treatment of detainees; the targeting of former officials and human rights defenders, opposition groups and perceived critics of the authorities; and conflict-related harm, which has notably impacted the Hazara community. Activities by the de facto "Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice", and the impact on Afghans expelled from neighbouring countries, are also examined.

While the report does not include last month's promulgation of new so-called "morality" laws, I want to make clear my abhorrence of these latest measures, which include limiting the transportation of women who seek to travel without a male so-called "guardian"; requiring women’s voices to be muted in public; forbidding even eye contact between women and men who are not related; and imposing mandatory covering for women from head to toe, including their faces.

Previous measures include forbidding girls from attending secondary school, and women from attending university; denying women's rights to freedom of peaceful assembly, opinion, expression and freedom of movement; and severely curtailing women's rights to seek employment. Women who have sought to protest such laws or express any different opinion or form of dissent have faced harsh punishments.

I shudder to think what is next for the women and girls of Afghanistan.

This repressive control over half the population in the country is unparalleled in today’s world. It is a fundamental rupture of the social contract. It's outrageous and amounts to systematic gender persecution. It will also jeopardise the country's future, by massively stifling its development. This is propelling Afghanistan further down a path of isolation, pain and hardship.

Today, the vast majority of the population is trapped in poverty and deprived of essential rights, including the right to adequate food. The situation for children is especially devastating and deeply distressing, with 12.4 million children in desperate need. Overall, an estimated 23.7 million people will be in need of humanitarian assistance this year, with poverty and the impacts of repression and violence exacerbated by natural disasters and climate change. But a massive shortfall in funding is sharply undercutting the response by the UN and its partners.

Excellencies,

A key factor underlying these and other violations is the persistent lack of accountability in Afghanistan, over decades, for human rights violations and abuses committed by multiple actors. As the report notes, generations of Afghans, under successive administrations, have been denied truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence for the suffering that has been inflicted on them.

Accountability is a powerful deterrent to future violations. Given the pressing need for action to prevent the recurrence of human rights violations and abuses, and to redress the rapid decline of rights and freedoms across the country, I believe that a comprehensive approach to accountability is needed – spanning both national and international action.

The de facto authorities cannot continue on this path. They must take decisive steps to comply with human rights law. These are obligations of the State: they are non-negotiable and they do not depend on the vagaries of who exercises control over territory and people. Measures also need to be introduced to protect the victims of human rights violations and abuses, irrespective of when or by whom they were committed; and to hold perpetrators to proper account, consistent with international standards.

I also encourage the de facto authorities to permit resumption of the operation of a credible and independent national human rights institution.

I urge all States that have been involved in previous armed conflict in Afghanistan to ensure investigation and prosecution of violations committed by their personnel. And I welcome credible steps in this direction by some States.

The ongoing investigation by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, to the full extent of available jurisdiction, is crucially important, and I call on all States to cooperate fully with that process. I also note the scope under international law for third States, applying accepted principles of extraterritorial and universal jurisdiction, to investigate and prosecute serious breaches of international law, where appropriate, to secure due accountability.

Mr Vice President,

Human rights are not only a legal requirement: they are a pre-requisite for peace, security, social cohesion and development.

Afghanistan has enormous development potential. It can achieve prosperity, security and justice for all. It can contribute productively to the international community. It can deliver on the hopes and rights of its people.

Or it can spiral further into the abyss of state failure, with a broken economy and a society that is marred by severe violations, across the entire spectrum of human rights.

As experience has confirmed many times, respect for human rights unlocks a wealth of benefits for all societies – from development that is sustainable, to peace and social harmony that can endure.

It is essential that Afghanistan uphold the equality of women and men – and indeed, the rights of all people.

My Office will continue to engage with the de facto authorities to urge that they reverse current policies and take meaningful steps to fulfil human rights.

Thank you