After their prohibition on Afghan women working for the UN, the Taliban’s top spokesperson said on Wednesday that there are no barriers preventing the UN from operating in Afghanistan.
This Monday, the Taliban leaders of the nation pushed their restrictions on women one step further by declaring that female Afghan personnel working for the UN mission are no longer allowed to report for work.
The nation’s intelligence service, which answers to the Taliban’s top brass in Kandahar, is zealously enforcing the restriction.
The UN claims the judgement is illegal and a severe breach of women’s rights and that it cannot be accepted.
It has told both its male and female national personnel to remain at home, claiming that women are essential for getting life-saving relief to millions of Afghans.
The head of the Taliban-led government’s press office and a member of the supreme leader’s inner circle, Zabihullah Mujahid, disputed that the government was to responsible for Afghanistan’s many issues.
The Taliban’s demands for the international community were outlined by Mujahid, who also argued that the decision to exclude Afghan women from working for the UN was a matter of domestic policy and should be accepted by all parties.
“This judgement does not imply that there is discrimination taking place here or that the UN’s operations are being impeded. Instead, we are dedicated to upholding every citizen’s rights while also taking into consideration their cultural and religious preferences.
“Given the emergency situation in Afghanistan, it is imperative that the United Nations’ member nations find a quick solution to the issue of frozen Afghan assets, banking, travel bans, and other limitations so that Afghanistan may advance in its economy, politics, and security. Afghans are capable of standing on their own two feet.
With the Taliban takeover and the subsequent economic collapse, aid organisations have been giving food, education, and health care assistance to Afghans. Nevertheless, distribution has been significantly hampered by a Taliban decree prohibiting women from working for NGOs and, as of late, the UN.
The previous administration of President Ashraf Ghani now holds the country’s seat at the UN, and no nation has recognised the Taliban as Afghanistan’s legitimate government.