Taliban has imposed draconian restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression, association, assembly and movement for women and girls…reports Asian Lite News
Banning females from attaining education is a very serious issue for Afghanistan and the children of our country, former Afghan President Hamid Karzai said in a statement to a Canada-based news organisation, reported Khaama Press on Tuesday.
Calling girls’ education a ‘primary concern’ for the Afghan people, he added that education is the foundation of a country’s well-being, not only for Afghanistan but for every other society. He also expressed his concern about how young people are leaving the country at a tremendous rate since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, which in return has proved to be a massive loss for the country.
“Leaving people from the country, especially young, educated ones adding that this is a disaster and a massive loss for the country, as it is already suffering the lack of proper human capital,” Khaama Press quoted Karzai as saying.
The de facto authorities of Afghanistan, after seizing power in August 2021 have restricted women’s and girls’ freedom of movement, barred girls from attending secondary school, excluded women from the majority of the workforce, and forbade women from using public restrooms and gyms, reported the Afghan news agency.
Reverse decrees limiting women’s rights, UN urges Taliban.(Photo : Twitter.com/unwomenafghan)
Taliban has imposed draconian restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression, association, assembly and movement for women and girls.
The Taliban’s decision to ban female students above grade six from going to school has drawn widespread criticism at the national and international levels.
A number of international bodies, including the United Nations and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, expressed concern over restrictions on women’s and girls’ education and work. Since the Taliban took control, the basic rights of women and girls have been violated. (ANI)
Despite receiving humanitarian assistance, Afghanistan’s poverty, malnutrition, and unemployment rates are still at their peak in the country…reports Asian Lite News
Afghanistan has sought help from the United Nations (UN) amid rising concerns about drought in the war-stricken country, asking the UN to provide storage facilities for wheat, TOLOnews reported.
According to the Afghan news agency, the chamber of agriculture and livestock has called the UN to help the country regarding the same and said that it will in turn help Afghanistan boost its economy. Notably, Afghanistan’s economy turned upside down after the Taliban seized power in the country in August 2021. Since then, the nation is under a severe humanitarian crisis as the citizens continue to live miserable lives.
Quoting Mirwais Hajizada, the deputy head of Afghanistan’s chamber of agriculture and livestock as saying, TOLOnews reported, “The international community and other countries need to support Afghanistan under the current situation.”
Regarding the ongoing food crisis, a spokesperson for the Taliban-led agriculture ministry, Musbahuhddin Mustaeen said, “The ministry of agriculture has sent the plan to the cabinet to allocate the purchase budget of 100,000 tons of wheat for emergency situations.”
Despite receiving humanitarian assistance from across the globe, Afghanistan’s poverty, malnutrition, and unemployment rates are still at their peak in the country.
Highlighting Afghanistan’s situation, an analyst, Qutbuddin Yaqubi said, “Afghanistan needs six to eight million metric tons of wheat every year. Fortunately, nearly five million metric tons of it is supplied from domestic sources and the rest is supplied from foreign sources,” according to TOLOnews.
Continued discrimination against more than half the population of the country continues to affect the growth of Afghanistan as a country.
In August 2021, the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan and enacted laws severely curtailing the fundamental rights of the people, especially those of women and girls. (ANI)
People cross border into Pakistan at the border crossing point of Torkham between Pakistan and Afghanistan on Sept. 5, 2021. (Photo by Saeed Ahmad/Xinhua/IANS)
Since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, thousands of Afghans fled Afghanistan to the neighboring countries fearing persecution…reports Asian Lite News
Over 2,000 Afghan refugees had returned back to their nation from Iran and Pakistan, Taliban appointed Refugees and Repatriation department announced, according to Khaama Press.
Taking to Twitter, the Refugees, and Repatriation department, on Saturday, said that 1851 Afghan refugees from Iran and 331 others from Pakistan returned home through Spin Boldak and Islamqala crossing points. The department further revealed that out of 331 refugees, 70 are the ones who were released from Pakistani prisons following the mediation of the Afghan Embassy in Islamabad.
Earlier, Pakistani prison released 26 Afghan detainees, Khaama Press reported.
The detainees were brought from the prisons in Pakistan through the Spin Boldak border crossing.
Afghanistan’s department of Refugees and Repatriation, on Wednesday, said that women and children were imprisoned in Sindh because of the lack of residency documents. They were among the detainees who had been released.
Over the past few months, hundreds of undocumented Afghan nationals, including women and children, have been imprisoned in Pakistan’s prisons, including Karachi and Sindh, confronting fierce criticism by national and international entities, according to Khaama Press.
The organizations, particularly the Pakistan Human Rights Commission and the UN Refugee Agency, urged the government of Pakistan to treat Afghan citizens decently, reported Khaama Press.
137 Afghan citizens were released from Karachi prison earlier this month and returned home.
Moreover, it is reported that a considerable number of Afghan migrants return to Afghanistan from Iran and Pakistan over the past months. Some of these refugees chose to come back home willingly, others are forced to leave the host countries.
Since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, thousands of Afghans fled Afghanistan to the neighboring countries fearing persecution and death threats. Most of these people entered host countries through illegal channels, now facing serious problems including forceful deportation and imprisonment. (ANI)
Many radio, and TV stations and news agencies have closed their doors, with some estimates indicating that more than 6,000 journalists have lost their jobs….reports Asian Lite News
Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, over 50 per cent of journalists lost their jobs and half of the media outlets were closed for many reasons, particularly financial issues, TOLOnews reported citing Afghanistan National Journalists Union (ANJU) report.
The report revealed that 53 per cent of journalists lost their employment and 50 per cent of the media outlets were closed for many reasons published on the occasion of National Journalist’s Day in Afghanistan. “Most media employees have left Afghanistan. The media community is facing several problems. It faces economic difficulties, and restrictions have been placed on the media’s activities in Afghanistan. Besides this, the suspension or closure of the protective laws of the media community is a big challenge,” said Masroor Lutfi, a member of (ANJU).
Meanwhile, several journalists expressed concerns regarding the lack of information access and economic difficulties on National Journalists’ Day, according to TOLOnews.
Journalists asked the Islamic Emirate to address their challenges, especially in the area of access to information.
“Twenty-seven of Hoot, the Journalist’s Day, is celebrated when the lack of information access continues to be considered a difficulty and this community is still dealing with major economic issues,” said Raqib Fayaz, a journalist.
“We ask government officials and related officials to pay serious attention to the problems of journalists and ensure their safety,” said Mustafa Shahriar, a journalist.
But, the Taliban’s Ministry of Information and Culture said that they are committed to upholding journalists’ rights and that efforts are being made to increase the facilities available to them, reported TOLOnews.
According to the United Nations, in 2022, more than 200 violation cases have been recorded against journalists in Afghanistan which include arbitrary arrest, ill-treatment, harassment, threats, and intimidation.
Media freedom in Afghanistan has gone from bad to worse and journalists are suffering from low morale under the ruling regime. Many reporters have been arrested, persecuted and threatened with death for reporting sensitive issues which are not to the likes of Taliban authorities across the country, reported Khaama Press.
Many radio, and TV stations and news agencies have closed their doors, with some estimates indicating that more than 6,000 journalists have lost their jobs.
Female Afghan journalists suffer from double pressure for being a journalist and a woman. The latest restrictions imposed by the Taliban restricting women from attending university, working with government or non-governmental aid organizations, and appearing in public places, have also affected female journalists, according to Khaama Press.
TOLO News recently reported that as the Taliban’s crackdown on journalists and media personnel continues in Afghanistan, numerous journalists in Paktia province on Friday criticized limited access to information and claimed that this has a negative influence on their operations as their basic rights to work are being challenged under the regime of the organization.
They claimed that they are not getting timely information from officials. “It is the responsibility of officials and relevant organizations to provide accurate and timely information to the media,” said a reporter, Abdul Rahman Wayand.
The journalists urged the authorities to fulfil their duty to grant access to information. A number of journalists in the Afghan province also complained that their issues are no longer being addressed in the nation since certain departments refuse to provide the media with any information on certain cases, according to TOLOnews. (ANI)
Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, over 50 per cent of journalists lost their jobs and half of the media outlets were closed for many reasons, particularly financial issues, TOLOnews reported citing Afghanistan National Journalists Union (ANJU) report.
The report revealed that 53 per cent of journalists lost their employment and 50 per cent of the media outlets were closed for many reasons published on the occasion of National Journalist’s Day in Afghanistan. “Most media employees have left Afghanistan. The media community is facing several problems. It faces economic difficulties, and restrictions have been placed on the media’s activities in Afghanistan. Besides this, the suspension or closure of the protective laws of the media community is a big challenge,” said Masroor Lutfi, a member of (ANJU).
Meanwhile, several journalists expressed concerns regarding the lack of information access and economic difficulties on National Journalists’ Day, according to TOLOnews.
Journalists asked the Islamic Emirate to address their challenges, especially in the area of access to information.
“Twenty-seven of Hoot, the Journalist’s Day, is celebrated when the lack of information access continues to be considered a difficulty and this community is still dealing with major economic issues,” said Raqib Fayaz, a journalist.
“We ask government officials and related officials to pay serious attention to the problems of journalists and ensure their safety,” said Mustafa Shahriar, a journalist.
But, the Taliban’s Ministry of Information and Culture said that they are committed to upholding journalists’ rights and that efforts are being made to increase the facilities available to them, reported TOLOnews.
According to the United Nations, in 2022, more than 200 violation cases have been recorded against journalists in Afghanistan which include arbitrary arrest, ill-treatment, harassment, threats, and intimidation.
Media freedom in Afghanistan has gone from bad to worse and journalists are suffering from low morale under the ruling regime. Many reporters have been arrested, persecuted and threatened with death for reporting sensitive issues which are not to the likes of Taliban authorities across the country, reported Khaama Press.
Many radio, and TV stations and news agencies have closed their doors, with some estimates indicating that more than 6,000 journalists have lost their jobs.
Female Afghan journalists suffer from double pressure for being a journalist and a woman. The latest restrictions imposed by the Taliban restricting women from attending university, working with government or non-governmental aid organizations, and appearing in public places, have also affected female journalists, according to Khaama Press.
TOLO News recently reported that as the Taliban’s crackdown on journalists and media personnel continues in Afghanistan, numerous journalists in Paktia province on Friday criticized limited access to information and claimed that this has a negative influence on their operations as their basic rights to work are being challenged under the regime of the organization.
They claimed that they are not getting timely information from officials. “It is the responsibility of officials and relevant organizations to provide accurate and timely information to the media,” said a reporter, Abdul Rahman Wayand.
The journalists urged the authorities to fulfil their duty to grant access to information. A number of journalists in the Afghan province also complained that their issues are no longer being addressed in the nation since certain departments refuse to provide the media with any information on certain cases, according to TOLOnews. (ANI)
Pakistan Taliban vows to step up war for free homeland, tells Pakistani soldiers to give up arms.(photo:IN)
Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021, the situation of females in the country has only gone worse…reports Asian Lite News
As female education continues to suffer majorly in Afghanistan under the Taliban regime, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is all set to send a team of scholars to the country to discuss women’s right to education and work with the regime, TOLOnews reported.
The Secretary General of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, Hissein Brahim Taha announced the scholars’ team on the first day of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s meeting in Mauritania. He said that OIC will continue to voice concerns for the education of Afghan women and girls with the Taliban and will also send an expanded team of scholars to Afghanistan for dialogue on related aspects.
Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021, the situation of females in the country has only gone worse. Females in the country are prohibited from leadership posts and are not allowed to travel unless accompanied by a male companion.
Almost 40 countries sent representatives to the 49th OCI meeting, which took place in Mauritania on March 16 and 17, TOLOnews reported.
However the spokesperson for the Islamic Emirates of Afghanistan, Zabiullah Mujahid refuted the claims of women being treated in an unfair manner in the country and said, “We are trying to solve our problems in education and employment in terms of women’s issues. Efforts are underway but it takes time. The issue will be solved soon,” according to TOLOnews.
The Taliban promised to reopen all schools on March 23, 2022, but on that day they once more closed secondary institutions for girls.
There is still no word on when or if these schools will reopen or the ban is indefinite.
The Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021 and imposed policies severely restricting basic rights–particularly those of women and girls, dismissed all women from leadership posts in the civil service and prohibited girls in most provinces from attending secondary school.
The Taliban have also carried out broad censorship, limiting critical reporting, and have detained and beaten journalists. Taliban forces have carried out revenge killings and enforced disappearances of former government officials and security personnel. (ANI)
The other resolution, Resolution 2679, requests an independent assessment of recommendations for the efforts to address Afghanistan’s challenges…reports Asian Lite News
The UN Security Council (UNSC) has adopted two resolutions concerning Afghanistan, both unanimously, one of which extended the mandate of the special political mission in the war-torn nation for one year.
Resolution 2678 decides to extend the mandate of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) until March 17, 2024, reports Xinhua news agency.
It stresses the critical importance of the mission’s continued presence and calls upon all relevant Afghan political actors and stakeholders, including relevant authorities and international actors, to coordinate with UNAMA in the implementation of its mandate and to ensure the safety, security and freedom of movement of UN and associated personnel throughout the country.
The other resolution, Resolution 2679, requests an independent assessment of recommendations for the efforts to address Afghanistan’s challenges.
By the terms of the resolution, the 15-member council requests the secretary-general to conduct and provide, no later than November 17, an integrated, independent assessment, after consultations with all relevant Afghan political actors and stakeholders, including relevant authorities, Afghan women and civil society, as well as the region and the wider international community.
The Council also requests that the independent assessment provide forward-looking recommendations for an integrated and coherent approach among relevant political, humanitarian, and development actors, within and outside of the UN system, in order to address the current challenges faced by Afghanistan, including those relating to the humanitarian situation, human rights, security and terrorism.
There are 2.6 million registered Afghan refugees in the world, of whom 2.2 million are registered in Iran and Pakistan alone….reports Asian Lite News
A total of 4,986 Afghan refugees have returned to their homeland from neighbouring Iran over the past two days, the Ministry for Refugees and Repatriation Affairs in Kabul said on Thursday.
According to the Ministry, the returning process continues, and about 280,000 Afghan refugees have returned over the past six months, reports Xinhua news agency.
According to the UN, Afghans make up one of the largest refugee populations worldwide.
There are 2.6 million registered Afghan refugees in the world, of whom 2.2 million are registered in Iran and Pakistan alone.
Another 3.5 million people are internally displaced, having fled their homes searching for refuge within the country.
Taliban offers odd-even scheme to educate girls and boys in Afghanistan.(photo:IN)
This was the second International Women’s Day observed under the Taliban-led government in Afghanistan, which swept back to power in August 2021, and more or less marked a year-and-a-half of increasing misery for Afghan women, writes Asad Mirza
The slew of anti-women measures adopted by the Taliban government in Afghanistan has essentially gone against them, further isolating them globally and making them a pariah.
Reportedly, a handful of Afghan women courageously held a demonstration in the Afghan capital, Kabul, on 8 March, calling on the international community to protect Afghan women.
This was the second International Women’s Day observed under the Taliban-led government in Afghanistan, which swept back to power in August 2021, and more or less marked a year-and-a-half of increasing misery for Afghan women.
In a statement to mark the International Women’s Day, the head of the UN mission in Afghanistan, RozaOtunbayeva said it has been distressing to witness the Taliban’s methodical, deliberate, and systematic efforts to push Afghan women and girls out of the public sphere.
The UN mission said the crackdown was a “colossal act of national self-harm” at a time when Afghanistan faces some of the world’s largest humanitarian and economic crises.
The anti-women Taliban decisions have faced international condemnation, including by some Muslim countries even. The State of Qatar, earlier this week expressed deep concern over the Afghan caretaker government’s decisions which negatively affect Afghan women and girls’ rights, especially suspending their studies in secondary schools and universities and banning their work in non-governmental organisations.
The Qatari condemnation was conveyed in a statement delivered by the Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations Office in Geneva, HE Dr. Hind Abdul Rahman Al Muftah during an interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, within the framework of the 52nd regular session of the Human Rights Council.
The deputy foreign minister of Turkiye, Mehmet Kemal Bozay, has said that the international community must not allow the situation in Afghanistan to deteriorate “even further.” The Secretary General of the Organisation of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Hissein Brahim Taha, spoke in Geneva and, reiterated the OIC’s condemnation of Kabul’s edicts banning women from education and work, saying: “It is against our religion.”
Anti-women diktats
The biggest crackdown on teenage girls and university students came just days before Women’s Day, when earlier this week the authorities banned them from secondary schools and higher educational institutions. No country has officially recognised the Taliban government as Afghanistan’s legitimate ruler, with the right to education for women a sticking point in negotiations over aid and recognition.
According to UNESCO, currently, 80 percent of school-aged Afghan girls and young women – totalling 2.5 million people – are out of school.The Taliban’s decision to keep girls’ schools shuttered has reversed significant gains in female education during the past 20 years.
In another anti-women diktat, Taliban government has annulled divorce in Afghanistan, forcing divorced women to go back to abusive husbands. Lawyers say that several women have reported being dragged back into abusive marriages after Taliban commanders annulled their divorces.
Taliban PM calls for Muslim nations to recognise Afghan government(IN)
Latest international efforts
UN deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said last Friday that a delegation headed by UN Deputy Secretary General Amina Mohammed to Afghanistan recently, found that some Taliban officials were more open to restoring women’s rights, but others were clearly opposed.
Mohammed, a former Nigerian Cabinet minister is the UN’s highest-ranking woman, she was joined on the trip by Sima Bahous, executive director of UN Women, which promotes gender equality and women’s rights, and Assistant Secretary General for political affairs Khaled Khiari.
The UN team met with the Taliban administration in the capital Kabul and talks focused on the restrictive measures the Taliban government has imposed on women and girls since they re-took power.
The UN has stressed that Afghan women are crucial to delivering humanitarian help to civilians, the majority of them women and children.
The Taliban government adheres to an austere interpretation of Islam and has imposed severe restrictions on women’s lives that the United Nations called “gender-based apartheid”.
Notably, the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and the Human Rights Commission in Afghanistan have been erased under the Taliban regime.
According to the UN Mission in the country, nine out of 10 women in Afghanistan experience physical, sexual or psychological violence from their partner. Divorce, however, is far greater a taboo than the abuse itself and women who part with their husbands sustain many atrocities at the hands of society.
The United Nations’ special representative for women in Afghanistan, Alison Davidian said the implications of the government’s policies “impact all Afghans and will resonate throughout generations”. Meanwhile, a prominent group of Afghan and Iranian women are backing a campaign calling for gender apartheid to be recognised as a crime under international law.
The campaign, launched on International Women’s Day, reflects a belief that the current laws covering discrimination against women do not capture the systematic nature of the policies imposed in Afghanistan and Iran to downgrade the status of women in society.
The authors of the open letter, including international lawyers, argue that the legal definition of apartheid as a crime against humanity, adopted by the UN in 1973 and supported by the 1998 Rome Statute, does not fit the case of Afghanistan and Iran, even if the descriptive term does.
Taliban fire shots, beat women protesters in Kabul.
Taliban Mindset
Initially, when the Taliban 2.0 took over power in Afghanistan in August 2021, there was some euphoria that now they might be a changed Taliban, looking forward to mend their earlier ways and chart a new course of development for their country.
However, starting with their first diktat in September 2021, urging for segregated classrooms for boys and girls at schools, the caretaker Taliban government has followed it up with a slew of anti-women measures.
What perplexes one is that though the Taliban describe most of these decisions as Islamic, in fact they are completely unIslamic. Islam gives equal rights to men and women in all spheres of life, including, education, inheritance, right to work, say in marriage. Yet, in action Taliban goes completely against the spirit and teachings of Islam.
Instead, if they had adopted a new pragmatic and forward looking approach towards reorganising the Afghan society, it would have gone in their favour and would have helped them to consolidate their power in the country. As currently there seems to be no political force in the country, which could counter the Taliban. In addition, it would have provided them legitimacy and support from the so-called Islamic countries, if only they would have chosen to uphold the Islamic teachings, which in reality, they have failed to do.
Natural disasters have left substantial financial losses to the people suffering in the country…reports Asian Lite News
Natural disasters in Afghanistan have left over 1,000 people dead, and over 2,000 others injured, according to a Taliban led Disaster Management Ministry official, Khaama Press reported.
According to the World Bank report, natural disasters such as flooding, earthquakes, avalanches, landslides, and droughts are exacerbating vulnerability and poverty in Afghanistan. Disasters caused by natural hazards have since 1980 affected nine million people and caused over 20,000 fatalities in the country, the report stated, Khaama Press reported.
“Natural disasters have left over 1,000 people dead, and over 2,000 others injured across Afghanistan during the current solar year (1401), according to a Disaster Management Ministry official,” Khaama Press reported.
According to the Taliban, at least 70 people died due to cold weather in January this year. More than 70,000 cattle are reported to have perished in the Baghlan, Sare-ePul, Frayab, Takhar, Kandahar, Nimroz and Badghis provinces.
More than 180 people were killed in flooding in the country during August 2022, the report stated.
In June 2022, an earthquake killed at least 1,000 people and injured 1,500 in eastern Afghanistan, according to the document.
Natural disasters have left substantial financial losses to the people suffering in the country. Afghanistan is a natural hazard-prone country, including earthquakes, flooding, landslide, and freezing winters, according to Khaama Press.
Meanwhile, Tolo News reported that as Afghanistan continues to face the worst humanitarian crisis amid ongoing political chaos, the United Nations (UN) warned that two-thirds of Afghans are facing severe hunger and are in urgent need of aid, with six million facing the risk of famine.
With at least six million people facing the risk of famine in Afghanistan due to a reeling economic crisis, the deputy executive director of UNICEF, Omar Abid urged the international community not to forget the basic rights of women and children in Afghanistan, as well as to assist them.
The current population of Afghanistan is 41,201,762 as of Monday, February 6, 2023, based on Worldometer elaboration of the latest United Nations data.
This comes as Afghanistan’s most vulnerable citizens have requested assistance from relief agencies.
Safar Ali is working as a labourer–transporting materials by wheelbarrow in the capital city of Kabul.
“There is no good work now. It was good previously but not now. I can only make 50 Afs per day,” he said.
Another Kabul resident, Karim Shah also lamented about his situation and said, “There is no work to do, and nothing to do.”
Tolo News reported citing the economists who stated that a disaster will occur if international institutions do not pay attention to the situation in Afghanistan. (ANI)
The afghani has been tumbling against foreign currencies, especially the .S dollar over the past several months…reports Asian Lite News
Afghanistan’s central bank said on Monday that it sold $16 million by auction in a bid to stabilise exchange rate of the national currency afghani.
The afghani has been tumbling against foreign currencies, especially the .S dollar over the past several months, reports Xinhua news agency.
The exchange rate for $1 increased from last week’s 88 afghani to 88.50 afghani on Monday.
The Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) has injected millions of US dollars into the country’s money-exchange market over the past month to prevent the fall of afghani against foreign currencies.
The Afghan central bank also auctioned $16 million last week.
The war-torn Afghanistan has received nearly $2 billion in cash over the past 17 months as part of the international community’s humanitarian aid to stabilise its economy.
