Since taking power in August 2021, the Taliban has continued to undermine women’s human rights in both policy and practice by codifying systematic gender-based discrimination through the imposition of dozens of restrictions, impacting nearly every aspect of women’s lives. As recently  reinforced by UN human rights experts, these violations potentially amount to gender persecution, a crime against humanity. Gender-based violence against diverse women and girls has continued, and the Taliban has all but eliminated protections for victims. Women protestors, human rights defenders (HRDs), and peacebuilders continue to be at the forefront of resistance against the Taliban, risking arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, torture and ill-treatment, and denial of due process and fair trial rights. As the Security Council discusses the situation, it is critical that gender equality, women’s autonomy, agency and inclusion, and the full range of women’s rights are prioritized and addressed as a fundamental means to achieve sustainable peace in the country. During forthcoming meetings, Council members should:

• State their unequivocal support for the protection and promotion of the full range of women’s human rights in accordance with international human rights law; swiftly and publicly condemn the adoption of regressive policies that undermine those rights and call for their reversal; and express unwavering solidarity and support for the work of human rights defenders, peacebuilders, journalists, and civil society representatives.
• Call for accountability for all human rights violations and support measures to investigate and prosecute those responsible for all violations of human rights, including gender persecution and attacks on human rights defenders and journalists.
• Call for all parties, including the Taliban and other armed groups, to respect international human rights and humanitarian law and immediately end the continued targeting, threats, and killings of human rights defenders, peacebuilders, journalists, protestors, and all other civil society representatives, as well as individuals affiliated with the previous government, including prosecutors and judges, former military and police and other security sector, and civil servants.
• Call for UNAMA’s mandate to be fully implemented, particularly those aspects related to: advocating for the protection and promotion of women’s rights, including by calling for the Taliban to uphold their obligations under CEDAW; monitoring and reporting on human rights, including violations, abuses and reprisals against women, human rights defenders, journalists and humanitarian workers and all forms of gender-based violence; meaningful engagement with diverse Afghan women’s organizations and networks; and ensuring the transparent, non-discriminatory and equitable distribution of humanitarian aid.

Finally, senior UN officials should ensure their briefings provide gender-sensitive conflict analysis by providing details on the current situation for women and girls, including women and girls with disabilities, displaced women, women from diverse ethnic groups, and women of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities, in order to highlight the gender-specific challenges related to distribution of humanitarian assistance, inclusion in peace and political processes, impact of the economic crisis, and access to essential services.