The Islamists have agreed to attend a meeting in Qatar at the end of June, but only on the condition that no Afghan women are present. This has raised concerns about the potential for meaningful dialogue under such circumstances. Since their return to power in August 2021, the Taliban have been refused recognition by Western countries due to their restrictive measures against girls and women.
The UN has organized two conferences on Afghanistan since then, with Secretary-General António Guterres inviting representatives from more than a dozen countries to discuss development, climate change, and drug trafficking at a conference in Doha on June 30 and July 1. However, the Islamists declined to attend both meetings. The Taliban have now confirmed their attendance at the third meeting in Qatar, which the UN sees as a step towards finding solutions to the issues facing Afghanistan.
Despite this progress, the price for the Islamists’ attendance is high. They have excluded Afghan women from participating in discussions on crucial issues such as human rights and women’s rights to education and work. Activists argue that these discussions are incomplete without addressing these important topics. Women’s rights organizations and activists fear that the Taliban regime will gain international recognition through its participation, despite no country recognizing them as a legitimate government since their return to power.
Western countries are withholding recognition until the Taliban reverses their restrictive measures against girls and women. The Taliban’s regime has cut salaries of civil service women to minimum amount, limiting their ability to support themselves and their families during an economic crisis facing Afghanistan. The UN has condemned these discriminatory actions and urged them to reverse their decision but so far they maintain strict interpretation of Sharia law leading to ongoing human rights violations including public floggings amputations and executions while intensifying control over media outlets NGOs other Islamist groups further restricting freedoms and civil society in Afghanistan
