CNN
—
At least half a dozen major foreign aid groups said they were temporarily suspending operations in Afghanistan after the Taliban female employees of non-governmental organizations banned to come to work.
“We cannot effectively reach the children, women and men in desperate need in Afghanistan without our female staff,” aid organizations Save the Children, the Norwegian Refugee Council and CARE International said in a statement on Sunday. spouse.
“While we obtain clarification on this announcement, we are suspending our programs, demanding that men and women can also continue our lifesaving assistance in Afghanistan,” said the statement, which was signed by the heads of the three NGOs.
Another aid group, the International Rescue Committee, said that of the more than 8,000 people it employs in Afghanistan, more than 3,000 are women. “If we are not allowed to employ women, we are unable to provide them to those in need,” he said in a statement. statement Sunday, announcing that it was suspending operations in the country.
Afghanaid also suspended its work in Afghanistan following the Taliban’s decision, while Islamic Relief said it had been forced to “temporarily suspend non-vital activities in Afghanistan”.
the Taliban administration On Saturday, I ordered all local and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to prevent their female employees from coming to work, according to a letter from the Ministry of Economy sent to all approved NGOs. Failure to comply will result in the revocation of the licenses of said NGOs, the ministry said.
David Wright, chief operating officer of Save the Children International, told CNN on Monday that the organization was unable to “reach tens of thousands of vulnerable mothers and children across the country” due to the ban.
“We can’t go out to work because we need our female colleagues to help us get access to women and children. You cannot access young mothers or young children in education if you do not have female staff, because it is not appropriate in Afghanistan to have all-male staff looking after young women or children,” he said.
In the letter, the ministry cites non-compliance with Islamic dress rules and other laws and regulations as reasons for its decision.
“Lately, there have been serious complaints regarding non-compliance with the Islamic hijab and other laws and regulations of the Islamic emirate,” the letter said, adding that accordingly “directives are given to suspend work of all employees of national and international non-governmental organizations”. .”
The new restriction mark Yet another step In the Taliban’s brutal crackdown on the freedoms of Afghan women, following the radical Islamist group’s takeover of the country in August 2021.
Although the Taliban have repeatedly claimed that they will protect the rights of girls and women, they have in fact done the opposite, taking away the hard-won freedoms that women have fought tirelessly for over the past two decades. .
“The Supreme Leader is doing everything he can…to make women as powerless as possible, even though there are other factions that say otherwise,” the Afghan human rights activist told CNN on Sunday. Pashtana Durrani man.
“The Taliban don’t care. They want women to be as limited as possible, especially the paramount chief,” she added.
Earlier this week, the Taliban government university studies suspended for all female students in Afghanistan.
In a televised press conference on Thursday, the Taliban minister for higher education said they had banned women’s universities for not following Islamic dress rules and other “Islamic values”, citing female students traveling without a male guardian. Moving aroused outrage among women in Afghanistan.
A a group of women took to the streets in the city of Herat on Saturday to protest against the university ban. Video footage circulating on social media shows Taliban officials using a water cannon to disperse protesters. Girls could be seen running from the water cannon and chanting “cowards” at officials.
Some of the Taliban’s most stark restrictions relate to education, with girls also banned from returning to secondary schools in March. The move devastated many students and their families, who describes to CNN their shattered dreams become a doctor, teacher or engineer.
The UN on Saturday condemned the Taliban NGO’s announcement and said it would try to secure a meeting with Taliban leaders for clarification.
“Women must be able to play a vital role in all aspects of life, including humanitarian response. Prohibiting women from working would violate women’s most fundamental rights, as well as a gross violation of humanitarian principles,” the UN statement said. “This latest decision will only further harm the most vulnerable people, especially women and girls.”
UNICEF said the order was “a gross rollback of the rights of girls and women (which) will have far-reaching consequences for the provision of health, nutrition and education services to children”.
Amnesty International called for the ban “to be rescinded immediately” and for the Taliban to “stop abusing their power”.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said Sunday it was particularly concerned about the future of the Afghan health system and patients.
The ICRC said it supported 45 health facilities in Afghanistan, including hospitals and medical schools. Among other things, it pays the salaries of 10,483 health workers – 33% of whom are women.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also condemned the move on Saturday. “Deeply concerned that the Taliban’s ban on providing humanitarian aid to women in Afghanistan will disrupt life-saving and life-saving assistance to millions of people,” he wrote on Twitter. Women are at the heart of humanitarian operations around the world. This decision could be devastating for the Afghan people.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said US officials should “not interfere in the internal issues” of Afghanistan.
“These organizations operating in Afghanistan are obligated to abide by the laws and regulations of our country,” he tweeted on Sunday, adding, “We do not allow anyone to make irresponsible statements or make threats about the decisions or officials of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. . under the heading of humanitarian aid. »
0 Comments