The United Nations (UN) has received verbal communication from the Taliban informing them that Afghan women will no longer be allowed to work for the intergovernmental organisation.
The move has been called ‘unacceptable and frankly inconceivable’ by a UN spokesperson who added that the Taliban-imposed ban undermines ‘the ability of aid organisation to reach those most in need’ and that the UN ‘cannot operate and deliver life-saving assistance without female staff’.
According to the BBC, the UN has told its Afghan staff, both men and women, not to report to work for 48 hours while it discusses the matter with the Taliban.
The UN is in the process of bringing humanitarian aid to 23 million people in Afghanistan, a mission that depends on a working relationship with the Taliban. However, that relationship appears to be souring.
The UN has said that on Tuesday, local Taliban authorities in Nangarhar province prevented Afghan women from going to work at the UN facilities.
General Secretary of the UN, Antonio Guterres, reacted to the news by tweeting:
‘I strongly condemn the prohibition of our Afghan female colleagues from working in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province. If this measure is not reversed, it will inevitably undermine our ability to deliver life-saving aid to the people who need it.’
The ban on Afghan women working for the UN is the latest in a string of measures imposed by the Taliban designed to restrict women’s freedoms. Since returning to power in 2021, the Taliban have barred female teens and women from schools and colleges; required women to dress in such a way that only their eyes are revealed; and declared that they must be accompanied by a male relative when travelling more than 72km.
[Photo: Toby Melville/REUTERS]