, condemning their “terrible” consequences.
“No country can develop — indeed survive — socially and economically with half its population excluded,” Volker Turk, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said in a statement.
“These unfathomable restrictions placed on women and girls will not only increase the suffering of all Afghans but, I fear, pose a risk beyond Afghanistan’s borders.”
He said the policies risked destabilizing Afghan society.
“I urge the de facto authorities to ensure the respect and protection of the rights of all women and girls — to be seen, to be heard and to participate in and contribute to all aspects of the social, political and economic life of the country,” said Turk.
On Saturday, Afghanistan’s hardline rulers banned women from working in nongovernmental organizations. The Taliban have already suspended university education for women and secondary schooling for girls.
“This latest decree by the de facto authorities will have terrible consequences for women and for all Afghan people,” Turk said.
“Banning women from working in NGOs will deprive them and their families of their incomes, and of their right to contribute positively to the development of their country and to the well-being of their fellow citizens.”
The move is the latest blow against women’s rights in Afghanistan since the Taliban reclaimed power last year.
“The ban will significantly impair, if not destroy” these NGOs’ capacity to deliver essential services, Turk said, calling it all the more distressing with Afghanistan in the grip of winter, when humanitarian needs are at their highest.
Several foreign aid groups announced on Sunday they were suspending their operations in Afghanistan.
Women have also been pushed out of many government jobs, prevented from traveling without a male relative and ordered to cover up outside of the home, ideally with a burqa, and not allowed into parks.
The international community has made respecting women’s rights a sticking point in negotiations with the Taliban government for its recognition and the restoration of aid.
“Women and girls cannot be denied their inherent rights,” said Turk.
“Attempts by the de facto authorities to relegate them to silence and invisibility will not succeed.”: The UN Security Council on Tuesday called for the full, equal and meaningful participation of women and girls in Afghanistan, denouncing a ban by the Taliban-led administration on women attending universities or working for humanitarian aid groups.
In the latest blow to women’s rights in Afghanistan since the Taliban reclaimed power last year, on Saturday the hard-line Islamist rulers banned women from working in non-governmental organizations, sparking international outcry.
The Taliban have already suspended university education for women and secondary schooling for girls.
The 15-member UN Security Council said in a statement agreed by consensus it was “deeply alarmed” by the increasing restrictions on women’s education, calling for “the full, equal, and meaningful participation of women and girls in Afghanistan.”
It urged the Taliban “to reopen schools and swiftly reverse these policies and practices, which represents an increasing erosion for the respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms.”
In its statement, the Council also condemned the ban on women working for NGOs, adding to warnings of the detrimental impact on aid operations in a country where millions rely on them.
“These restrictions contradict the commitments made by the Taliban to the Afghan people as well as the expectations of the international community,” it said.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Twitter on Tuesday that the restrictions were “unjustifiable human rights violations and must be revoked.” He added: “Actions to exclude and silence women and girls continue to cause immense suffering and major setbacks to the potential of the Afghan people.”
