Afghan women without rights: activist calls for international help!

Afghan women without rights: activist calls for international help!

In Afghanistan, women and girls suffer massive discrimination due to the Taliban's restrictive measures. According to Afghan activist Tahmina Salik, who is taking part in a conference on “gender apartheid” in Vienna, girls are only allowed to be educated up to the 6th grade and have completely lost access to secondary schools and universities. This situation has made Afghanistan the only country where women and girls are completely prohibited from attending school. Salik emphasizes that women are not allowed to travel without a male companion and leaving the house is severely restricted. Women are not allowed to speak publicly, leading to the complete silencing of their voices in society. This information is recorded in a report by Kleine Zeitung.

The suffering of Afghan women is immense: many have been imprisoned, tortured or even raped. Censorship of the media has made obtaining information even more difficult, as most Afghan media are now under the control of the Taliban regime. Protests have largely moved online, with fears that the internet will be shut down, threatening lines of communication with the diaspora. Salik calls on the world to recognize the shocking conditions in Afghanistan and criticizes the silence of the international community.

Systematic oppression and international responsibility

The UN has also labeled the situation as “gender apartheid,” a term that describes high levels of discrimination faced by millions of women and girls worldwide. UN Women calls for immediate global action to combat the injustices legitimized by the Taliban's Islamic legal system. According to this, more than half of Afghan women experience massive restrictions on their social participation due to the ban on education. Statistics show alarming figures: 1.1 million girls are excluded from school and over 100,000 women have been denied access to universities, increasing the risk to mothers and newborns by at least 50%.

The empowerment of women is a central concern that is also receiving attention at the international level. The discussion about the legal protection of Afghan women has gained momentum in recent months. A decisive ruling by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has recognized the systematic oppression of women in Afghanistan as gender-based persecution and confirmed that Afghan women do not have to prove individual persecution in the asylum process. This is a major step towards protection for Afghan women in Europe, which came about in response to discriminatory laws enforced by the Taliban.

International arrest warrants and further steps

On January 23, 2025, the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) requested international arrest warrants against Taliban leaders on grounds of gender-based persecution. This demand underlines the need not to allow human rights violations to go unpunished. The international arrest warrants are a sign that the persecution of Afghan women is seen as “unprecedented” and “ongoing.” Although the ICC relies on the cooperation of member states, it sends a strong signal that such crimes should be brought to justice.

In addition to legal developments, activists and legal experts are increasingly campaigning for the recognition of gender apartheid under international law. A new convention on crimes against humanity is currently being discussed by the Sixth Committee of the UN General Assembly, calling for the term “gender apartheid” to be included. This initiative aims to recognize gender discrimination as an apartheid crime and thereby strengthen the rights of women and girls worldwide.

The situation in Afghanistan remains alarming and requires much more international attention and action. The voices of activists like Tahmina Salik are crucial in making the reality of oppression visible. She calls on the world not just to watch, but to act actively to help the vulnerable women and girls in Afghanistan.