UN Authority Figures

UN Women, Executive Board: Afghanistan

Ahmad Muslem Hayat, a former Afghan military attaché in London, finds it hard to believe that the Taliban will accept the gains made by women and "respect women's rights. Women are always victims of tradition and it's used against them in the name of religion."
Source: Fox News, July 24, 2019. Photo: Afghani women and girls (Courtesy Wikimedia Commons)

Mission of the UN Women: "The main roles of UN Women are: To support inter-governmental bodies, such as the Commission on the Status of Women, in their formulation of policies, global standards and norms; To help Member States to implement these standards, standing ready to provide suitable technical and financial support to those countries that request it, and to forge effective partnerships with civil society; To hold the UN system accountable for its own commitments on gender equality, including regular monitoring of system-wide progress." (UN Women website)

Term of office: 2022-2024

Afghanistan's Record on Women's rights:
"Significant human rights issues included:...; lack of investigation of and accountability for cases of violence against women, including those accused of so-called moral crimes;... Police and legal officials often charged women with intent to commit zina (sex outside marriage) to justify their arrest and incarceration for social offenses, such as running away from their husband or family, rejecting a spouse chosen by their families, fleeing domestic violence or rape, or eloping to escape an arranged marriage... Many women are unable to use the formal justice system because cultural norms preclude their engagement with male officials... Women in some areas of the country said their freedom of expression in choice of attire was limited by conservative social mores and sometimes enforced by Taliban in insurgent-controlled areas as well as religious leaders... Social custom limited women's freedom of movement without a male family member's consent or a male relative chaperone... Conflict, threats, financial constraints, corruption, and conservative family members put female voters at a disadvantage. There were reports some men declared female voting a sin, and others said women should vote for male candidates... Women active in government and politics continued to face threats and violence and were targets of attacks by the Taliban and other insurgent groups... According to NGO reports, millions of women continued to suffer abuse at the hands of their husbands, fathers, brothers, in-laws, and other individuals. State institutions, including police and judicial systems, failed to adequately address such abuse... Honor killings continued throughout the year... Women who walked outside alone or who worked outside the home often experienced harassment, including groping, catcalling, and being followed. Women with public roles occasionally received threats directed at them or their families... Women who reported cases of abuse or who sought legal redress for other matters reported they experienced discrimination within the judicial system."
(U.S. State Department's Country Report on Human Rights 2020, Afghanistan)

Archive