RASC News Agency: Heather Barr, the head of the women’s division at Human Rights Watch, declared during a hearing before the U.S. Congressional Human Rights Commission that Washington should recognize gender apartheid in Afghanistan as a crime against humanity. On Tuesday, July 30, Barr testified alongside Wahida Amiri, Mitra Mehran, and Rina Amiri before the U.S. House of Representatives, detailing the dire situation faced by Afghanistani women and girls under Taliban rule.
In her testimony, Barr urged the United States to support the International Criminal Court’s investigations in Afghanistan and to advocate for the establishment of a new United Nations investigative mechanism. This mechanism would be tasked with collecting and preserving evidence, as well as advancing accountability for past and ongoing crimes in Afghanistan. The head of the women’s division at Human Rights Watch also called on U.S. Senators to encourage other countries to ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and to file complaints against the Taliban in the International Criminal Court for violations of the convention.
Heather Barr further urged the U.S. House of Representatives to expedite the P-2 program cases, which offer protection to human rights defenders at risk. On the afternoon of July 30, the U.S. Congressional Human Rights Commission convened a session focused on the situation of Afghanistani women, during which at least two female activists testified about the conditions faced by women in the country.
Wahida Amiri and Mitra Mehran, witnesses at the hearing, implored the U.S. Congress not to recognize the Taliban, emphasizing that the group has been widely accused of gross human rights violations during their three years of rule.
