RASC News Agency: Human Rights Watch has called for the involvement of Afghanistani women in the ongoing efforts to bring the Taliban before the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. The organization emphasized that, in the legal proceedings initiated by Germany, Australia, Canada, and the Netherlands against the Taliban, it is crucial to form a legal team that includes female Afghanistani lawyers.
According to Human Rights Watch, the participation of Afghanistani women in prosecuting the Taliban for human rights violations must extend beyond consultation. This call comes as Germany, Australia, Canada, and the Netherlands step up efforts to challenge the Taliban three years into their rule, seeking to hold them accountable at the ICC for systematic human rights abuses and discriminatory practices against Afghanistani women and girls.
These countries consider the Taliban egregious violators of women’s rights and broader human rights. Iceland’s Foreign Minister also condemned the Taliban’s treatment of women, stating: “A teenage girl in Afghanistan singing a song of joy in public faces the threat of arrest, humiliation, beatings, or even worse. Mr. President, how did the world reach such a point? This is why Iceland supports the collective initiative announced this week in New York to hold the Taliban accountable for their grave human rights abuses.”
Human Rights Watch urged other countries, including those in the Islamic world, to join this initiative, signaling a unified stance against the Taliban’s actions and calling for accountability. The organization also stressed the importance of ensuring women’s central role in these legal efforts. Heather Barr, the associate director of the women’s rights division at Human Rights Watch, added: “These countries must take seriously the matter of Afghanistani women’s participation in this process, and it must go far beyond mere consultation. Ideally, a legal team should be assembled, predominantly composed of Afghanistani female lawyers. Many skilled Afghanistani female lawyers and judges were forced into exile after the Taliban’s takeover, and this is an ideal opportunity to utilize their expertise in this critical endeavor.”
Approximately 26 countries from Europe, the Americas, Asia, and Africa have expressed their support for prosecuting the Taliban over their treatment of women and human rights violations. Recently, the UN Secretary-General also endorsed this initiative, declaring that the situation in Afghanistan exemplifies one of the most repressive regimes in modern history.
