RASC News Agency: The Taliban have once again escalated their oppressive policies against women, issuing a renewed directive through the Ministry of Economy, instructing non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to cease employing women. A copy of this official memorandum, dated Saturday, December 28, has been circulated in the media, emphasizing the group’s unwavering commitment to enforcing gender-based restrictions. The Ministry of Economy has issued a stark warning to NGOs, mandating strict compliance with this order. Organizations that fail to halt women’s employment will face the revocation of their operating licenses and the suspension of their activities. The directive, signed on December 26 by Mawlawi Mohammad Alam, Deputy Minister for Finance and Administration, represents yet another draconian step in the Taliban’s systematic rollback of women’s rights.
This directive is reminiscent of a similar order issued in December 2022, in which both domestic and international NGOs were instructed to bar women from their operations. More recently, the Taliban intensified these measures by shutting the doors of medical institutes to female students, further extending their sweeping bans on women’s education, employment, and public engagement. On December 25, Karen Decker, the U.S. Charge d’Affaires for Afghanistan, expressed deep concern over the Taliban’s policies, stating that the prohibition on women working in NGOs has significantly worsened the humanitarian crisis gripping the country.
Since their return to power following the withdrawal of U.S. forces and the collapse of Ashraf Ghani’s government, the Taliban have issued nearly 100 decrees aimed at erasing women from Afghanistan’s social, economic, and educational landscapes. These oppressive measures have cemented Afghanistan’s status as a global pariah on gender equality and human rights, leaving Afghanistani women increasingly disenfranchised and marginalized.
