By Fidel Rahmati in The Khaama Press Online, April 12, 2023
The de facto government on Wednesday responded to the United Nations’ decision to suspend activities in Afghanistan due to the ban on female aid workers, saying they did not want to create obstacles for the UN; instead wanted to “make it clear that this is an internal issue of Afghanistan.”
On Wednesday, a statement issued by the Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid on the recent announcement of the UN office said that due to the imposed restrictions on women aid workers, the UN has to suspend its activities and has called the Afghan authorities responsible for all the consequences of the humanitarian situation.
The statement said the Interim regime “does not want to create an obstacle for the United Nations; rather, it wants to clarify that this is an internal issue of Afghanistan, which does not create a problem for anyone and should be respected by all sides.”
The Taliban authorities severely restricted the participation of women and girls in most areas of public and daily life in Afghanistan the day before, according to the United Nations office in Afghanistan.
In addition, the UN declared the prohibition against international law, including the Charter, so that it couldn’t be enforced, according to the statement.
The group emphasized that the ban on female assistance workers obliged it, in the face of a terrible humanitarian situation in the nation, to make an “appalling” decision.
Since the return of the Taliban, several restrictions have been imposed on women, which has been called suppressive for Afghan women; by which females cannot present in public spaces, gyms, universities, schooling beyond the sixth grade and work with the international community, including UN offices.
The Taliban authorities called their ban on religious and cultural interests rather than restrictions on women’s rights.
In addition, the de facto government claimed that the future responsibility due to the humanitarian crisis goes to those that have imposed restrictions on Afghanistan’s financial and banking system and travel bans on the “Taliban leaders”, the statement said.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan suffers from a dire humanitarian crisis and needs urgent life-saving assistance. The UN reiterated that most aid workers are female, and without female employees, the organization cannot function.
https://www.khaama.com/afghan-authorities-respond-to-uns-decision-to-suspend-activities-in-afghanistan/
