The deterioration of the situation in Afghanistan prompts the European Parliament to shed light on the condition and prospects of Afghan women.
Afghanistan has been a concern for the EU for a long time. Following the withdrawal of US and NATO troops from the country in August 2021 and the return to power of the Taliban, the European Parliament has called for the evacuation of European and Afghan citizens at risk, urging the protection of human rights in the country and, in in particular, that of women's rights.
Since then, most women have been denied the opportunity to return to workplaces, schools and universities. The Taliban do not contemplate the possibility for women to hold leadership positions in Afghanistan and are cracking down on women's rights protests with lethal force.
“For Afghan women and girls, [the takeover of the Taliban] means systematic and brutal oppression in all aspects of life. In Taliban-controlled areas, universities for women have been closed, girls have been denied access to education, and women are being sold for sexual exploitation, ”said Evelyn Regner, then chair of the commission on women's rights and for gender equality of the European Parliament.
The EU and Afghanistan
The EU and the European Parliament are committed to finding solutions that can best help mitigate the negative effects of Taliban laws, for those in the territory or in exile. Since 2014, Afghan citizens represent the largest group of asylum seekers and refugees hosted on European territory. In 2021 alone, some 600,000 Afghans were displaced internally, 80% of whom are women and children.
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Overall, EU member states contributed to the evacuation of 22,000 Afghans, including people in vulnerable situations and their families - such as human rights defenders, women, journalists, civil society activists, police officers, law enforcement agencies, judges and professionals of the judicial system.
During the G20 meeting in October 2021, the Commission announced a support package worth € 1 billion for the Afghan people and neighboring countries, aimed at addressing the urgent needs of the country and the region. The EU also wants to establish a diplomatic presence on the territory of Kabul. EU foreign ministers agreed that the EU would engage with the Taliban if they respected human rights, especially women's rights, and established an inclusive and representative transitional government.
The role of Parliament
In a statement released in August 2021, MEPs urged the authorities in Afghanistan to respect fundamental human rights and achievements of the past 20 years in the fields of women's and girls' rights, the right to education, health care. and economic and social development. In a resolution on the situation in Afghanistan adopted in September 2021, Parliament called on the EU and its member states to cooperate in the evacuation of European and Afghan citizens at risk and to create humanitarian corridors for Afghan refugees seeking protection from neighboring countries.
MEPs also requested a special visa program for Afghan women seeking protection. In October 2021, the Commission on Women's Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM) held a joint hearing with the Delegation for Relations with Afghanistan, during which five Afghan women gave their testimony on the situation of women under the Taliban regime and their expectations of the European Union. After the hearing, both President Evelyn Regner (S&D, Austria) and Petras Auštrevičius (Renew, Lithuania) made a statement, stressing the need to raise the issue of the situation of Afghan women and girls in EU contacts with the Taliban authorities and to make it a priority in Parliament's activities.
In 2021, a collective of 11 Afghan women was nominated for the European Parliament's Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, to honor their courageous struggle for equality and the defense of human rights.
On 1 and 2 February, the European Parliament's Subcommittee on Human Rights organized the Afghan Women's Days, an event that brings together key actors such as the United Nations, the European Commission and several Afghan women's representatives to raise awareness of the situation in Afghanistan. The president of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, and former Afghan minister for women's affairs Sima Samar will speak at the conference. Video messages from Angelina Jolie, Special Envoy to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and the United Nations Deputy Secretary General Amina Mohammed will also be broadcast.
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