An independent UN human rights expert warned world capitals against restoring ties with the Afghan Taliban, saying the approach risks legitimizing oppression and deepening Afghanistan’s crisis. Taliban rule
Richard Bennett, the Special Rapporteur monitoring human rights in Afghanistan. called for a principled approach that defends the rights of Afghan women and girls.
The statement came as Afghan Taliban, who came to power in 2021, continue to enforce their parochial policies that deprive women of their fundamental rights in defiance of repeated international calls.
Afghan girls and women continue to face restrictions in many fields of life and have lost access to education and job opportunities.
The UN did not name any countries that are building ties with the Afghan Taliban but recently Russia became the first country to accept a Taliban representative’s credentials as ambassador to the country. Recently, Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi visited New Delhi, where received a lavish protocol, and the Afghan embassy even barred Indian female journalists from attending his Press Conference, resulting in uproar in the media. New Delhi has also announced to reopen its embassy in Kabul.
China is also dealing with the Afghan Taliban rulers while, Pakistan, which previously recognized the Taliban regime in the 1990s, is suffering from the blowback of its past policy in the form of cross-border terrorism.
The United States also faced criticism for its withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, which, critics say, contributed to emboldening the Afghan Taliban.
Bennet, who serves independently under a mandate of the Human Rights Council and is not a UN staff member, told the General Assembly the human rights situation in the country “continues to deteriorate with few grounds for optimism.”
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He warned of intensifying gender persecution, a rise in corporal punishment, enforced disappearances and attacks against former officials despite a declared amnesty.
There are also increasing restrictions on media freedom and civil society, and discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities, including forced evictions affecting Hazara communities.
He noted that no Taliban edicts restricting women’s rights have been reversed.
“Many Afghan women are denied their right to work,” he said, pointing to recent moves preventing Afghan women working for the UN from entering UN compounds. “This is a serious breach of fundamental rights and the UN Charter’s principles of equality and non-discrimination.”
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Bennett also criticized the sharp reduction in humanitarian and civil society funding, which he said is removing “the last lines of protection” for a population already facing widespread deprivation.
He urged governments to recommit to long-term, sustained support, particularly for Afghan and women-led organizations.
The Special Rapporteur further warned of the mass forced return of Afghan refugees, urging all States to respect the international legal principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits returning people to places where they face persecution or serious harm.
While the situation remains grave, Mr. Bennett highlighted signs of progress in accountability.
These include the International Criminal Court’s issuance of arrest warrants for senior Taliban leaders, and the Human Rights Council’s recent establishment of an independent investigative mechanism to collect and preserve evidence of serious crimes for future trials.
Yet Bennet told delegates that “Afghanistan is not a lost cause,” stressing that accountability is an “essential part “of building a future rooted in justice, equality and the rule of law.
“Turning away now would not only betray the Afghan people – it would undermine the foundations of our shared international system,” he said.
He urged States to engage with Afghanistan “in a principled manner that avoids normalization of Taliban rule until there are demonstrated, measurable and independently verified improvements in the human rights situation – particularly for women and girls.”
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Kiran Asim is a writer who covers the U.S., Europe, South Asia, and the Middle East. Her reports and analyses look at the geostrategic issues and contemporary developments and their economic and political implications. She also writes about society and education.
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