UN Expert calls for comprehensive actions to end Afghanistan's destructive cycle of impunity

Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, during his Oral Update at the  Human council  Rights  highlighted  the deteriorating human rights conditions under the Taliban rule especially after the latest Taliban morality law, which institutionalized the system of sex and gender discrimination, segregation and oppression.  This law represents a form of gender persecution, constituting a crime against humanity that affects the entire population, including minorities, children, LGBTI people, human rights defenders and journalists, and vulnerable groups such as older people and those with disabilities.

The UN Special Rapporteur observed a significant change in the actions of the Taliban, noting that their current trajectory leads back to the oppressive conditions of the late 1990s. He stressed that Human Rights violations have persisted for over four decades in Afghanistan, and addressing these abuses requires the Member States to identify a survivor-centered and gender-responsive pathway to justice .

The expert pointed out that the long-standing cycle of impunity in Afghanistan has not only fueled conflict and repression but also threatens the possibility of achieving genuine peace, both in Afghanistan and beyond, and urged the international community to ensure the inclusion of women and non-Taliban Afghans in discussions about the country’s future, with human rights remaining a central priority.