Divisions Emerge Within Afghan Women’s Rights Movement

Last month’s international summit on women’s rights in Afghanistan saw more than 120 activists, journalists, and artists – including some from within the country – gather in the Albanian capital Tirana for three days of intense discussion and debate.

But the event also highlighted divisions among campaigners, including over the issue of direct negotiations with the Taleban.

The summit, held from September 11 to 13, was organised by the NGO Women for Afghanistan. In a statement, the Geneva-based organisation said that the event had been organised following six months of consultations with women inside and outside of Afghanistan, with the goal to create “a critical space for women to brainstorm and develop a joint vision”.

However, protests interrupted the event and some activists declined to attend, citing concerns over issues of inclusivity.

Attendees, who included Rina Amiri, the US special envoy for Afghan women, girls, and human rights, had the opportunity to participate in committees strategising issues including economic aid and women’s participation in a post-Taleban scenario.

Diaspora activist Negina Yari, a member of the leadership team of the Window of Hope took part in the summit’s economic and humanitarian aid committee. She explained that some of her group’s proposals included practical steps to ensure women’s access to humanitarian aid.

The committee also proposed that a neutral international monitoring team be created to oversee aid distribution in Afghanistan.

“We suggested that this impartial group be established to monitor the funds going to Afghanistan through international NGOs and the United Nations,” Yari said, noting that the committee emphasised the necessity of involving Afghan women in the monitoring process to ensure adequate access.

Nonetheless, as Amiri took to the stage to reiterate the US commitment to defending the rights of Afghan women, group of protestors stood and chanted well-known slogans such as “Education, work, freedom” and “Recognise gender apartheid”.

Amongst those who chanted was Tarannum Saeedi, the leader of the Afghanistan Political Participation Network, who left Afghanistan in 2021 and now lives in Canada.

“Our aim with this protest was to bring the voices of millions of Afghan women and girls to the international community, so that by exerting political pressure on the Taleban, they can end the crisis in Afghanistan and the problems women face,” she said.

The summit’s 14-point resolution, published on September 16, also caused some dispute among the attendees. The last two points, pertaining to negotiations with the Taleban, were the subject of intense debate and were not unanimously accepted.

“Any meeting or dialogue between the international community and the Taleban should include women representatives of Afghanistan as part of the relevant delegations, both within and outside Afghanistan,” read Point No 13.

The other read, “Any negotiation or dialogue with the Taleban must be conducted based on principles, in consultation with Afghan women inside and outside the country, and in adherence to all human rights laws and values.”

In the final document, those two points were highlighted in red with a note that the issues had “not reached consensus on in the general assembly”.

Activist Munisa Mubariz, a veteran of civil protests against the Taleban both inside and outside Afghanistan, said that she and other attendees repeatedly emphasised that negotiations with the militant group were not an option. She said that they told the summit that under no circumstances would they be willing to sit at the table with the Taleban..

The two articles were “completely rejected by the protesting women, but there were people in the assembly who wanted negotiations with the Taleban,” she continued.

After these two points were included in the final resolution, Mubariz said that a group of attendees sent a letter to the organisers of the summit, once again expressing their objection to these particular articles.

“The Taleban, with their widespread violation of human rights, especially women’s rights, is an illegitimate regime on the international level,” the letter read. “Any interaction with this group would in some way legitimize them. This is in direct conflict with the principle of illegitimacy of the Taleban, which is clearly stated in the earlier sections of the resolution.”

The closing resolution also revealed that a working group would be established to draft an All-Afghan Women’s Political Manifesto for the Future of Afghanistan, but Mubariz insisted that she and others would continue their protests if their demands were not accepted.

There were other criticisms directed at the summit. LGBTI activist Mohra Fabi said that the organisers had failed to invite any representatives of the community to the summit. Fabi, who now lives in Germany, did not attend and alleged that the summit specifically excluded queer women and thus was not fully representative.

She argued that that some of the organisers and participants of the summit “are embarrassed to work with or defend queer and trans women rights,” adding that such conservative summits could not represent the human rights of all Afghan women.

Activist Wahida Amiri, who now lives in the US, did not attend the summit as she feared that there would be compromises over women’s rights.

“Our worry is that politicians might make deals behind closed doors with the terrorist group,” says Amiri, who protested in Afghanistan for women’s rights. “We are not willing to demand women’s rights under the Taleban’s flag, because that is not just, and we will not engage with Taliban lobbyists. We must work toward fighting the Taleban, prosecuting the group, and removing them from power.”

Human rights activist Palwasha Paiwandi was not invited to the summit and said that she also feared the gathering might indeed lead to negotiations with the Taleban. She warned that dissenting voices had been unable to have a “direct role” in drafting the final version of the resolution and that its content did not align with what was discussed in the committees.

Halima Pazhwak, the head of the Afghan Republican Women’s Network, received an invitation to the event but decided to boycott it. She said that summits should be welcomed if they led to practical actions, gathering that were limited to discussions and resolutions had few real effects.

She concluded, “Many summits have been held, but none have had a positive impact on the Afghan people, especially women.”

Women for Afghanistan did not respond to numerous requests for comment.

Locations Afghanistan

Topics Women's rights, Advocacy, Civil society