Taliban ban Afghan women from working in non-governmental organizations.
It wasn’t clear whether the ban, which was announced in a written statement and confirmed by the ministry of economy, also applied to foreign women, or people working for the United Nations, which has an important presence in the country.
According to the economy ministry, the ban is applicable to Afghanistan’s coordinating body of humanitarian organisations (ACBAR), which does not include UN.
The UN does contract with NGOs in Afghanistan that are part ACBAR to help it carry out its humanitarian work.
The letter stated that female employees would not have the right to work for non-governmental organizations until further notice, as they had not complied with the Taliban’s Islamic dress code for women.
Economy ministry stated that it received serious complaints from female employees about not wearing hijab or headscarf.
This ban comes just days after Afghan women were prevented from attending university. A move that was condemned internationally.
Recent protests by women who want to attend university have been dispersed by the Taliban using water cannons.
Witnesses in Herat’s western city said that more than 20 women were on Saturday chanting “education, our right” when they arrived at the house of the provincial governor. They were stopped by security forces who fired water cannons.
Video of women running to the surface and screaming for help.
Maryam, one of the organizers of the protests, stated that between 100-150 women participated in the protests. She said they moved in smaller groups.
She said that security was present on every street and square. There were also armoured vehicles and armed people.
“When we began our protest in Tariqi Park the Taliban took branches out of the trees and beat us. We continued to protest. They increased their security presence. They brought out the water gun at 11 a.m.
Use Chrome browser to access a better video player
Hamidullah Mutawakil (the local governor) disputed this version of events and said that only five people showed up with “no agenda” and just arrived to make a movie.
The Taliban took power in Afghanistan last year and promised to provide a more liberal rule for women’s rights. However, they have banned them from all schools, most jobs, parks, and gyms.
The country’s women are required to wear a niqab covering their entire body, except for their eyes, when they go out in public.
reply
retweet
favourite
