What Is The Price Of “Peace” With The Taliban?

Women’s Rights in Afghanistan: We Will #NeverGoBack

On the 30th anniversary of International Development Week February 2nd to 8th, we celebrate the tremendous strides made by women and human rights advocates in Afghanistan, while we remain vigilant in ensuring that those steps forward are not threatened. We will #NEVERGOBACK.

The story of the dramatic gains for women in Afghanistan is not well told in the West. From the women who are running successful businesses, to women in leadership positions throughout government, to the women we see every night on TV as broadcasters, singers and actors, women in Afghanistan are back in public life, despite the risks they face. But nowhere has this progress been more significant than in the sector where our organization is focused: education. Millions of girls attend schools today, in stark contrast to the dark days of Taliban rule when they were banned from classrooms. Nearly two decades after the end of Taliban rule, a generation of girls have grown up in a freer country, and the evidence is in the thousands of young women who graduate from universities every year. This progress is something worth protecting, and it reminds us that the world turns on the education of women and girls.

That’s why we have a responsibility to ensure that not one right is forfeited in the name of peace with the Taliban. Direct talks between the Taliban and the United States Government, represented by the US Peace Envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, occurred throughout 2019, up until September, when they were called off by the US Government following a renewed spate of violence perpetrated by the Taliban in Afghanistan. By January 2020, it was reported that the Taliban would accept a 7–10 day ceasefire, but it was unclear whether this would be a complete halt of the use of violence or simply, a “reduction” in violence, or if the Taliban will follow through on the promise.

The Taliban are not currently in any direct negotiation with the Government of Afghanistan, and the citizens of Afghanistan do not currently have any representation in talks. The omission of these two parties — undeniably the most important stakeholders to this process — is a grave limitation of the current efforts at holding talks. For this reason, it cannot be said that a true “peace process” is yet underway.

One of our major concerns is the Taliban stance on women. The Taliban have explicitly stated their desire that the Constitution — which provides for women’s equal rights — be revised, and have been euphemistic and vague about women’s rights, attaching conditions such as education will be according “to Afghan values” or “to Islam,” with no precision on how these will be defined, interpreted, or enforced. A peace that empowers the Taliban at the expense of women will be no peace at all.

We are also worried about the trustworthiness of promises made in any negotiation. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has voiced his concern that the Taliban could use a peace agreement as a “Trojan horse to overthrow the Government,” a concern shared by many Afghan women and human rights advocates. Taliban promises of more enlightened policies and practices are not supported by the evidence on the ground.

The character of negotiation efforts to date suggests there is a risk that Afghanistan’s legitimate political institutions will be circumvented. Afghanistan today has an elected government based on a parliamentary democracy. The rebirth of these political institutions is the result of a massive investment of resources, risk and effort on the part of Afghans and the international community. While still evolving, these institutions of governance have been in place for a decade and a half, and millions of Afghans participate in them, whether as voters, members of parliament, local politicians, or provincial counsellors. Allowing the Taliban to impose demands over the country outside of the processes established by these institutions presents a problem of legitimacy, and is a blow to Afghanistan’s democratic development efforts.

Related to this is the need to ensure the representation of the people of Afghanistan. So far, the peace talks lack any representation of the population of Afghanistan. Indeed, their own Government is not a party to talks to date. Yet, no party has more of an interest in the outcome of peace talks than the people of Afghanistan.

And while the Taliban have expressed their desire to rule over Afghanistan once again, Afghans reject Taliban rule, and are still picking up the pieces from the devastating loss of freedoms and rights experienced when the Taliban governed Afghanistan until 2001. Relinquishing power to the Taliban in whole or in part would be a devastating betrayal to the Afghan people of epic proportions. It would also be an outcome that denies the will of the people, whose preferences — to not live under the authoritarian and violent rule of the Taliban — have been well documented in survey after survey.

Finally, the Taliban have demonstrated little commitment to ceasing their perpetration of terrorism, as they continued to carry out attacks against civilians — including women and children — at all stages of the negotiations with the US throughout 2019. It is also unclear whether the Taliban movement is unified enough to enforce the terms of a peace agreement, including any ceasefire.

The Way Forward

Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan stands with the women of Afghanistan, who have made it clear they are not willing to live under the edicts they endured during Taliban rule, and have said unequivocally that they will not give up their hard gained rights since the Taliban were ousted from power in 2001. We envision an Afghanistan where peace includes the protection of human rights for all, where Afghans are free to continue to pursue the social, political and economic development of their country and its integration into the international community, and where security prevails.

The United States, the United Nations and the rest of the international community have an obligation — under international law — to uphold the protection of women’s human rights before, during and after any peace negotiation, and this commitment should be central to the pursuit of any lasting agreement made with the Taliban and to enforcement mechanisms. Peace should not come at the cost of rights — which is no peace at all. The people of Afghanistan deserve nothing less.

The only acceptable peace process is one that includes the broad participation of the people of Afghanistan and represents their voices through formal mechanisms built into the process; recognizes the Government of Afghanistan as a full and equal party; includes the priorities, objectives, and grievances Afghan women want addressed through a peace process; is characterized by an immediate and permanent cessation of violence during and after negotiations; preserves and works within all of Afghanistan’s democratic institutions and processes; and includes a plan for robust monitoring of parties’ adherence to a peace agreement with clearly defined consequences for non-compliance, including those intended to protect women’s rights.

We all have a part to play. There has never been a more important time to demand that women have a seat at the table. We call on you to raise your voice during IDW, and as long as it takes, to protect the hard-won rights of Afghan women and women everywhere. #NeverGoBack

What can you do?

1. Tell your neighbours, your friends, your MPs, and other women’s rights’ groups!

2. Join us in New York in March: We will be hosting speakers from Afghanistan who will share their concerns and recommendations at a parallel event to the 64th Commission on the Status of Women of the United Nations, on March 16th; for complete details click on our events calendar.

3. Support us! Volunteer or donate to our advocacy efforts by contacting community@cw4wafghan.ca.

Read our full position statement on the issue of negotiations with the Taliban, here.