At a press conference in New York, the foreign ministers of Germany, Canada, Australia, and the Netherlands took a critical step toward defending the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan. They announced that their countries would pursue legal action to hold the Taliban regime accountable for its continued violations of women's rights.

Show larger version of image

Close

This joint effort is grounded in the demand for the Taliban to uphold Afghanistan’s international obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), which Afghanistan ratified in 2003. While no country officially recognizes the Taliban as the legitimate government of Afghanistan, the regime remains bound by the country’s international commitments.

Following the announcement, 22 additional countries expressed their support for the initiative. This growing international coalition may lead to a case being brought before the International Court of Justice in The Hague, which adjudicates disputes between UN member states.

Afghanistan remains the only country in the world that has banned girls from secondary and higher education, while also enforcing severe restrictions on women’s employment, political participation, and even their presence in public life. Women's movements are highly restricted, and they are prohibited from being seen or heard in public spaces. The international community is uniting in response to these grave human rights violations, affirming that such oppression cannot go unchallenged.