India reaches out to Taliban in Afghanistan
The Ministry of External Affairs on Friday confirmed that an Indian delegation, led by Mr J P Singh, Joint Secretary (Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran Division) in the ministry, is on a visit to Afghanistan.
The Ministry of External Affairs on Friday confirmed that an Indian delegation, led by Mr J P Singh, Joint Secretary (Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran Division) in the ministry, is on a visit to Afghanistan.
The Taliban’s imposition of strict measures in Afghanistan, particularly concerning women’s rights and media freedoms, underscores a contentious backdrop against the centuries-old global struggle of women for equal rights.
The deportation order has brought to the fore the recurring debate in the South Asian region regarding illegal/undocumented migrants and refugees, as states have not ratified the International Conven- tion of Refugees.
Pakistan and Afghanistan have a shared but contentious history, overlapping identities, a disputed border, divided ethnicity and bifurcated tribes.
Taliban forces recently stopped around 100 Afghan girls from going abroad to pursue their higher education at the University of Dubai. Since the takeover in 2021, the Taliban regime has banned or restricted education for girls beyond class six in Afghanistan.
Afghan women must now wear the burqa that covers them entirely, with only their eyes exposed, or they can wear an abaya, along with a hijab, and a face veil.
The women marched through the streets of the capital on Tuesday holding signs calling for justice despite intimidation attempts by Taliban operatives, who threatened them with violence, RFE/RL reported.
In response to the Taliban diktat making the hijab compulsory for Afghan women, the US stated that if the Taliban do not halt their actions, it will increase pressure on the regime.
Women's rights have grown steadily throughout the international presence in Afghanistan, but the Taliban's return threatens this progress.
Canada has condemned the recent decision by the Taliban to oblige women to wear the all-covering burqa in public places in Afghanistan.