Senior UN officials in Afghanistan to press for women’s rights

Top United Nations officials visiting Afghanistan have held talks with the Taliban-led administration to discuss women’s education and work, weeks after authorities banned most women from working at NGOs and female students from attending universities.

The UN delegation that arrived on Monday included Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed – the highest-ranking woman at the UN – and Sima Bahous, executive secretary of UN Women, according to spokesman Farhan Haq said. Also attending was Khaled Khiari, a senior official of the UN Department of Political Affairs.

Last week, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres denounced the “unprecedented, systemic attacks on women’s and girls’ rights”, which he said “are creating gender-based apartheid”.

On Tuesday, Mohammed met Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi, Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister.

“FM Muttaqi expressed hope that the delegation would portray Afghanistan’s true picture to the international community,” ministry spokesman Abdel Qahar Balkhi said in a tweet.

“FM Muttaqi added that women are engaged in educational & health sectors in significant numbers whereas those who used to work in government offices are paid salaries at home,” he continued.